It can go either way if you understand the dynamics of the community and know what you are doing on the business end.

Marie Poe : For what it's worth, I find the HP 10bii calculator manual a great place to learn these calculations, it has diagrams so you can visualize cash flows, shows exactly what buttons to push and even has an example of a wrap mortgage: HP 10bii Calculator Manual.

Generally I prefer Crexi from a visual and navigation perspective.I completely agree with @Greg Kasmer and @Jasmin Hernandez. 

You have to toss in John Nash's Theory of Governing Dynamics, Keynesian Economics and even Chaos Theory.

My gut tells me you will find great dynamics in the Sunbelt cities (Charlotte, Atlanta, Orlando, Dallas, Austin, etc), but then again I will let the data do the talking.

You need to know a lot about the laws, political trends, tenant selection, airbnb/vbro rentals, neighborhood dynamics, etc., etc. to definite your investment strategy.

@Ciro AffrontiThis might help to start:1) Interactive Demographics Map from the Census: Interactive Map (this map is a little finicky, but once you get used to it, you'll get valuable visual info)2) Federal Reserve Economic Data: FRED (provides charts dating back 10, 20, 30, 40 years so you can see how things have been trending)3) Census Quick Facts: QuickFacts (provides charts at the State, County, City level regarding various data) 4) Bureau of Labor Statistics: Labor Stats5) FEMA's National Flood Zone FEMA. 

Also, mentioned, there is market appreciation in both prices and rents, which yes does on average double every ~10 years in and around LA ... who knows what it could be next year or the year after, but over a long hold period this is the average if the long term (going back 40+ years) holds into the future, and I don't see any major fundamental shift in the supply and demand dynamics to suggest it would.  

@Allen Collier - I used to show my apartments while work is getting done and many people are unable to visualize how it will look. 

You need to get on a plane and see whats up , or have someone you trust to do a visual inspection .