With the oil slump in Texas and stock market ups and downs, is it a good time to purchase a rental home?  

It's in an area with a lot of transient oil refinery workers, they are often well paid but only needed for 6-9 months.

hello out there, my name is Dwane  I am new to investing and would like to do some listening   I have been in the North Dakota oil fields for the past four years  I (or my wife) bought our first rental last year  we (or she) also flipped one  we were lucky on both deals.  

There is an oil tank in the basement that looks like it may have had a slight leak in the past.  

They are moving 1/1 onward.Others depend on school years, seasonal changes, and local (oil patch, harvest, etc.)  

Yes, Houston is and will be impacted w/oil down for the time being but this is not so directly impacting areas like Austin and SA IMO.  

Look at auto subprime, student debt subprime, oil subprime.  

I was wondering what other Rhode island investors use as rule of thumbs to quickly fish out bad and better investments.  

i know a lot o you are not hands on with your properties, but I for one, am, the sewer lateral issue has been a big one for me, so i purchased a 50 foot USB drain camera on Ebay for $15 or $20 attach it to my electrical fish tape, and inspect the line as part of my rehab, or prior to purchasing if possible. it works for me.

Hopefully, you are actively marketing (fish don't jump into the boat) and regular contact with leads who are principals and discuss your situations on these forums.