Don’t rely too much on others to guide you ultimately, there will be many voices that tell you how difficult real estate can be, about tenants who flush steaks down the toilet (has happened to me) and evictions in NY.

What is better sushi, pizza or steak? 

Scranton and Middletown look like the closest small cities and they’re both an hour away.

That has been one of our top draws; the homes we have closest to campus are never vacant more than a few days. 

Nothing will crush your hopes and dreams quicker than if the people closest to you think investing in real estate is terrible.

The closest approximation is from MLS data with the same beds and baths and in the same type of house (single, multi, apartment).

I also call it the Wild, Wild West of homebuilding since it's the closest thing to lawless homebuilding out there.

The appraiser will look at the most similar homes closest to your home that have sold recently to determine the value.  

I like them both, in general, but the best way to find a town to invest in outside of where you live if it's not affordable and if you don't want to be withing driving distance easily (recommended) is to make two lists:1. every town you have ever lived in or visited for more than a month2. every town your closest friends and family live (the ones you like)Then you take those two lists and see where they overlap with the data or lists you are using.

Ideally, if you can’t start in your town, try to choose the closest town to you with a larger population.