In my last paragraph above I am just comparing the 2 investments and their ROIs, assuming no other investment is available or considered.I think my post was a bit confusing, admittedly.

If you are comparing the stability of the investment- vs a shopping center or some other kind of income property, the GRM is a number that many people can get their arms around in the risk assessment part of assessing the deal.

Comparable rent is $900/month/unit and the building was bid out at $350K with me being the GC.

I ran some comparables and I think conservatively I might be able to sell it at $170k without any repairs, and $180-$190+ with some bathroom remodels and minor cosmetic repairs.

Run the numbers and look at your payments and compare the two resulting cash flows.

It compares your property with similar properties and does comps, projections, etc.

You put in a lot of work, but in the end you reap huge rewards.

Then I take the blended home payment and space rent payment added together to compare this too.

Have you found using another agent to contact that agent is more optimal in opening a dialogue compared to cold contacting the owner-agent?

Here is a link to a website that specializes in data-driven city comparisons: http://best-cities.findthebest.com/compare/157-203/Lancaster-vs-Palmdale.