Judah, i would rather go with the numbers, if you do them right you know it will work, taking a gamble on how you feel about a property is very risky, you could loose a lot if your not careful. i do agree with @Marvin McTaw, there may be other ways to unlock the value of a property if your gut got you to buy the place and its not quite working out the way you first thought. if you know that an area is up and coming and could raise the value then that would be going with your gut feeling and hopefully it works out, but again i feel the numbers and research of an area before you buy is the way to go.

My parents are not thrilled with my decision to invest in real estate, which probably has something to do with it.

These will all be walking distance from the property.My hope would be that the chance for appreciation would be enough to make the lower numbers make sense, especially seeing how property values have risen in the surrounding neighborhoods where the walking path is already completed.My question is, is it worth the gamble to solely rely on future appreciation to make the deal make sense?

It feels a bit unpredictable, a bit like gambling. 

So far I have learned a ton and this new found thrill of real estate really has me excited to jump right in!

It's a bit of a gamble.

If people want to gamble that prices will continue going up, why not let them give you money to do it?

The tenant has expressed that she's not too thrilled with the laundry setup, and I can't say I blame her.Thanks in advance!

Interesting, I have found that I love the thrill of the chase.

It is EXACTLY the same as if you throw mailers in the wind and where they land they will land.It is A GAMBLE!