I'm not trying to sound like/come off as an a-hole here but the fact that you're asking this question and trying to rationalize it means your conscious knows it's wrong.

I always try to find a rational to rent to them and feel good but at the end I am brought back to why my criteria was selected. 

Perhaps our goals will change down the road but I think it is smart to start small and think about investing in a rational way instead of worrying about the immediate cash flow.

While the ugly scenario is unlikely, the reccomendation is rational.

They have to be in serious pain, rational enough to see the benefit.

Sounds like rational advice.

Rational; I live in a region of Colorado known as "the front range" (it's a mountains thing), and I buy houses.

They typically do not focus on their check being $150 this way or that because it is far more rational to do a killer job for you and get future business in the form of referrals and working with you in the future.

You can justify a personal decision with math, but it doesn't work in reverse, that's just a rationalization,...and that's the most expensive word in the REI vocabulary. 

Rationalization = Losing moneyThe actual cost of the property is the amount of cash you put into the deal.