I am getting ready to take my RE state exam, I will be taking a crash course before taking the exam as well.

Maybe you are financially conservative and frugal, so you are able to purchase all cash at fire sale prices when the market crashes.

I am a mechanic or engineer- my background is in the construction fields, I owned my owe business for 12 years and lost it all in the last market crash and said I would never do what I did before- now I am at a hospital working in engineering- I do have a rehab but my stamina is a little less than what it was 14 years ago- I'm thankful for my day job but I know its not where I want to be so I feel the pain- the biggest thing you got to do is find the right deal- something your day job can afford ie.. rehab, foreclosure a deal that makes sense- bite the bullet and buy it- you will have to get dirty, do the work your self and don't fall in love with the property, find the best market move for it and get rid of it or keep it as a rental, do it againkeep crunching numbers and looking at properties one will be there for you there everywhereGood Luck!

Rules are rules and we should have seen it going into the property.  2)  There is a lot more that goes into vacation rentals than we originally thought. 3)  We got a crash course in the costs of actually selling a home.  

Prices need to be cooled down or we will end in a crash again. 

As for us, we're finally staring to re-build after the market crash of '08.

Im looking for a historically stable area that wasn't hit hard in the last crash(more of a smaller town)..

During the crash / correction they often become a desert towns with the few units occupied, no dues means differed maintenance4.

As for California specifically, you'll still probably see appreciation even if there is a "crash" as long as your time horizon is 10+ years.

At least it also doesn't make the fastest crashing lists when a recession hits, though.