Being new to town and having no cash you might just want to pick some subdivisions close by and start driving them, see what kind of houses are there, what the people look like, how they treat their houses, etc.

She didn't drive and needed help for the smallest errand.

Yes & No, you need at least some money to drive around, to do mailings or other marketing etc.

It's a luxury aesthetic and is driving these prospective tenants to (theoretically) pay a little more.

I'm looking for income and long term growth but I'm open to building, remodeling, renting, or flipping.So, if you were in my situation how would you proceed?

When I am working on purchasing I probably spend 20 or 30 hours a week sifting thorough the auction properties, driving them, comping them, and then preparing the bids.

I could probably buy a luxury vehicle or two with no problem, but I drive a 10 year old pickup truck instead.

:) You can use Google maps to "drive" the area as well as local real estate listings online.

I mostly spent my time driving around prospects from NY City looking at low priced properties that they were considering as weekend homes.

And the drive times between the two support that theory too!