I've had a rental in Phoenix (so a warm climate) for the last 8 years that has a fireplace. 

Who knows this tenant might be fine but the next well it's a toss up...You might think about letting your dad sell the property and asking him for some $$ to invest in a property in Rochester instead or to partner with you, with all the new jobs going on there and the Mayo Clinic the housing climate is going to continue to get hotter and that's where your at, and able to manage a closer rental property from.If you do choose to take the deal make sure because it's sensible.

Although it may be more challenging to find deals of any type in this climate I know they are out there. 

So naturally when our time came, I was the only tenant-occupied unit, all the other owners wanted to convert (understandably).As for your friend, who knows what the political climate will be like when she is offered to convert. 

Being creative and efficient in how the structures are built can have the numbers looking pretty good depending on your approach.The climate of the city as far as its tenant protections are concerned aren't likely to change and the cost of construction is equally unlikely to dip too much.

In the current climate these type of loans are tough to find.

After getting out alive (and with all my equity) we did some research and decided that San Antonio would provide a great climate for rehabbing.

I doubt that you have water collecting in the corner with freezing, lifting and shifting block, like we can have in the colder climates.

I have no expertise on bank underwriting and related regulations, but my guess is that even if a good credit person is found, rolling out 10 mortgages is not a walk in the park in the current lending climate.

I do think that if the lending climate tightens up vs. what it was like before 2000, its possible we'll stabilize at a lower level than pre 2000.