I was thinking if I focused on a sub-market outside of Nashville, I might be able to avoid some of the competition that might come with dealing in the hot areas like east Nash.

Hopefully it will make for a less competitive bidding process.

It will appreciate in value (as will the rents) and the amount of time you have to devote to managing it should be a fraction of what you'd need for other parts of town where the returns look better on paper.I'd say you started off on a good path.  

For example, a brand new class A property will probably not greatly impact a class C property as theyre competing for different rental populations.You should do your best to determine how competitive you'd be for the same renters as this new building to begin evaluating the impact it would have then study your local rental market.

Not particularly difficult.But in a business where there is no barrier to entry, the competition is high, and right now it's probably higher than its ever been.My personal advice is to get your license, hang it somewhere and do real estate properly, and that will take time and dedication, and a lot of sacrifice on your behalf. 

In your experience, where does your competition spend most of their time and efforts? 

You can't get a 30% discount on the MLS because even if it is listed that low the competition will bid it up.In my opinion, the only way to get consistent discounts is to get off-market deals.

Really you just need to check out your competition and see where they are priced, not just the houses listed but the ones that are actually selling

I feel they are very competitive, however I don't know what the pricing looks like in your area, so you will need to check into that for yourself.

The masses seem to preach direct mail as the tried and true way, but like Alex mentioned, in this competitive market is direct mail a viable option for those who don't have a budget of $3,000+/month.Any feedback and statistics (response rates, deal conversion rates etc.) from people currently doing direct mail in SoCal would be greatly appreciated.