As I've been looking for a while close to home, I'm considering expanding my search to anywhere around a 5-6 hour drive away (my parents and younger siblings still live in SD, and my work which I can do remote/flex is based in San Diego).I'm considering new markets and interested in feedback on what areas anyone suggest I start to narrow in on. 

I’m trying to narrow down a place to buy.

@Josh Mac we agree with 100% of what @Travis Biziorek has written, but...An OOS investor can't search for properties or learn anything about the City of Detroit market with a "block-by-block" approach:(Yes, zip codes are too big and will lead to bad experiences.We believe you can use Neighborhoods to narrow your search to a reasonable area and THEN use a block-by-block strategy as confirmation before signing a purchase contract. 

You're not going to get great advice unless you narrow down what you actually plan on doing. 

There is an extremely narrow band of investors who are actually "suited" to take the risks of investing in ventures like these.

Tiny kitchens and bedrooms, narrow hallways and ladder-steep stairs are also common in older homes and can be bad. 

I think if it were me, I'd narrow to 2-3 metro areas vs. and spend time analyzing deals in each for a month to see how the numbers look for your model.

Once you narrow down to a city and an investment strategy, you will want to find team members to help you.

The reason we like that is because it allows us to narrow in and focus on a few core tax strategies that we feel are solid and proven ways of building wealth, so much so we do them ourselves. 

As an overseas investor, I've been carefully evaluating different options and have narrowed down to a particular buy box that I'd like to share with you all for your insights and opinions.