That's how you can avoid most unpleasant surprises that come from learning the hard way.

Account Closed This was a popular strategy before the crash in 2008.

I'm not sure the methodology behind the figures and it could be inflated by returns from large real estate groups that bought up high numbers of homes after the crash.  

It will crash and burn again.

Depending on appreciation was how people lost their shirts in the last market crash, so I definitely don't recommend that strategy (and speculation isn't really a strategy anyway).It's good that you were able to keep them as rentals as a backup strategy. 

Our biggest housing crash in decades happened because banks and lending institutions got willy nilly on their policies and were making exceptions all over the place as to what they called a 'qualified borrower". 

I'd love to pick up one just to have a crash pad while we are down there.

In the last crash HELOC rates rose above yields for many so called, home rich "investors." 

If not, you actually do not have a contract.As unpleasant as it is, this is just part of the deal when buying properties. 

Which is great if your on the correct path, however, if your wheels then are not pointed in the right direction you can crash and burn quicker too.