The downside of midwest is the repair ; the cost differences are actually not much different when you fix/repair something large.

If you are going to invest remotely, I suggest narrowing down the regions/markets you are would like to invest in, then take each step of due diligence to figure out what that market offers, any downsides to not being local, etc. 

But also, yes, house hacking is probably going to make the biggest difference in your life in the short term if you have a decent w2.

HOA prices and restrictions is probably the next biggest thing to pay attention to as they will have a lot of influence on your profit margin and growth potential.

Today Buyers will need to be more savvy which they should be making the biggest investment in their life.They can source online information but realize now when they go shopping they are gonna have to pay for it out of pocket.This will 100% reduce the number of agents out there which is not a bad thing, and it will be very good for those agents who are good at what they do.

One of the benefits of investing in California City is that there is less of a downside than many other areas if the market turns.

The biggest players keep the wheels turning by deal volume and keeping people busy.

I believe the biggest arguments against Portsmouth are the high local taxes and of course the crime.

The biggest value add for BRRRs are Bathrooms and kitchens. 

Which shows you the downside of today’s high rates.