So, you, as an individual, may not get to the same rate that a MASSIVE national builder can...but you can certainly offer credits to the buyers to help buy down the rates. 

It targets individuals who understand the risks and rewards of income-based investments, rather than traditional property ownership.4.

When there is no court involved there is no case number (that's a simple indicator to look for in a notice if you have not researched the details of the property code) so you have to look elsewhere, but, where and what to look for?

What I don’t understand is how to overlay all of that information to pick a good spot and I also don’t understand the appropriate thresholds for each of those indices (income, percentage in the target age group, and how dense).

Its my understanding that the individuals are responsible for all the legalities, contracts ect to make it safe not to get ripped off. 

Your 1031 will ultimately be only as good as the individuals directly assigned to your exchange.  

Population growth, job diversity, and low DOM (days on market) are significant indicators.

The historical appreciate indicates it will not keep up with inflation and therefore loose value in inflation adjusted dollars.  

Look for ownership name in LLC and address's other than property, these 2 things are very good indicators it's a rental property. 

I see that real estate agents and brokers are too negative on sub to deals……investors looking for low interest rates and or low down payments are too positive on the same.As I stated the reality is somewhere in between, depending on individual circumstances.