Even still, it could be said that I've still lost money due to my time on the tools instead of prospecting as a real estate agent (the cost of lost opportunity).If you can truly do 80%-90% of the work yourself (at acceptable quality levels) and you aren't sacrificing your time where you can get better returns for your efforts, then yes, it can work even up here in Canada.

Historically, full service management on the coast has been costly but in recent months management rates have come down and quality has improved.

Consider offloading an underperformer, or a high equity property and getting better, larger or more assets.

Quote from @Michael Smythe: @Jerry NoguerasRecommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

I just wasn't sure if it is my responsibility to do something if the electric bill is high and are not satisfied. do I have to be concerned about that?

Then definitely get a quality PM and rent it out for a bit.

"Good" areas will be priced high, "Bad" areas will be priced low. 

Think I better clarify - this isn't an altruistic attempt to help VRBO 😄, but rather a hope that it might result in a higher overall booking rate if both platforms perform at a high level

3) What neighborhoods would you recommend in this price range if I'm targeting high quality tenants?

Could be a business decision based on keeping long-term high quality tenants rather than risk the costs on turnover.