The money is made not rushing into things but sitting observing and striking when the right deal presents itself. 

@Bryan Clement great observation.

I speak more like an outsider in RE, and my opinion is based on my general understanding of a bigger picture and lifetime of observation of things around me.If you ask of technical side, I would say what you pay for investment property will decide the outcome of your project.

Also, though this may be a superficial observation, his profile pic makes me suspicious.

Example: our insurance agent drove by the properties and gave a different opinion than the seller vs. the inspection company. great approachWeGoLook.com - can't remember where we heard about this option, but there's a company called WeGoLook that you can pay to drive to a property+neighborhood... they'll take pictures, video and do a simply 2 page PDF summary of their observations.

just my observation.. some cities are simply worse than others.. one main thing I always look at is bar's on windows and caged condenser units.. that's an indication at least of petty theft.. but stolen condenser that will cost you a few bucks when and if that happens.

Just an observation.

@Michael Noto: Great observation that "Good PMs manage properties in good areas ...good PMs do not deal with bad areas for the most part.

Again, same thing here... just vague personal observations unbacked by any credible verifiable fact.

Thanks for that observation.