I have a friend in Rapid City, SD, who is looking for a decent 3 bdr house to rent.

In the bubble, we had a very hot market, although artificial, and any monkey could throw a dart at the board, say, Ill take that one, and sell 3 months later for a $50k profit without doing anything. those times are gone and I doubt they will come back in our lifetimes.In a standard hot market, prices do not increase that rapidly so flippers need to find a way to buy at a discount, then sell at the premium price after rehab.In a stagnant market, which we had from end of last year to approx February of this year, it was more difficult to find a deal worth doing and if you did have one, harder to find a buyer too, although, when you did, still a profitable position so I would summarize that a good flipper can make money in any market so long as he/she has the connections and abilities to get the deals and get them sold.

I am new so I am still absorbing info at a rapid rate. 

This provides an investor the potential to rapidly increase their portfolio holdings and benefit from the economies of scale as their portfolio increases. 

If they cannot show you a list of these homes, there is no basis for their price.Buffalo is rapidly appreciating, so maybe you'll catch a break with a positive-thinking appraiser.

A roof still costs the same in Louisville than it does in Utah (or anywhere else)...I know you're not supposed to bet on appreciation, but I imagine that the north Utah area is going to rapidly appreciate in the next few years.

The gist of the broader story related to potential positives and negatives of such growth and I was curious to hear what BP members have experienced in their own communities that have undergone rapid growth.  

Rapidly growing city called Gun Barrel City.

Not necessarily to your purchase price, but to a market realized value.I was an assessor for Coon Rapids for 3 years.

In the mid west I NEVER raise rent.... there are too many other homes for folks to consider.this is not San Francisco or Portland or Seattle.. were you have 1% or less vacancy rates and rents have risen 20 to 40% over the last 5 years.. but then again no one really bought west coast for cash flow so only the local owners enjoyed the rapid rent rise.In the mid west and any cash flow market from FLA to IL  ... you get a good tenant you keep them..