My question is to those of you who invest in some bad areas how do you go about your vetting/screening process to make sure (to the best of your abilities) that you get a tenet worth having that isn’t going to destroy your investment or cause you to constantly have to repair. 

There are a few self-contained guides that you can access here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guidesAlerts can be really helpful too: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts

Thanks for the advice but this management company is definitely licensed...don't want to call out names (yet) but they operate thousands of units in at least 4 states...they seem to value expansion over client and managers retention and constantly makes mistake or fail to follow up on issues...some of the staff like the contractor kickback feels very questionable and unethical.

Your main role is to ensure that the level of stuff is not causing maintenance issues and that you can get access when you need it. 

There are a few self-contained guides that you can access here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guidesI really like the alerts feature that can quickly guide you to current topics that might interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts

There are a few self-contained guides that you can access here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guidesAlerts can be really helpful too: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts

There are a few self-contained guides that you can access here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guidesAlerts can be really helpful too: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts

Probably just the restrictions on the loan products that particular broker had access to at the time. 

If you can do a heloc and get access to that equity it will be very powerful.

Those areas will largely be driven by sewer access.