My first rental property

[Shamim Toufighian]

I bought a condo in 2004, lived in it for about one year, and then rented it out. Few years later was the economic crash and the condo's value dropped in half. I stuck with it, was fortunate enough to have a long term tenant, and now the value has gone back up all while the mortgage being paid down.

It was a rocky first investment with lots and ups and downs, but I'm glad I stuck with it and learned a lot of valuable lessons.

[Vanessa Vandervalk]

I have a friend who rents a cheap apartment on the west side of LA but owns two condos. The second one is in Hollywood and she bought it via probate. She fixed it up with another $25k and rented it out for negative cash flow. But, it has appreciated $140k in under two years. So she still feels like she is ahead and plans to sell it. This can be how it is in LA. But I don't believe that kind of appreciation is continuing for the next couple of years.