An eviction will make it challenging for her ever to find a quality rental in low vacancy areas.  

I would assume a greater emphasis on quality of materials and workmanship (and consequently higher rehab cost) for a rental where the investor will have to deal with the longer term implications of any corners that were cut.

The quality of your tenant is just as important as the investment you make.  

However, while I was still getting contractor bids for different projects, I found 3 different companies that are quick (based off of their contracts and guarantees) and have good quality of work (based off of previous and current investor feedback) but come at the cost of price.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

Lots and lots of research.Price points also help, block quality, etc.

This project highlights our commitment to high-quality living spaces in Columbus.

Make cosmetic updates if needed, offer free months rent on a longer lease, make sure your units have qualities like laundry and AC. 

Are their listings detailed with good-quality photos?

Qualified applicants that get priced out of rapidly improving neighborhoods will move into these areas but it seems like they aren’t biting.High quality, lower income applicants aren’t stupid and they won’t settle.If you think this area is a losing proposition, I would think about selling and not banking on hope.In regard to vacancy, I don’t consider any area that has average occupancy (economic and physical) below 95%You might pay more for a better area but time will treat you right and you’ll make a ton of money in equity over the long term.