5 Reasons you shouldn't trust "Top Real Estate Market" lists

In my daily journey through the real estate investing blogosphere, I come across several lists about the top markets to invest in. Especially around the new year, I always catch a list of the "Top Ten Markets You Should Invest in 2016" on Forbes or CNN Money. 

And they are always full of terrible ideas.

Always.

Well, let me preface this by saying that there are actually some good cities on these lists that you should look into for investing purposes, like Portland, Austin, and Nashville.

But some have Manhattan in the top 5? Who is this list aimed at, Bill Gates?

If you are like me, you are relatively new to the REI game (and super broke), you want more substance out of market suggestions.

So, I've decided to make my own list of reasons you should not put too much stock into these "Top 10" lists.

1. The biggest reason I dislike these lists is because they are not specific enough. 

These lists are almost always classified by city. As you and I know, there are good parts of every city, and there are bad parts as well. I think these lists should target specific neighborhoods in order to be more effective.

2. They don't account for price. I would love to invest in a fourplex near the wharf in San Francisco. Now, will my commission only CRE paycheck be able to swing that 3 million dollar property? Probably not. 

I'd like to start seeing "Best markets for people with under 50k to invest."

3. They glance over great submarkets. This goes hand in hand with #2. Will you get the most return in cities like New York and San Francisco? Probably. But are those the only places viable for investing? Absolutely not.

There are so many small towns across the midwest and southwest that I see people discussing all the time on the Bigger Pockets forums. Yet, they have no love in major publications.

4. They are unoriginal. Pull up any list and you will only get major MSAs like Boston, New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Raleigh. I can't blame the authors. It's probably due to the fact that most writers for publications such as Forbes live in these cities and it's all they know.

I want to hear about Bloomington, Santa Fe, Bend, and Missoula. Give me some more secondary and tertiary markets! Markets I can actually touch when I am starting out.

Nobody ever throws in a gem like Buffalo. Everybody just rips off each others list.

5. They are written by journalists and not by investors. This is the beauty of Bigger Pockets. It gives actual investors with boots on the ground an opinion to sound off and let other investors know what's good out there.

So that leads me to my call to action!

Can you make a list of markets that is neighborhood specific, price relevant, original, and written by someone who is an active investor? I think we can get it done together with a little cooperation and coordination.

What do you think?