Vegas meets most of this except the competition part but that is a plus in my mind as to overall perceived value and appreciation forcast.

Roberto - do you perceive a certain irony here...YOU graduated from Georgetown with a Master's in RE, but you are asking US what to watch out for?!

The LLC will add extra costs both up front and at tax time, and unless you follow the operating guidelines to the letter, any perceived benefit in terms of risk is weak at best.Kent

If they perceive you as demanding, they may be less motivated to do a good job or they may cut corners which might leave you redoing those same repairs very soon.Just a suggestion...David J Dachtera"Success is not a destination.

There is no right or wrong answer since everyone's tolerance for risk (even if only perceived) is different. 

I think many worry about how they will be perceived ... don't want to look bad, unwise, silly, etc.

Well there are ton of factors at play.For a buyer it becomes what is the headache for the perceived return?

My situation is similar to your MILs except I would't have family to give as much help as I perceive she got.

The way you perceive yourself in your head is how eventually other people see you because the image in your head about yourself dictates how you present yourself.

If you chase cash flow in another state you may be very disappointed as capex and turnover can eat up whatever perceived cash flow you thought there would be and on top of that real estate that doesn’t appreciate is expensive to sell, ie you could be writing a check just to sell.