There are good areas in Illinois, such as Belleville, Granite City, etc. 

I have posted in the past on doing granite and would highly recommend using a hard surface (for longevity and beauty) but of course not at retail prices.

The GC assumed I would flip and gave me answers as though I was going to put in recessed can lights and granite in the kitchen.

The owners had a friend who has a granite company. 

Most of the time a good rental will be in a solid neighborhood, but it won’t be huge, it won’t be new, and it won’t have granite countertops.

By no means should you scrimp and cut corners, but maybe granite countertops and hardwood floors dont fit with the price range you can get at your location.Personally, I dont like dealing with people all that much so I use property management companies to interface with the tenants. 

I know it is a cheaper option but not sure it is worth it vs. granite or quartz.

Thought I could save money using a huge slab of granite I found for $7/sqft at a Habitat for Humanity.

I have looked at FCI, Watermark, Granite and PPR.

A couple of places you can find notes with reputable sellers are Granite, Watermark and NotesDirect.