I would generally steer clear of them if your goal is to build wealth, since you miss out on the biggest benefits of RE investing, which is equity build up. 

If you think your agent would steer you into a property that doesn't fit your model it's probably time to find an agent who cares about your goals.

If you don't have any like that then call your insurance agent and they can more than likely steer you in the right direction.I can't imagine that it would have done any structural damage but I'm not completely sure. 

I wish I could steer you in one direction, but I am new to this myself!

I hope those who are progressive in business would steer away from working with those who think like you.

Looking for some general guidance to steer me down the path.

There is quite a bit of low income and rough areas in Kalamazoo (worse than GR), so you might steer clear of the sub-800 rent range or build some high maintenance costs into your pro forma.

My Managment team is a keller Williams office and they straight out told me up front they they and many others steer clear from that area. 

We generally steer away from places like Ikea, as it’s a bit too well known, quality can vary widely and it’s harder to actually order from them online.

I'd steer you away from anything short of a direct referral to get the work done though...