Looking for a project with a quick turnaround in an area not subject to market volatility.

The closer you are to needing cash the less you want to be in stocks, volatility can make or break you. 

The market volatility has caused pricing to get a lot worse, and putting 25% down would lower the points you will pay, but there is no requirement per say. 

He is looking to diversify into real estate assets that will build equity and cash flow for his family with less volatility.

Tiny markets, even fast-growing ones, are just more volatile and subject to disruption from unexpected changes.

Stocks can be very very volatile and with a buy and hold you can get in for little, have someone else paying down your debt and pocketing the difference. 

Texas to me has always been more of a horizontal market with not a lot of movement either way.. although in the last few years prices I moved up some... but not like other hot markets were prices are more volatile ... during the GFC  Texas kind of held its own.I now folks would be selling Texas and I was investing in Atlanta at the time.. were prices were crushed in many areas up to 80%.. they bounced back same home I could have bought in Texas never really moved much..

Also, I would add that with any investment, I think you need to look at not just dollar vs dollar of return, but rather risk adjusted return ... a steady return is worth more to most than a highly volatile one ... how much more is up to the individual investor, but risk adjusted return needs to be considered.

Heck, Warren Buffett thinks so, who are we to argue.Second, and probably more importantly then, is that the more potentially volatile the net operating income of the property, meaning higher operating risk, then the more likely that the leverage can create problems for you.

Good cash on cash returns and reduced volatility compared to many other markets.