I intend to do credit report, criminal records check, employment history, eviction records, bankruptcies and past address history. 

Outside of the trades there is very little good work.Bucks,westchester and Lancaster all have much better employment rates,median incomes and lower vacancies.  

Stephanie Bureau yes that is possible if you can find a tenant willing to risk the short term nature of the initial lease.One case where it might work is employment related rentals.

I'm an employed, high income earner, looking at buy and hold real-estate as a means to diversify my investments and generate passive income.  

In fact, while the number of people employed declined in Dallas in September, 14,300 new jobs were created in Indianapolis.

Residents are employed and working.

Convincing them living in Detroit is a better option than living in Fraser, Westland, Auburn Hills.People are going to switch employers every 2-3 years in todays economy so distance to work matters.  

One more random question: Do lenders generally call employers?

I live in CT where some large employers are moving out and the population is decreasing.

I am self employed and earn a fair portion of my income in USD, so the conversion rate isn't quite as much of an issue for me as for some.