Build and hold is a method for sure, although in many (but by no means all) areas, build costs are prohibitively high to cash flow.

Do any of you prohibit guns in your rental units?

Until I'm faced with a definitive prohibition, I stand by my opinion.Would love some input from @Yonah Weiss and @Paul Caputo, as well as from our CPA/EA peers.

Where I am, we dont have any impact fees or other large fees associated with new construction, so that would be something to consider in your area.The downside with a gut renovation is your stuck with the basic house (for example, most older houses have 8ft ceilings, which would most likely be cost prohibitive to raise during a gut renovation) and are often difficult to open up enough to do a true open concept floor plan.The upside is new construction is more valuable that a renovation.

I am an artist as well and have made good money, but my current living situation prohibits me from expanding my financial options. 

Agents/realtors are prohibited from pointing out "good vs bad" areas, but I generally advise buyers with your question(s) to contact PD/Sheriff offices yourself for due diligence purposes.

@Andrew Benke,You should be able to prohibit it in your lease.

I threw this all in an Excel file, then filtered it to exclude ZIP codes with vacancy rates above 5%, fewer than 100 quads, median rent less than $800, median household income less than $50,000 (I am looking to avoid Class C-D), and fewer than 5,000 households in the area.Then I sorted by the price-to-rent, and got this for the Top 10:Naples, FL 34105Town of Horseheads, NY 14845Plantation Island, FL 34109Pittsburgh, PA 15211Homewood, IL 60430Chili, NY 14624Penn Hills, PA 15234Pennsville Township, NJ 08070Milwaukee, WI 53222Saint Clair Shores, MI 48082The rules prohibit me from linking the Google Doc, but if you are interested in it I am more than happy to share - just ask!

Results may vary and new regulations might prohibit.

I imagine that a big barrier would be the MHP rules prohibiting this sort of short term rental, but I'll look around and see how difficult it is to find a park that allows it.