In many parts of the US, manufacturing and similar jobs are going away and what remains are service sector jobs.

I'm currently 28 years old, made a career change this past summer to a job that I enjoy much better than the one before that deals more in the financial sector which has been something I was always interested in.

I agree with your comments that mortgage reits are vulnerable to rising interest rates especially if the financial reits are leveraged.Just as the energy sector (nat gas, crude oil, agriculture) are beaten down, I think that the Financial reits are trading 21% below book value and the reason for this is the rising interest rates are already priced in causing these reits to trade at such distressed levels.

With only 1% of the population having served, the general population may need a refresher on how easily leadership skills transfer to the private sector.

Different fact patterns will require different judgments.Some examples of red flags are referenced in previous FinCEN reports on mortgage fraud and money laundering in the residential real estate sectors that would also apply to manufactured home sales and lending.

Currently between corporate jobs in the commercial banking sector so while I job search I plan to rennovate this single family home in the Manchester, CT area.  

Most MI (mortgage insurance) companies in the private sector only insure 1-2 unit primary residences (so its possible to get a duplex with 5% down just harder for 3-4 unit).- Advantage of conventional is the lower MI costs and the ability to structure the loan with no monthly MI like Zak mentioned, however he did not state the break even where conventional is better than FHA.

What sectors are getting hit?

UNITED STATES TREASURY BEGINS CRACK DOWN ON MONEY LAUNDERING THROUGH HIGH END RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE In an effort to combat money laundering in the real estate sector, The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCen), a bureau of The United States Treasury Department, has issued Geographic Targeting Orders (GTO) that will temporarily require title insurance companies to identify the names and social security numbers of the natural persons behind LLC's and other opaque structures that are used as shell companies to purchase high end residential real estate.Reporting will be required on "All Cash" purchases of residential properties that exceed $3,000,000 in Manhattan and $1,000,000 in Miami-Dade County.

With a strong tech sector, plenty of foreign investments, and a diverse industry overall, demand for the city of Seattle is likely to be second to none in 2016.Seattle has been in a solid upward trend since 2012 and is likely to continue its ascent.