In Britain it's typically split between buyer and seller, 1-7% total, average 4% but with total transaction costs factored in it's actually more expensive there.

Those that use PM's have pointed out that there is a cost factor of also having to manage your PM as well - following up behind them, making sure they are doing what they are supposed to be doing, etc.Hope it helps!

Actually the IRS does not tell us what we can invest in, only what is disallowed (life insurance contracts and collectibles).Allowable investments for SDIRA investing include the following:Residential real estate, including: apartments, single family homes, and duplexesCommercial real estate Undeveloped or raw landREITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts)Real estate notes (mortgages and deeds of trusts)Promissory notes Private limited partnerships, limited liability companies, and C corporationsTax lien certificatesOil and gas investmentsPrivate stock offerings, private placementsJudgments/structured settlementsGold bullion Factoring investments

Currently content is a big factor is rankings. 

Is it driven by higher rents in that market or what's the underlying factor from what you have seen?  

What factors lead to this decision?

In his experience, Memphis’s higher-than-typical rent-to-price ratio sounded great in theory, but property management turned out to be a huge factor-especially if you’re not local.

Look into any and all factors you can think of regarding those areas so that if/when you decide to research other markets, you know what information to look for. 

See the chart from Fair Isaac Company (FICO) below: FICO Score Pct of Population Default Probability 800 or more 13.00% 1.00% 750-799 27.00% 1.00% 700-749 18.00% 4.40% 650-699 15.00% 8.90% 600-649 12.00% 15.80% 550-599 8.00% 22.50% 500-549 5.00% 28.40% Less than 499 2.00% 41.00% Source: Fair Isaac CompanyAccording to this chart, investors should use corresponding vacancy+tenant-nonperformance factors of approximately 5% for Class A rentals, 10% for Class B and 20% for Class C.To address Class C payment challenges, many industry "experts" are now selling programs to newbie investors about how Section 8 tenants are the cure.

This focus gives you a national reach, and that oh-so-important factor; scalability.