Looking at this past week's CMI, it's interesting to see the buyer/seller positioning in the SE-ish area compared to the NW-ish area with rates high 6's in JanuaryStill bullish on W/NW future demand due to TSMC factory and other companies (dashboard snapshot below) but time will tell.

You want to focus on areas where you have a competitive advantage (you have lived there or you have family and friends there) and then compare those areas against widespread list of great areas to invest.Good luck!

PMs can minimize their suffering from unrealistic expectations by showing comparable properties that are on the market for rent and having a discussion with the landlord as to how their property compares and how his property can be more attractive to renters.Landlords are running a business. 

Appreciation kind of lags compared to other places further east in northern Alabama.

Happy to share insights and compare notes!

If your rent ends up being comparable to your current mortgage, it might not give you the cash flow flexibility you’re hoping for.

It's a new resource from BiggerPockets that helps you find reliable property management partnerships and gives you everything you need to make confident hiring decisions:-Expert Matching: Match with professionals who meet your criteria-Extra Assurance: See licenses, experience, ratings, reviews, and more that can be cross-checked with BiggerPockets members-Bonus Content: Plus they'll send you an interactive workbook: “How to Interview Property Management Companies”Hope this helps!

We don’t know any PMCs to recommend in the area mentioned, but since selecting the wrong PMC is usually more harmful than selecting a bad tenant, you might want to read our series about “How to Screen a PMC Better than a Tenant”:https://www.biggerpockets.com/member-blogs/3094/91877-how-to-screen-a-pmc-better-than-a-tenant-part-1-services-and-processesWe recommend you get management contracts from several PMCs and compare the services they cover and, more importantly, what they each DO NOT cover.

Co-living provides built-in diversification, lowering your financial risk compared to single-lease rentals.5.

The best way to see if someone is a reliably paying tenant is by their credit score.