Compare that to the county that I live in (near SF, population of 1.6M) where there are only a few hundred homes for sale, Indy looks appealing and yet a very dangerous investment.

I'd like to expand it a bit further and point out housing prices across the nation being high (see case shiller inflation adjusted home index and compare current level to historic norm).  

(Incidentally, dividing purchase price by gross rent - the inverse of what you were doing - is known as Gross Rent Multiplier or GRM and is very similar to looking at per-unit cost - an extremely rough way of comparing properties.)

My decision is easy compared to yours.  

I would also include how this compare to previous water bills and the two people who found no leaks including their representative.

Thanks @Brent Coombs, yes I didn't think of changing the %down just to change the cash flow. at the end we are trying to keep some things constant as we compare different deals. 

The tricky part is to measure the water and compare it to the meter dials.  

I'll compare my MAO to the starting bid, and if I'm not in the range of where I expect reserve to be based on starting bid, I move on to the next deal.  

I just looked at some data and it looks like Chicago sees the same trend, fairly flat median home price when compared with other major cities.PM me if you have any questions about specific neighborhoods.

@Alex BalanLook for rentals listed in the area you're considering, then find comparable rentals in comparable quality neighborhoods of other locations, preferably locations you're familiar with.