Being negative is out of the question for me, even if the value would be projected to appreciate for any reason.

Hi George,Rather than focus on the negative, I'g going to focus on the positive and say (as an example) this contractor seems to have it down (for his area and his intended customer group which is not landlords).I have not used him (because I'm not in his area, and not repainting a mid to high end owner occupied SFH), but the videos of his business and the way he says he does business seem impressive.One key seems to be "Communication".The Idaho Painter:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?

They are still passable in the right market for up to 10 years, but, will not be perfect and will be a negative to a discerning tenant. 

Also, what could be the most obvious negatives and positives for opening up a new rental or purchasing a new property during the COVID19 pandemic? 

view=qvEven though the derivative of population is negative you still have 2.7 million potential renters and if you make this property nice and treat people well you can get amazing tenants. 

If you can get one...yes,...as long as the payments you would have to make, based on full withdrawal, don't put that property into negative (or even very low) cash flow

If I got a 10yr fixed rate loan, my cash flow would go negative every month and I'll have to pay out of pocket for property taxes, condo insurance, & HOA fees. 

The majority of investors are going to be cautious and some have been negatively affected. 

. :) I know Beach has some Multifamily too for sale that were reasonably priced that would be a better bet, but investing in a super small spot might mean no or negative appreciation and little revenue.  

None of my opinions are based on rigorous analysis, or statistics, but on my personal experience, which is very limited.