I actually worked for a large apartment management company for a few years which allowed me to gain experience and observe best practices and systems that need to be in place for the business to run efficiently and successfully.

This is my observation and my opinion, Raleigh and Durham are the cities , therefore one street can be really bad but the next street can be really good.

Hello @Matt M.You asked for observations from the field.

One observation I will note is the immense growth in vineyards and wineries in Traverse City - I feel as though that'll be fruitful in the long-run. 

It closely parallels party affiliation in my observation.

What I observed in hindsight was that very few houses on the street had the one foot tube popping out of the ground in front of their homes (well) , to be exact I counted about total of 3 houses on a street of about 15 houses.

One dynamic that I am observing in the current marketplace is the migration to quality and safety. 

I would also caution you as I’ve observed a lot of very cheap deals available down there but IMO there’s an abundance of cheap supply there which may point to - obviously- a lack of demand.

Follow a script which is based on the rental criteria.Offer to show the property only to those who pass the interview.At the showing have a copy of your rental criteria, property description flyer, and your rental agreement available for viewing.At the showing observe the applicant (demeanor, what interests them about the property, condition of their car, do they smell of smoke, etc.) and answer any questions they may have. 

From my personal observations though, the forums give you lot's of opposing views.