Do you ever do any investing in the Grand Rapids area or exclusively on the east side of the state?

When I can, I work with banks such as First National Acceptance Company (a division of First National Bank of America) or Grand Bank.

Markets such as Madison, Grand Rapids, Columbus, etc - essentially markets small enough to avoid a lot of corporate real estate investment and competition that have low crime, strong population growth, amenities, and great high-income job growth

Of course there are "no-DSCR" products out there (that allow negative DSCR) or conventional loans which would allow your personal income to make up the difference here but at the end of the day I don't suppose you're looking to leverage this up to 75% LTV and come out of pocket a few grand a month. 

I'm thinking that's only going to be 1-5 grand if I'm lucky.

if its a flip, get your realtor on board with a little change to help you cross your I's and dot your T's with the knowledge that they will get the listing on the back end.OR just say hey, this deal is going forward with or without you, how about I throw you a grand and you help me.... if they wont, they might not be a realtor you want to work with. 

After a little TLC they have become a home run property if not a grand slam.

You could certainly consider the opportunity costs of money in a reserve (as I did) from an economic point of view, but from an accounting view I don't think in the figures we are talking about, generally less than a hundred grand (may less than 10k) the cost and brain damage involved in splitting hairs for analysis and accounting are out weighed by the practicle value of doing so.In your portfolio (or bank accounts, whatever) you should look at the maturity distribution of you accounts or investments so that they come due or to maturity (available to you) in 30, 60, 90 and 120 days.

I am a first time real estate investor and I've saved little cash for real estate investment in Texas,should I concentrate in Rio Grande area or invest in out of state??

It will cost you an extra grand or two but in some states you can garnish wages.