On paper that is a pretty darn good ROI but I’ve found when dealing with lower rent numbers the profits dwindle quickly especially when the PM has so much loose leash.  

Generally, there are more prospective tenants who may behave this way with lower-priced rentals.

Are you chasing career opportunities or a lower cost of living?

A colleague recently closed on a 12-unit property in San Antonio and shared that a 6.8% cap rate, combined with lower property taxes, made it a no-brainer.

Now I have two vacancies and lower rents than when we started. 

This implies residential units can be built at lower costs and provide better return. 11) adding an ADU to SFH can make the SFH fall under rent control.

that we’ve learned in our 24 years, managing almost 700 doors across the Metro Detroit area, including almost 100 S8 leases:Class A Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, 3-5 years for positive cashflow, but you get highest relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% the more recent norm.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 680+ (roughly 5% probability of default), zero evictions in last 7 years.Class B Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, decent amount of relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% should be applied only if proper research done to support.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 620-680 (around 10% probability of default), some blemishes, but should have no evictions in last 5 yearsClass C Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, high cashflow and at the lower end of relative rent & value appreciation.

Thus, my taxes should be higher because of the income I generate.If I pay off the primary, I'll increase the amount I'm able to save monthly not having the mortgage, while also keeping the income generation lower on the rental because the mortgage remains open.Any thoughts would be appreciated! 

I understand they purchased their property bit earlier at a lower price, but the difference shouldn't be so significant.

If you are having that much activity but cannot find the right tenant than you will want to lower the price just slightly to entice better tenants OR you can relax on your qualifications.