I'm just surprised the premise of cheap houses in one horse towns doesn't exist in Canada as well. I have looked at different property values up there and it is insane. In Indiana and other MidWest states there are various rehab projects someone could take on. Former meth labs or neglected properties.
Tons of work and a major headache but this stuff does exist and I'm surprised it doesn't really seem to exist as much in Canada.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/962-S-Shank-St-Portland-IN-47371/85416608_zpid/
That being said while I think there is a little bit of value that remains in smaller towns in the US I think the Italy, Portugal, Montenegro play makes more sense.