It’s too far north for my taste as well.  

It's possible you could add a lot of value if you attracted one of the few potential buyers who are interested in it... but it's a very limited pool and your money would be better spent improving the property to the tastes of the majority of the buyer pool (repaint, curb appeal, kitchen remodel, bedroom conversion, etc).

I think most people who have a bad taste about wholesaling either haven't done it or have run into some who do it wrong.I was a full time investor for 8 years before I began wholesaling.

Thanks it will be very tastefully doneSomething like  3 or 5 in this  https://blog.intheswim.com/15-awesome-above-ground-pool-deck...

Does he have some good advice, yes, but it's not gospel and needs to be tailored to a person's own tastes and interests.

The returns might not be an outrageous deal (obviously the numbers have to work), but it will be a safe first property that will yield return, and will not leave a sour taste in your mouth about rental property investing. 

Also, I've got some friends who are planning to visit the Finger Lakes in a few weeks (mid November) to go wine tasting and had another friend celebrating their birthday in the area this past weekend.

That's even better from a lifestyle point of view because you can go to different properties every time, have a much bigger choice of properties and stay in properties that are much more luxurious than those you would be a co-owner in rather than be limited to the ones you own.Mind you, many people buy lifestyle properties overseas but that is because they want to stay regularly in their own house the decoration of which fits their taste and they feel at home, can leave their stuff there,...

The idea of buying two rentals, one with cash reserves and another with Heloc sounds like too bold a move for my taste. 

We just purchased our primary residence in Orange County in December so we got a taste of how competitive the SoCal market is right now in terms of contingencies, etc.