Of course, check out occupancy limits in the county/city that you choose.If you want the least amount of work but lowest cash flow (cover 50-80% of your mortgage payment), I recommend finding a house with a basement/mother-in-law apartment, and live upstairs and then rent out the basement to a long-term tenant.Denver metro has experience terrific appreciation like most metro markets, and over the last 40 years, Denver averages 5% appreciation, so Denver is a great bet long-term.I'm more than happy to discuss further if you have any questions.  

I work with a lot of investors and they tend to gravitate to some local guys, but the choice is yours of course.  

But to  give you something of an answer: your best bet is what's called NOMAD where you keep buying your own residence and live in it for a year before repeating.

You can bet on your tenants being in place over the next year and that cash flow coming in over that 1 year lease, but you can't be sure how the stock market is going to perform over that same time period. 

I agree with your choice, especially with foundation issues.You could also just take your time with renovations, little by little on your own free time.

If they need money choices are reverse mortgage (not a recommendation, just an option) or sell.  

That may be your best bet.

Bet on the Fed (and the human nature of government officials). 

If you're looking for financial freedom, cashflow is your better choice.

If you think that is too much, then there are a lot of duplexes in Lakeland which is a good choice if the price is right.