Most people would agree that sweet spots between 1-1.5% in B and C neighborhoods are a better gamble.

Either manage yourself or do what I do and outsource to offshore virtual assistants

Otherwise you are gambling.  

Unless you want to gamble and invest in start-up companies, most other type of investments don't produce much yield. 10% CCR on a $100k investment is only $10k/yr.

I ran into the same issues that you did… self managing is great, but you need help in order to scale and grow your businessSo now I’ve got people offshore managing my properties at a very high quality for a fraction of the cost, something worth considering.Mine can set door codes, message (or call) guests, schedule cleaners, adjust the thermostat, monitor my cameras, & call a plumber just as easily as a local PM can, for 1% of the costThey handle everything themselves and rarely need to get me involved in anything, it is the perfect hands off low cost operationI wrote much more about leveraging offshore assistants in this post here.

Rent range $650-750(3br 1 bath) on some properties..Most above poverty line making $2500-3K a month...Most want affordable homes to live a certain lifestyle..Nice cars, clothes, travel,gamble (one pays for private school), etc.....so it varies...I require 3x rent...Better success for tenant and self...

It is a calculated gamble.

A farmer who hasn’t bought new jeans in a decade will likely have lower living expense vs someone who reported 100,000 in gambling losses on their tax return. 

It could appreciate but I consider that gambling.

It’s all a big gamble.