I know with this being your first rental, the idea of vacancy is scary, but please trust me; a month of vacancy while you wait for a great tenant is going to save you thousands of dollars, hundreds of hours and immeasurable amounts of stress compared to what will happen if you pull the trigger on a questionable tenant because you are eager.

This is going to be a huge lifestyle change so I want to build trustworthy relationships and hit the ground running when I arrive.Take care!

You need to build a team remotely(PM, boots on the ground, ... etc).

@Michael Le Don't think the market is big enough, less capital appreciation potential (compared to other options), renovated rent premium being lower than other markets. 

Aaron McCarty if you look at the formulas/metrics in isolation then the numbers don’t mean much.The formulas/numbers is all relative, especially as everyone/business has different goals and risk tolerance.Compare the results to the alternative, example: compare the historical stock market return on blue chips to an A class area.

I've also found a few comparable rents on Craigslist that say I should be able to get about $700-$775/month for each unit.

@Ryan Keenan Lenders will generally add mortgage, interest, insurance, property taxes and depreciation back into your gross income when comparing it to your federal taxes and total PITI. 

Where can I find info on rent comparables (like price per square foot) for that area?

Im just in the process of comparing the advantages and disadvantages of an FHA vs 30yr fixed mortgage.

Real Estate is an investment that has the ability to deliver excellent returns because the cash down payment is such a small fraction compared to the return on the retail value .