And let me not forget to mention, it’s MUCH more affordable. 

@Amir PortalFort Worth (Southside): Affordable entry points with growing rental demand due to development and school proximity.Arlington: A solid mix of price points and strong rental potential, especially near UT Arlington or entertainment districts.Focus on areas with rising population growth, job opportunities, and low vacancy rates.

The last one, however, started with many people from two certain neighborhoods, gathered by a local non-profit, who spoke much about affordable housing, being displaced, etc.

When you add that: "The downpayment and closing costs would be one large hurdle"; I can't tell if you can only afford to do this once (thus tying up whatever you have saved) or multiple times.  

National debt is to high, we couldn’t afford higher interest rates.  

My biggest conundrum now is I want to be my own GC because even when I play with smaller numbers they’re still out of reach for me to be able to attain this goal and afford the monthly mortgage with taxes and insurance.

You only do that if you are rich enough to afford it. 

This is the heart of the reason housing isn't mroe affordable, that landlords bear these types of costs every day.You could probably find cheaper labor, especially to haul away the junk, but not easily as an out of state investor. 

It's a super affordable real estate market where you can still find deals that hit the 1% rule anywhere from $120-180k for a single family (or $200-250k for a multifamily) purchase price.

Getting pre-approved you'll know how much you can afford.