My wife and I are coming up to the end of a two year lease on a property in Northern Virginia -- as we've been here, we've noticed that our kids have had persistent respiratory issues -- particularly our 10 month old son, who we took to the emergency room at 4 months old, with respiratory issues (we didn't think to check for mold at the time).As we've been in the house, the owner (who regularly cut out the property management company he had been working with), has mentioned that when he lived in the house, he had noticed 'pin hole leaks' in some of the pipes.. and when we pointed out a 1 inch diameter 'soft-spot' in the kitchen ceiling, he chalked it up to that. 

If someone calls with an emergency, can you drop everything and go to the property, or at least quickly find someone who can?

Emerging markets?

Relax.One of the biggest lessons you will learn is what a actual emergency is.

An important thing to do is to set aside money for emergencies....whether repairs or a month or two with vacancies.

Sure, me and @Immanuel Sibero and @Greg Dickerson can talk all day about market fundamentals and their affect on emerging trends and cap rate viability, but at the end of the day its about what an investor is willing to pay.

Booze and women........Save it for the next opportunity or when an emergency hits.....

Furthermore, you can borrow up to $50K from your 401k for an emergency.   

It also builds in a 10% emergency reserve fund based on the rehab budget to provide a cash cushion if a house later is found to need more work or a cost overrun etc.

I have been researching and reading to conclude the best emerging markets in Texas and am wondering if a city where the jobs are not as diverse because of the colleges, is a good investment market.