Most of the residents are low-middle class(20k-45k income) or they are 2nd home owners and retirees.  

The property purchase price is right down the middle for market value I feel.  

So let's start from the beginning and see what other ideas pop up.I'm just  a middle-aged guy with two small kids whose wife wants to move to a better school district.  

While I have not had the issues the OP has with the extent of damage, I have had tenants bail in the middle of the night with past due rent and relatively minor damage.  

Since I arrived in Kansas City we have been focusing on working class and middle class housing and not gotten into student rentals.

Originally posted by @Jerryll Noorden:If you got a deal with a yellow letter, I am CONVINCED you would have gotten it too if you had sent a professional printed letter.No one will think " They sent me a printed letter, I am not going to choose them".You may be correct, the problem is that people, especially the middle to lower income people, tend to prefer the personal touch over the corporate touch (in my experience), they are more willing to negotiate a fair offer with an individual than with a "big bad company trying to stick it to the little guy."

So this is why having a license has value.2-agent had resources that I've since added to my contacts list and found others through those contacts.Finding a happy middle ground:1-an investor should have their goals and a good understanding of them before investing the time of the agent.2-an agent that is willing to sit with the investor to hear them out about what it means to them in offering what they offer for homes and what their goals are in investing.3-an agent that is patient after getting an understanding of what the investors goals are and can effectively put a listing together of properties that come close to what the investor is looking for that may work.

I'm so happy that I get the opportunity to work literally in the middle of the city and watch the city grow. 

im in the middle of a deal with a friend as the investor now I've found that if you try to remove your friendship from some of the equation it works a lot better.  

Does it make sense to ask for pro-rated rents paid to me if we close in the middle of the month, or is it not worth the hassle?