A friend of mine who still lives there said he couldn't believe how many houses are currently for rent in 5 points and Old Town.

That entire area is basically pure residential housing. 

They may be an emerging manager that is a great operator, but simply haven't been around very long, or it could be a very experienced manager with more acquisitions connections (and presumably good deal flow) than investor contacts, so needs to market to build that network to capitalize on the good deals they are finding.That being said, these "off market syndicators", as you call them, are like "off market houses".  

I am planning to do a house hack on a property.

The issue, of course, is that renting close to a college/university is highly seasonal in that students want housing mostly for the beginning of the fall semester. 

What I know about this house is that there should be no mortgage (messaged realtor to verify), last sold for $60k in 2004.Rent in my area; $1,200 is usually pushing it but doable.https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/200-Walnut...At the end of the day, I love the idea of seller financing but I have many more questions when it comes to different types of properties that might be mortgaged and how does one pay the monthly payments on top of paying the equity to the seller at the same time.

Again, any experienced Detroit investors/operator knows this.I have a $350,000 house in Morningside.

Locally in Kitsap, I'm finding that if you can make the entry-level housing numbers work for you, there's great opportunity.

The house looks great, but I have no desire to stay in a desert.Other people may love this idea for some reason. 

It is two female Realtors who partner with distressed property owners to get the house rehabbed and sold.