That will make this (or anything in the same price range) a much safer deal, generally.If it's been remodeled, why did you figure 3K for repairs - just miscellaneous improvements you'd want to make?

use those funds to improve credit worthiness, and finance more rehabs. 

Exterior capital improvements are complete, except for a laundry facility we are planning to add. 

Hard part is making sure you can improve/add to the existing property or a development is more ideal. 

I would work on getting more equity in the property either by doing improvements if there is room to increase the ARV or you could always save up for a conventional loan.

So the OZ alone shouldn't be the only thing driving the improvement of this area.  

Plan to rent it out after I move, looking for improvements to make to increase rental cash flow.

What those features are depends largely on neighborhood and on what's important in that neighborhood, and whether you're improving the property to flip it or to rent it. 

Code § 453 (l) (2) (B) (ii) (II) which states "any residential lot, but only if the taxpayer (or any related person) is not to make any improvements with respect to such lot."  

Every 6 months or so, move into another unit, fix it up, and raise the rents in the unit(s) you've already improved.