Separately, It is possible to find deals still, but you need to look at it from a different perspective.

I was hoping to get some help and insight on different neighborhoods in Akron.

I know a few in different areas of the state.

.- every investor reaches a point where their DTI is trashed and they have to move into different loan products. there are tons of lenders out there that specifically work with REIs & have many ways to navigate this. don't let DTI concerns keep you from moving forward. - LLCs provide minimal legal protection in case of an incident. work with an asset protection attorney to come up with a better plan if they are that concerned. also have great insurance and an umbrella policy. 

I am always open to different strategies in terms of finding my deals.

If you are speaking about building a property yourself, then that's different.  

Should I do something different?

Now, if in your walkthrough and lease review you find material lease violations that could result in eviction, then that would be another option, but again, that is (I am guessing) unlikely and still risky, since there is a cure period associated with evictions.Not sure if this exists, but maybe get a private lender (ideally family member or friend) to lend you on a purchase loan for 10 months, then refi into a different private or hard money lender once tenant is out?

You could go many different ways with rentals such as student housing, section 8, targeting specific renters such as traveling nurses/doctors.

The downside of midwest is the repair ; the cost differences are actually not much different when you fix/repair something large.