This info will give you a decent idea of what to expect and help filter down your search to a few cities.Some of the metrics that the survey provides and that I find valuable to understand are:- Population - Home Values- Household Incomes- Rental Vacancy Rate- Homeowner Vacancy Rate- Poverty Rate- Educational Attainment Rate (High School/GED & Bachelors)- Number of Housing Unit- Rent to Income Ratio- Rent to Price Ratio- Population on SNAPS (supplemental nutrition assistance program) percentage- Property Tax Rate- Median Age of Buildings- Number of Structures by Units (SFR, Duplex, Triplex, Quadplex, etc...)- Median Rents by Number of Bedrooms- Unemployment Rate- Employment Sectors Percentages These are just some of the indicators that will help you understand the quality of an area as well as the kinds of returns one is to except.Also take into consideration the direction in which each of these market indicators are trending.

Look where he is now.The story seems to be the consistent with many people that attain financial success.

We partnered to attain private funds for the deposit in the hard$.

Set your own hours and work as much as you can to attain your goals then you can slow down and enjoy the family a little more.

(As an aside, there is an interesting over funded insurance product that you borrow from for the rest of your life to attain tax free income.) 

You're right, BiggerPockets site is the best venue for attaining education about Real Estate investing! 

If one market abruptly flops, you may still be able to attain a strong ROI through your additional international assets.Real estate crowdfunding in particular is a respectable way to start branching into diverse markets.

My goal oriented plan: Using the SMART system, for those who don't know, Specific, Measurable, Actionable/Attainable, Realistic, Time Oriented.

I plan on renting the property at the cost of my monthly payments (which is easily attainable in the market) to insure the mortgage with taxes and insurance included.

Not sure if my experience is going to help much, but I just became a Broker in New York and started my own Brokerage, Work Hard Realty, LLC.Prior, I was never a Salesperson and attained my Broker License from qualifying with my experience over 20 years as a Real Estate Investor.I have a lot of experience in REI and hold 7 multi-family Investment Properties in Brooklyn, NY that I buy with Partners.Prior to becoming a Broker, a few friends of my Partners, Family Members and others have been asking me to help them buy properties as they realized how successful I have become.The properties that I bought and sold made me realize that I left some money on the table.