I understand this can vary by market but this number has served me well.

In my market there are a lot of homes that are between $30k and $75k that could easily be turned into short-term rental investments. 

I rented it long term but the market for Airbnb has gone up.

The brokerage uses this to pay for lots of stuff office supplies, CRM, insurance, marketing, etc..

I'm wondering if anybody has had any experience with the Maryland market.

Texas had some hurricanes and I have properties (Market value $300K, Roof damages $25K).

You can find some deals on the market, but they are definitely the lowest hanging fruit and always attract a lot of attention.

One of my first orders of business is to start learning how to do market research so...Question- what is the best way for a newcomer to learn to conduct Market Research?

My thought is more about time in the market and getting the snowball started now vs. 10 years from now. 

If you want to network or ask specific questions about your local market, go to your local real estate forum and connect with investors from your area: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/86-local-real-estate-networking5.