Focusing on income over appreciation as this is our retirement, although my wife and I have several non-RE streams of income. 

Long-term I am looking for a contractor who I can take care of construction, while I focus on sourcing deals and raising capital.  

I would focus on quality deals verse quantity.

If something had gone wrong in the first year of owning my rental I would have been in trouble but with the same breath I would say, I was laser focused and I would have figured it out and if you decide to jump in so will you!

I still look around Charlotte, but think I will focus at first in the outer cities (Cary, Wadesboro, etc.) as the deals have a higher capex and less capital up front. 

In todays market, and in the particular niche that we focus on which is class B stabilized multifamily with value add fundamentals, an enticing deal for investors is one where they can expect to nearly double their investment in 5 years and get cash flow  (8-10% yearly avg) from day one. 

I specialize in the management side and show people how to manage themselves and my husband, a house hacker since 1999 focuses on maintenance and finding properties.

I am located in Parker, CO (just South of Denver) and have focused my search to Colorado Springs as the market is somewhat more affordable than Denver, it is within driving distance and I have family in the area. 

@Ali Hashemi is right in that rates do not matter right now as much and it isn't what I would focus.

So although he's been in real estate for awhile, he has not been involved with holding, which is where focused.