You can't compete against the all-inclusives unless you offer complimentary food and booze or you're cheap, as you seem to be confirming.This being said:1) Properties in Mexico/Cancun trade in USD so you have no foreign exchange risk in Mexico while properties in Colombia are traded in COP, the Colombian peso, which has been tanking over the years, eliminating any hope for capital gains for American investors.2) You can get a mortgage in Mexico but you can't in Colombia so even with lower revenue, Cancun would likely still be more profitable, even if you don't take capital gains into account.3) The political risk is much higher in Colombia, especially at this present time.Is Cartagena a bad investment?

@Christian Gibbs appears you're throwing good money after bad:(How did you come to own this house?

One example is in one city I only buy for cash and do not cash out refi as the houses are cheap and the rent is high.

In particular, OO does not have vacancy or PM and typically has cheaper maintenance/cap ex than the landlord would experience.https://www.realtor.com/news/trends/its-now-officially-cheap...if you use realistic expenses, purchase at retail (off MLS) without a value add, you will have negative cash flow on virtually any purchase.  

Lots of folks needing a cheap place to live!

@Andrew Steffens I think we've been able to avoid cheap owners by taking on the expense of many of these consumable supplies, which effectively removed them / their spending philosophies from the equation.

Slim chances of success, but cheap and easy to get started. 

I’m in the process of searching for land in the Houston area to then build a 4-plex on it.The plan is to self-fund the purchase & construction, rent the units and cash out with a mortage.I like the idea of serving lower income families and therefore don’t shy away from section 8.This is the first time I do something like this, so I’m throwing it out there in hopes of hearing your thoughts and learning from your experience!

I was estimating the ARV at 160-165k which I don’t know what it will be for sure but I’m a little worried it might be less which throws a wrench in things as well. 

I feel like they are not very liquid so only throw a couple of thousand on the platform.