There's a reason the US government doesn't let the average Joe invest in these types of funds.Everything you invest in, there is a certain probability that the investment will be wiped out in its entirety.

Invested around $35,000 in value-add upgrades and did most of the labor ourselves.

If you don't do work yourself, is labor to install categorized differently? 

Labor rates vary, but not so substantially to be as big an impact as property features and tenant quality.  

@Joe C.Foremost

@Joe Splitrock Great summary and perspective. 

Ideally, if there's an investor in the Augusta, GA area I'd LOVE to shadow you or even do some rehab labor for you on weekends so I can get my hands dirty and see how the wheels really turn.Aside from that, if anyone has any general tips for making connections with local real estate investors or things I should be reading about, I'd love to learn from you!

Quote from @Joe Homs: @May Mirzaei you can invest anywhere, the question should be will I cash flow? 

Quote from @Francesco Ponticelli: Hi Joe,I own condos in Miami and I have clients, each one with different financial situations, owning condos too.

The high cost of maintenance including materials and labor affect all properties and older ones perhaps more.