I do recommend looking into local ordnances regarding short, medium, and long term rentals before locking into a deal to make sure your goals align with was is or is not permitted in your area / zone.  

.- Similarly, Medium to Large Private businesses / private equity seem at all time highs in terms of multiples and valuations, perhaps edging back a hair from where they were a year ago- I've long thought that small private businesses, especially in the services sector are poised to do very well as an asset class (lots of opportunity to buy businesses for 1-3X Cash flow in this space).

Survey: Small biz owners excited about the futureBusiness owners' optimism about the U.S. economy and the outlook for their own businesses has reached levels never-before seen in the 15-year history of the PNC Economic Outlook, a biannual telephone survey of small- and medium-sized business owners.A strong majority of small business owners (88 percent) surveyed are optimistic about the near-term outlook for the national economy, up from 71 percent in the fall and 56 percent last spring.

But it all comes down to what your investment goals are and what you want to accomplish short/medium/long-term. 

I'm working through Path to Purchase now.Triplex is listed in small town (1,000 people) about 20 minutes from a medium-sized town (20,000).

Other markets I'm looking at are Pittsburgh, Springfield VT, Upstate NY (want to evaluate a few of the small/medium cities up that way), Greater Atlanta and Detroit (thanks to Ashley Hamilton.)

Lower Risk:  I use my cash and buy investment Medium Risk: I buy homes using 20-30% cash and finance the rest. 

I'm currently embarking on several renovation projects from medium size, to major. 

Today's standard SWM are 14 wides or 16 wides, My recommendation is not to buy smaller widths.

Ideally you would also get a home that has standard plumbing and construction materials - if they use any of the "mobile home" parts replacing those can be costly and switching over to standard parts (like a door) can be costly because the width is not standard.