I am not an agent but a broker and owner of my company and there is a huge difference.In my state of Georgia you can pass a license test and become an agent.To be a broker you have to go through many more qualifications and put in your time.The strategy remains the same in that you target a specific audience and test and track.You then become consistent and start getting great results.Most do something once and hope it sticks.People constantly cycle onto the next greatest thing without giving what they are currently doing a chance to succeed.No matter what you do if you don't test and track and be consistent you will have mixed results at best.

I've had much of the same education as you, only I started later so missed the opportunity to buy @ the dip in the cycle.    

There is a hot market here within an hour drive in Portland Maine, but I really think I missed the boat on this cycle.  

The commercial machine vendors provide a "per cycle" water usage figure, not sure if that is available on consumer models...I never looked!

As a qualitative criteria, yes, you want your properties to appreciate on some level, but I just don't think you can quantify it well enough to consider during underwriting/ROI analysis.Similar situation with tax benefits - we don't ultimately know what tax brackets will look like long term, and "tax reform" is a campaign talking point every election cycle. 

You aren't likely to see massive amounts of appreciation, but you are also less likely to see spectacular bust cycles like in other markets, as those three tenant sources aren't going anywhere anytime soon.

The team has to have lived through a cycle or otherwise prove that they know their stuff. 

@John B.It depends on the market cycle.

In fact, we talked about a few processes at my full time job (kitchen and bath remodeling) about ways to "shorten the cycle".  

As soon as the economic cycle trends down on it's historical pattern then you have migration from renters of new class A multifamily wanting to move to older class A (5 to 10 years old) or class B properties that are still nice but rent is much less per unit.