You're somehow missing that a cap rate is an indicator of property performance, not a metric for selling the property.

I know that's one indicator that Airbnb should work well, but the lack of current Airbnb is what concerns me.

If the realtor is older, that indicates lying is their way to deal with issues. 

Our agent said that when she first checked back in with them, they were going to take it off the market and wait till spring to list it again...indicating that time to close and such is not a bargaining factor. 

It is my understanding that no matter how much I put into a house the house can only sell for what the area will bear and comps are the best indicator for this? 

This will be a good indicator of what's important to the current buyers of your neighborhood.

Several things indicate that you are not really ready to buy a house quite yet. 

The school ratings are a great indicator though!

In some counties they will indicate an "intra family transfer" if the previous owner and the trust are the same person.

More subtle indicators can be the cars around, not brands, but how well maintained they look.