@Joe Villeneuve I think what I would find most helpful is just knowing what average rents are in a specific area, home values, average household income, etc.

The most-correlated metrics are:Supply (as measured by persons per unit)Median Household Income GrowthJob GrowthPopulation GrowthI used these four metrics to score each MSA with a population of 100,000 or more.

I was fairly undisciplined with my personal spending after growing up in an incredibly poor household with a single mother (working in real estate during the global recession) trying to raise my two younger siblings and me.

Another thing to keep in mind is that you may want to only have on person on each mortgage as to allow you to have more available to the household. 4 per person for 8 total vice just 4.

That plus the low growth rate in household income and the bad schools. 

Just off the top of my head, things I would consider to be relevant in assessing the "health" of a community are demographics like the average age of people living there, percentage of the population who are home owners (as opposed to renters), average household income, recent economic growth of the region, the kind of jobs coming in to the region. 

My goals are to build a second income for my family that will replace the lack of a dual income in my household. 

If the wife is not on title, not on the loan, and not living in the same household as the husband, she is irrelevant to the bank, as far as income. 

We will say 736$ Total renting and household cost to you then is -400$ Now if you live in one side, Making big assumptions here total income:1000$ total rent but you apply the 50% rule to the total possible income2000 possible income *50% -1000(your side) - mortgage 654$Total renting and household cost to you then is -654$I am not saying to go one way or the other!

We always prefer if it's 4-6x+ higher, and also prefer dual income households for that reason, although it always boils down to best candidates.