I live in one of the hottest real estate markets in the country, an area that is nearly recession proof.

It's probably the hottest tourist area in town.

I'd say short-term rentals is the hottest market ie AirBnb.

. ;-) BTW - I live right next to Michigan and food storage supplies here are just about the hottest selling item right now because it's canning season and everyone here preps for the potential of serious snow storms.

Marc, some parts of the Texas market are the hottest anywhere in the nation, especially Austin with double digit appreciation rates expected for the next 3 years.

Ken McElroy has two great books on apartment investments and one on property management: The ABCs of Real Estate Investing: The Secrets of Finding Hidden Profits Most Investors Miss The Advanced Guide to Real Estate Investing: How to Identify the Hottest Markets and Secure the Best Deals The ABC's of Property Management: What You Need to Know to Maximize Your Money Now Also see Ken's BP interview on Podcast 052: Buying Apartment Complexes, etc. here: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2014/01/09/bp-podcast-052-raising-millions-ken-mcelroy-rich-dad/ The best way to learn the apartment business is to get your brokers license and a property management job to feed you while you build your sales.

The majority of us have to save for months/years in order to afford a Class B/C property, and even then we may have to use creative financing (owner occupied FHA loans, partners, owner financing, etc.)Of course it would be great if I could afford a new construction class A property in the hottest area of Phoenix. 

Caldwell is one of the hottest areas in our metro market and this home was a diamond in the rough- needed some love, but within walking distance to great restaurants, parks, hipster coffee shops, etc.

The area isn’t the hottest part of town either.

The 3 hottest real estate markets are #1 Seattle (median SFR $830k), #2 Las Vegas (median SFR $295k, and #3 San Jose (median SFR $1.1M).