He sales his stake and the next guy comes out picks a spot hits the ground with his axe and finds the largest nugget of gold ever seen some 51 pounds of gold.

Pound the pavement and talk to people.  

I hate to over simplify, but "Pound the Pavement".

Nothing 'on the fringe' of an undesirable neighborhood.5.

I have a background in construction, more on the management and finance side, but I have pounded more than a few nails in my day.I have always had a interest in Real Estate but have always put more energy into my family and career.

The only hang up is that I have a dog (25 pound dog).

I have been chasing my tail to get any of them to respond to letters with requests for information, tracking them down in person, Any ideas to get these tenants to sign a lease without coming off as a 300 pound gorilla?

While that price tag is appealing, the trade off is often a lot of tenancy issues (including the whole Section 8 hassle with housing authorities), huge rehab requirements because of long-deferred maintenance etc,  as well as lost equity because homes in these areas are unlikely to sell for any substantial amount no matter what condition they are in, simply due to the neighborhood - so any refurb equity is basically cancelled out by the undesirable location and the condition of surrounding properties, crime rate, etc.If you do decide to go the TK route, I have a lot more to say about the questions you should be asking of any provider you consider (and if you look at any of my past posts, I harp on this point quite a bit).

This is not foolproof, but it can be pressurized with an air compressor at low pressure, about 50-60 pounds.

There is always a 'range' of rental prices and the more you can keep your property at the top of that range, the more likely you are to have tenants who don't want to risk losing their place by missing their rent or other undesirable behaviour.