I have a few contacts now and look forward to investigating the area further.

You will want to come and investigate the area ahead of time with a realtor.

This is NOT an attempt to solicit any jobs, but simply some ideas for jobs from which I could start investigating!

This way when something appears you can do a quick analysis and determine whether its worth your time to investigate further. 

Also, given the funds you have available, I'd recommend you investigate deals where the seller is prepared to offer financing.

In any event, it's a rule of thumb to allow you to decide quickly if a property is worth investigating as a potential investment.Vacancy rates do not influence the rent ratio, nor do repairs or capital expenses.There is another rule of thumb called the 50% rule, also used for quick and dirty analysis, that states that you should assume that half of your rent should go to expenses.Even if a house does not seem to have issues requiring repairs and is in an area where there are no vacancies, assuming that both of these will occur during your analysis will ensure you cashflow rather than having to reach into your pocket to cover repairs or a mortgage payment.Good luck!

I've also been investigating various wholesaling strategies.

How come nobody investigate it?

The reason I ask is because he talks all about proper ways to investigate commercial deals.  

A lot of you analysis comes from the backstory regarding the property (and Joel offered a few great examples) and as an investor you have to be able to investigate that for yourself.