I know of investors who have done this using the "whole block" strategy, and I have a reasonable feel for it in my own little area, but outside of that my experience of what makes a neighborhood 'come back':No intrinsic reason for decline other than decline - i.e. it's not next door to a sewage plant or trash dumpHouses were reasonably well-built and well-sized to begin with Within easy walking distance of anything worth getting to - a downtown, a really nice park, a fantastic library, a great shopping centerA high ratio of owner-occupied to rental property(Sad but true) A low percentage of immigrants and minority groups (this could include whites depending on the area); there are still a lot of prejudiced buyers/renters out thereA perception of physical & personal safetyReasonably close to centers of employment

I know Foxconn is building a huge plant in the area, so if everything goes right, it should be a good place to invest.

I guess you could ask Elon if he plans to put a Tesla plant there.

There are a lot of manufacturers opening plants and distribution centers in the area that will keep the middle class employed.

A few years back I helped a client fill a rental a long term rental and the approved tenant was coming to the area to manage part of the construction of a power plant and expected to be there about 3 years.

I'm not an experienced wholesaler or investor, but I am also a process oriented person - I write power plant operating procedures for a living right now.  

I would probably reach out to one of the guys over at La Plante.

@Michael Plante it appears cozy is merging with apartments.com and is not taking any new accounts under cozy.co.  

And, by the way, many of title plants I know of are owned by attorneys.

You might be able to get some things here...but gas stations, businesses, warehouses, manufacturing plants, etc. are kind of outside of the real of this site.