Quote from @Andrew Steffens: I think going into an STR purchase with reasonable expectations of cashflow in this current market and rate environment is admirable. 

I’m excited to take my first steps into real estate investing and have decided to focus on Pittsburgh for my first property.I’d love to hear your thoughts on:*Neighborhoods or areas in Pittsburgh that are good for investment and typical price ranges I should expect.

Don't let them choose for you.Just inspect what you expect....Also I would talk to housing office in Memphis to get a feel of how many people are on the Section 8 waitlist, what kind of rents they pay, what zip codes are they targeting, see if they have any stats about how long tenants stay and average rent.While a lot of people try to look at google street view to get an idea of the neighborhood, there is no substitute for visiting in person.

Considering most homes will not cash flow with 20% or less down, plan on 20% and most likely 25% down required - depending on the cash flow expectations. 

Otherwise, you will have to explain the large deposit and possibly the source of the funds to buy the crypto.You can expect to need about 20 percent of the overall costs of the purchase and rehab.

@Jared FisherRecommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

Also know that building a home seldom goes as expected - I have relatives that just built a nicer house… they thought it would take 9 months… it literally took 18-24 months between delays in permitting and the builder just not being able to get it done in a timely manner - often due to sub-contractor issues.  

For example if rent is $2,500, you would expect total gross income of 7,500/month if my criteria is 3x income?

Do you expect it to appreciate?

These course providers tend to sell their customer base on  unrealistic expectations or teach the most basic of concepts which are easily picked up through a book or merely browsing through these forums.