Time to study Economics and pay very close attention to it.To emphasis this point, think of a scenario where if you didn't follow the economics, things would have turned out VERY bad.Take Investing in Detroit before it went bankrupt.10 to 20 years before Detroit went Bankrupt, there were very clear economic signs that domestic autos were in trouble.

Jon, I agree with everything you said, except the implication that the smaller units won't get rented in an economic downturn. :)  Sure, the ones feeling the squeeze the most won't be traveling, but there will be plenty of people who can still manage a week/weekend away, and maybe they'd normally rent a bigger/nicer place but the smaller unit will do just fine.  

I know that Chicago has it's fair share of economic and political issues, but it's also a big City with a lot of positive aspects. 

The physical vacancy is bumped in Y1 and Y2, not to mention the economic.

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If you are doing it for economic reasons "I can charge more rent", it probably has a twenty year payoff.

Account Closed i don't trust anything when it comes to sellers and brokers.you need to verify as much as you can. with rent roll, you want to make sure that you know what rents are currently paid, not just Physical occupancy But also Economic occupancy - that means tenants that actually paying rents. you can verify these by asking for bank statements, and schedule 1from the TAX Return. 

Recession resistant asset class (people downsize, move in together, move back home, etc. during recessions)Cash flowing asset (not dependent on market appreciation)People buy a lot of crap and toys during good economic times (and need a place to put it)75% of the facilities in the country are owned by non-institutional owners (opportunity for adding value)Small ($10-30) rental increases create large increases in NOI and property valuationSticky tenant baseUnits are easy to maintain (brick and metal, no amenities, little landscaping)Location, population growth, and barriers to entry matter. 

My nightmare is to end up at a point, most likely due to economic shift, where I cannot find a renter, can't sell the house, and I am stuck with a house payment (or several) and no income being produced on the property.

Partly because they haven't done since 2011 but also because they are preparing for the changing market from FoxConn and other economic development.