Drew Kimminau I would stay away from under 70k homes.

As Andreas mentioned, it's good policy to outsource your debt collection activities to licensed 3rd parties to reduce risk and stay compliant with rules and regs.

I would recommend you start by downloading your landlord tenant laws for your state..Then set your rental criteria,, credit score, income, (= to 2 or 3 time the rent ), occupancy limit per bedroom size of apartment... no cosigners,No pets,, no smoking,, what ever..but it stays the same for everyone.. 

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Stay safe in that weather!

Unfortunately it looks like the tenant can stay and not pay rent until your brother takes him to court to lift the "automatic stay."

Ideally I am looking for something that he can stay in while he's there and do any work that needs to be done and keep it as a rental when he goes on to the next job.

I think for our first purchase in Memphis, we would like to find a duplex so we can have a place to stay when we are in town and a base of operations. 

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Here are some recommendations for you:Find and connect with other BP members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meetSet up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alertsRead Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investingCheck out BP Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/Wishing you the best!