I received a quote from Foremost which is almost half the cost.

The cost of living is extremely low compared to other cities and you can still many many positive cash flowing and 1% deals here.

A couple of months ago I had an opportunity to put one of Jimmy’s techniques into effect.  

Here is a question that we have not dealt with previously.  We are looking at a property that has the typical old interior stairs that are just short of being a ladder (reminds me of Navy ship stairs).  There is room ...

Other properties are showing high costs, but I'm not really sure how to get good comps with this situation

For example, if you refinanced your home at 7% interest and took 30 years to pay it off, it would cost you a total of $121,000 to pay it off, and you would be paying a much higher interest on your entire home loan. 

That comes out to 30% of their total closing cost.

Look at new construction triplex/duplex condo sales in the heights areas, subtract carrying cost over build timeline, materials, labor and construction costs, what their desired profit in heights deals would be and that would leave you with approximate acquisition cost of the lot. 

I have found it very difficult to find an effective property manager to manage section 8 tenants.

Obviously if you have unlimited cash then sure, don't do it but for 90% of people it is the cost of doing business.