Here is the key: Don't pay for anything until it's done to your standard.

S8 standard voucher amounts INCLUDE all utilities.

if a property I buy and bring up to rent ready standards then starts cash flowing..." - it's not going to. 

Which essentially puts some standards in place and a good guideline for handling all things in the company. ie. company mission, telephone standards, tenant screening process, etc. 

Let me know if you’d like help running specific numbers or refining your negotiation strategy.AI answers can be helpful sometimes, but they miss some really important concepts.

Check about the concept of "house hacking", many people start that way.

Best way to understand this is research appraisal standards and means. 

I a factoring in the replacement of the AC unit and potentially the water heater, and the cosmetic thins (I would do myself) to get it to rentable standard.

LTRs with long term conventional financing and standard management aren't really cash flowing anywhere right now. sure, there are lower cost markets that look better on paper, but there are costs associated with those supposedly cheap markets as well - deferred maintenance, more challenging tenant base, higher cost turnovers as a percentage of the rent.2. i wouldn't pick a random market thousands of miles away based solely on statistics or numbers. 

The property will need to have a slight rehab to get it up to STR standards, but when complete it should easily be a $200k Gross booking revenue property.