You could talk about Phoenix or anywhere else in Arizona but I consider them vegas without the shows, the restaurants, the gambling, the tourists, the excitement, and they tack on state income tax.

It's a bigger gamble in my opinion, UNLESS you KNOW the person putting the deal together and trust them. 

With all the competition from DC, MD, PA, NY, DE they are doomed until they find a new business model not involving gambling.

Seattle especially is pretty much all gambling on appreciation at this point, as the properties are valued so high that cash flow is extremely low to actually being negative. 

Their support is clearly off-shore, as you don't get a response for up to 24-48 hours.  

That is gambling. 

"Gambling" that the value of the asset will increase also has its risks.

No way to make money on that deal if there is no equity and if it is underwater.If you could get it for $0 down with her carrying the mortgage, and it would cash flow well, it would still be a gamble to consider but the risk would still be on her. 

If you really want to gamble your risks would be lower at the race track.

I don't have ALL of my property in trusts, I don't have a Nevada LLC with nominee agents, I don't have anything offshore.