If I conservatively estimate 50% occupancy, the total income on the property will be somewhere between $7,500-$9,000/mo.

We're at a 93% - 100% occupancy rate per month.

Especially if you go out of state, you are losing big bucks to the PM's who rrip you off and laugh on the way to the bank plus your rentals will accumulate a very bad smell due to the nonperformance of your PM's who totally ignore the occupants and dont even know they're stuffing the property with squatters.

The city gladly collected the occupancy tax from these STRs. 

Increase your neighborhood value, better tenants, etc.And please make sure the property you acquire has a correct certificate of occupancy with the city.  

With enough of a down payment (and assuming the property is not owner occupant protected by homestead laws), and with good buyer credit - that there is limited risk for the seller.  

So they sell to an owner occupant (because as we just said, the landlord is selling because rental rate is incompatible with renting it out.) so now there’s one less rental.

One is at 65% occupancy and the other was at 20% occupancy. 

Many of these properties were at a 50 to 80% occupancy rate, lots of those are sitting at 0 to 20% NOW, they are negative, they are NEW the real estate investing game. 

However, the buyer pool is MUCH smaller if a property is fully occupied because you are ruling out owner occupants and there are some investors who don't want to buy vacant properties.