Buying in a bad area of any Midwestern city is gonna have a far bigger impact on the investment experience than picking one Midwestern city over another.Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core.

Nor did I want to borrow against the house to renovate it, small town bedroom community with very few jobs 30 miles away from a big city. 

Are there any restrictions there on what you want to do including any city, state, or federal laws. 

I have one deal under my belt which I just closed on a few weeks ago (duplex in south city!).

Does the city allow it?   

For example, my city has several small communities within a 30 minutes drive, but my city has lots of affordable housing and you can drive 10 minutes to work.

Depends on the structure of the property, it might be possible to convert to 2/1 + 1/1 but would need to go thru the City of Portland approval and to get permits to do so.

Both the cities you've mentioned are growing markets with a lot of economic expansion left.

I currently live in a 4 unit in a different city that I have been house hacking for 3 years and i'd like to change my residence to this new property.I'd appreciate some guidance on what steps I need to take as far as making sure I am in compliance with the HUD rules.

Hi, my husband James and I have been investors for the last 4 years, off and on, but we haven't really been successful yet. We have some knowledge of the business, having been educated over the years in various aspect...