Small investment properties and landlording [View all]

Asking for a friend. Truly, because I don't know how to respond even though I've read real estate books on investment properties.

I know small apartment houses are not the most desirable rental properties.

Are there - would there be interest - by real estate management companies in managing and maintaining what is basically low-income rental housing in an historical almost run-down neighborhood? Or would the fees of management and tax servicing, eviction, replacing tenants, calls to repairmen and repairs totally reduce any positive cash flow toward zero?

What would such a fictitious management company charge? Flat fee plus time and trouble? What might that be?

I didn't ask but I got the impression it's the type of property that one tries to minimize cash outlay, improve profitablity and reliability of cash flows, with an eye toward selling it. And it was difficult to sell a few years back when it was on the market.

I did read something about properties being bought remotely from far away and then the owners hire management to operate it. There must be websites to sell properties remotely? Or do such sites only deal in desirable properties?

Thanks for a quick take because that's the extent of my knowledge on the subject