The metric is different for you buying as an owner/part-occupier, vs someone buying the whole thing purely as an investment.

Robert Scaife Pure anecdote here but I find Zestimates to run a little high.

A lot of companies will send you pre-sorted first class, but if your pure motive is saving money, don't use that route. 

Lots of good markets for purely cash flow, the bigger question is what team are you going to work with - turnkey or not.  

I'm a year into a deal that we bought purely on pro forma, and had to give the owner FAR more than he deserved in order to win it.  

Hello Frank,Is this pure investment or do you have specifics that they are looking for for their own use?

Do you think the higher return outweighs the risks (such as crime, vacancies, and maintenance expenses) when compared to a property in say downtown or midtown Sacramento which seems to me a pure appreciation play right now?

If they've owned it purely as a 2nd home then there will be no getting around a tax event upon sale.  

I thought of tile and stone but that is more cost to bare and I'm not on that kind of budget.Someone else mentioned going ahead and painting the book shelves and fireplace pure white and either leaving the mantle wood or painting it black to match the fireplace.

Of course, the other view is, it's purely a business decision.