Property values have been appreciating rapidly in recent years, and the city’s population has started growing again—a trend we haven’t seen in decades.I’m also based in California and have been investing in Detroit for several years, so I understand the concerns of out-of-state investing.

Currently my husband are out of state investors with 3 single family rentals in KC. 

@John Reagan Johnson hope you don't mind a PMC answering, but most of our clients hire us because:1) They live out of state and don't have time & expertise to remote manage2) They don't have the time to manage3) They don't feel they have the necessary expertise and/or don't want to risk learning as they go and making an expensive mistake.Go read Kiosaki's Cash Flow Quadrant book.

Get out of your comfort zone.

For the son to qualify for the $250k exclusion, I believe he would most likely need to meet the ownership and use test, meaning he needs to own and live in the home as his primary residence for at least two of the last five years before the sale.

I would do a Google search of realtors in your target areas and find those with the highest ratings.

This is the heart of the reason housing isn't mroe affordable, that landlords bear these types of costs every day.You could probably find cheaper labor, especially to haul away the junk, but not easily as an out of state investor. 

Gets you in the door and you can learn.

It tends to hide marks better.Walls: Neutral tones like SW Repose Gray, Behr Swiss Coffee, or Moore Classic Gray are renter-friendly and modern.Trim and Doors: Use a crisp white like SW Extra White or Moore Chantilly Lace.Accent Walls: For a touch of style, consider an accent wall in soft blue-gray. 

WE also make sure our driveways are 4 feet wider than Lennar this way when they step out of the car they land on concrete NOT dirt .