However, as rents have risen, I believe that I should be fine, even in the event of a 20% rent decrease in the neighborhoods with my rentals.As for the future, things may well flatten out.

Filter last 6 months, filter for similar BR/BTH with +-5-10% of the square footage, sort high to low, and then you have a list of the top-tier closes for that housing product (hopefully they are renovated if that's your end goal), with the list decreasing in value as you scroll down.

For example, for the buyer, the lease option might not be so great in housing market value in decreasing trend, but it will serve better for the seller. 

You're definitely giving up return on equity by focusing on paying off debt, but you're also decreasing your risk and amount of work.

They’ve torn down a great deal of derelict and abandoned homes,  and crime has been on the decrease there as well.  

why is the job growth in Bloomington Indiana decreasing while the population increases (prior to pandemic)?

Your chances of cash flowing positive will always decrease when you have a low down payment on a high valued property, naturally.

So, if you buy a property targeted at families in an area where the “family aged” population is decreasing due to aging (even if the total population is stable), you are going have a serious problem in a few years.EmploymentIn many parts of the US, manufacturing and similar high paying jobs are vanishing and what remains are service sector type jobs.

Is their opportunity to increase rents if they are below market rates or are their opportunities to decrease expenses?

There are other factors:neighborhoodprice rangeage of propertycost of the renowhether you are flipping, renting or occupying.how long you plan to own the property.In general I look to increase the number of bedrooms if there are less than 3, decrease the number of bedrooms if more than 5, and increase the number of bathrooms to 2 or 3.But there are exceptions.