Locally my observation is that the need is more for low income young and working vs college student.

It looks like you are right to be concerned about the low season as occupancy drops below 50% for most of the year  

That's probably a more clear cut fee structure than your 10% on middle and higher end properties and 12% on low-end ones.

Strong rental markets with low vacancy rates are ideal for long-term holds, while areas with high ARV growth are great for flips.

I do my own property management to keep my expenses low. 

I do however think as things clean up systematically, cashflow will improve and the benefits of low capX exposure in near term and appreciation will work out.

I have done it successfully on my last 2 buildouts, maybe 3, but only because I was able to acquire the properties at a very low price and I did all the work in-house (myself and some hired hands on staff).

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You lose because there are many other suckers out there falling for the same line and sharing the same low-quality leads that don't translate into sales.Do the math.

Small multi-family is hot right now due to house-hacking (low barrier of entry), and future cash-flow.