Re: water bill....the water bills for SFH in Portland are VERY high, relative to other places nearby. 

Im live in the Portland metro area but wouldnt be absolutely opposed to buying out of state but lean toward buying nearby so I could potentially manage the property for a few years. 

I found a home nearby my that is listed on Zillow as a pre-foreclosure. 

Overall, I'd say 90% of the total visitors to Pai are tourists, with the other 10% expats and locals from the nearby city of Chiangmai taking weekend trips.

I might have an open apartment nearby, so send me a message.

This works extremely well for both distance and near-by units.Maybe a little bit of this anecdote might lower your current pain threshold you're experiencing and benefit your tenants, too.

I've noticed that you can buy significantly discounted distressed properties in those Class B, C, D neighborhoods, and then you have to hope they will appraise up to the current value, due to foreclosure sales or other distressed properties nearby.

However, my final test is always just parking nearby and getting out of my car and wandering around on foot, and trying to engage neighbors. 

Currently, I am learning what I can about RE investing, learning nearby markets, reading Brandon's recommended books on investing in real estate and buying houses with no money down (just started reading, actually).Until recently, I've been working full time job (I am the tax guy), but was laid off less than two weeks ago when the newly hired CFO decided to outsource my job!

A few years ago I was looking at Crowley and nearby areas.