Some challenges renting to single students:College students come and go (Summer, etc.)College students tend to be higher maintenanceCollege students may not pay on time (can happen with anyone)College students tend to like people over, sometimes a lot of people over (wear and tear)I have rented to both and although I never did have a really "bad" experience to single students I did find the families tended to keep the place nicer.  

These houses tend to rent well, too. 

The flip-side of high priced properties is that those areas also tend to appreciate much quicker and/or retain their value and they are in places people wan to live!  

Prefer equity loans for purchases because the interest rate tends to be less than lines and also fixed.

you will find some good deals here, although it is getting a bit harder to find those multi family you want and they tend to be older inventory here in okc metro.  

For lower end properties, it normally hits the 75% LTV first and for middle to high end rentals, it tends to hit the limit with debt coverage first. 

I tend to break down my business as an agent a bit differently than my business as an investor.

My concern is that at this late stage in the cycle (my opinion), smaller, peripheral markets like yours tend to be the first to decline.  

Our student rooming house rarely has a room empty and international students tend to be less problematic than our home-grown student tenants (in other properties).

Zestimates" tend to be off a good bit - 20% or more is not unusual.