I also try to picture his properties although I was picturing something more like swinging doors, tumble weeds, and chaps. 

A key thing to watch is the media will shout from the hill tops "HOUSING PRICES ARE TUMBLING!!!!

Just sits there bare land growing tumble weeds  

I'm all for leverage but if you lose your job then the cards can come tumbling down. 

I did this because the apartment was cheap and used the horrible 120 volt electric driers that took 3 runs to actually dry a full load of clothes (they were piped wrong as well).Anyway, moral of the story, you will most likely not get an engineering student who is bored and anal enough to do a cost analysis on his laundry lol.Here's a quick summary of what it costs to do laundry with Anchorage electricity prices:

In the kitchens I always install granite, new under mount sink and faucet, and tumbled marble backsplash, I install stainless steel appliances only if the current appliances are not in good shape / ugly.Countertops - I agree with upgrading to granite, but would suggest a lighter color with more variation, I use giallo ornamental.

You might find a property with that but it's going to be hard and without a job you would tumble down my list and probably not get it.

We were one of the largest contractors there, until the market crashed, and we took a tumble, and we are, starting up new.

In drier climates, landlords should totally design their properties to low water plants, which are less maintenance. 

Question is whether the tumbling interest rate will revive it or is this the start of a  sustained real estate downturn ?