Phoenix is a great place to invest and we are forming a team locally to take advantage of all that the city has to offer.I should say now, 75-90k was cheap, now that prices are upwards of 100k a door in the trending areas of Phoenix :) Phoenix is really doing well.As far as travel, I've been out to the properties 1 time.

Setup listing searches to better understand the trends and inventory.

I would be cautious and yes the market has been trending up. 

Print a CMA/comparable report and share with him and explain to them market trends and holiday seasons. 

I agree that real estate is hyper local but demographics trends tend to be in bigger swaths.

Housing pricing to rent ratios aren't so favorable where I live for this kind of investing.A little about me aside from investing; I'm an analyst for a consumer packaged goods company (spreadsheets, statistical analysis, market studies and economic trends are my daily routine.)

Just like any big city, things can change from street to street. so get educated on the trends and then jump in.

Ride the trend of growth.

It sounds corny but I’m learning it’s a little more of an art than a science and determining whether or not a property is a good value comes mostly from experience and looking at it in it’s entirety: location, condition/ construction quality, tenant base and overall rental market trends, cash on cash return, IRR etc. are all equally important or perhaps more important than initial rent to price ratio.  

The contract for my renters is done at the end of February and I’m listing it the house at what is apparently the hottest time to sell which is right after the Super Bowl!