I do not want to buy something, only to have the area collapse over the next 5 years (or ten, or ever).  

I did that twice, but, got caught in the 2008 economic collapse and lost 60% of my property values.

They are all empty with investors buying them for speculation and they keep on building...In Miami they built 50,000 Condos and they were all empty during the collapse of the Market.

I know this is a good return but want to know if I should wait a few more month as I know the economy will collapse and I would be able to purchase it at a lower price.

Finding deals that can comfortably cash flow are difficult with little appreciation that can be expected in the near term (nearing the end of the cycle).It's a healthy market, but the dominoes will collapse in SF and run down south to LA and SD, just the nature of California.

I'm specifically referring to the end of the movie where the text was saying that major banks started selling these certain type of Mortgage Debts (forgot exactly the fancy term they had for them) again like they did in the mid 2000s when people were betting on the housing market to collapse..

People that think we are going to collapse like that again I think are simply armchair economists and fear mongers.  

I am looking for:  C- / C neighborhoods that are up-and comingUnder median price rangeSigns that other investors are there (bandit signs, one rebuild on the block) but aren't completely invested outHouses that have lots of equity (last sold more than 10 years ago)Abandoned housesHouses that look in need of serious repairOvergrowthSagging roofs and guttersWindow units instead of HVACRusting / collapsing chainlink fencesAging cars parked in the yardFaded numbers on mailboxChipped paint and non-traditional paint colorsSigns that seem to show anti-social behavior, such as "Beware of Dog," "Private Property," "No Trespassing," "CCTV Monitoring" (seems to correlate, don't know exactly why)Am I going about this right?  

During the 2008 market collapse, I had this opportunity and elected to ignore it.

When a “thermal” collapses, the warm updraft can quickly turn into a strong down draft.