why do people pay $20m cash for a manhattan condo?

Go to local meetups, search these forums for people that have mentioned that they do private lending and attend other RE events.

So - somewhere 2 hours away, or somewhere you like to vacation in, or where all your family lives, or where you plan to move someday.Too many people are trying to do exactly what you're doing - pick a market based on a formula - and they end up buying a random 'cheap' property thousands of miles away, turn it over to people they've never met or even spoken to, and then... lose money.  

OTM = General, overhead/widescreen view of nationwide market tends.BPRE = Detailed ways specific people are making money in real estate.

I'm in Phoenix and obviously you can see that there are so many people moving from the west coast states out here to a cheaper and better weather market.

I'm certain there are plenty of people in the community willing to help. 

People that get destroyed are ones that are enticed by the low interest rate and assume they can refi after the second year. 

Each grouping had a common room (perhaps it was shared by multiple groupings ... this was a detail I missed) with a nurses/aid workers office.Central to the two sides of the complex were common facilities such as a dining hall, gym {perhaps a pool ... another detail I missed}, theatre &  games room.With one of the fastest growing groups in our society being single people, we are examining a related idea of a  complex / building providing a modest-sized 1-bdroom "apartment" with more semi-private and common amenities.When I read the title to your thread, I thought it was a project proposing to mix students and seniors into a single complex ... and came in thinking, this ought to be interesting :-) 

Ton's of people with golden shackles of sub 3% rates, epic net shortage, skilled labor shortage, on and on. 

Would love to hear people’s suggestions or thoughts. everyone’s so amazing in their responses and I really appreciate everyone’s thoughtful feedback!