Always do a math analysis on prospective properties and try to look at them or at least have a clause in the sales contract that allows you time (about 10 days) to make a detailed inspection and possibly back out of the deal without a penalty that hurts you too much.I have been in Dallas Texas County for most of my life and really have not had a recession experienced by other communities.  

You want to be able to evict fast and have a new section 8 tenant lines upThats my number 1 rule with section 8 , but overall I think its great, improves during recession ( recession proof), won't ever go away (govt) , and direct deposits...I find if you treat them good they will treat you well but you need to know when to put the foot down

Back in the days of the last recession here in California, one of the most common scammers were those people who stood at a gas station with an empty gas can.

We paid cash for a modest house in a less expensive area in 2011,(recession prices) and rented that out for 2 years.   

Even in recession.

I graduated HS during the recession and paid my way through working at school for an associates degree that took me two years.

Why not shoot for a 800 FICO to cover all bases whether the recession hits or not?

In the recession in California most rents stayed flat even though prices went down.  

Having access to super cheap money that won't get shut off during a recession allows me to carry slightly less cash reserves. 

In addition, since we are near the peak of the market, it makes sense to transfer your equity to places that have more linear cycles so that even if there is a recession you won't have the volatility that you have in California.If you don't have enough reserves, then be careful but if you have reserves, it's one of the best way to accelerate acquisition.Lastly, ALL of your HELOC interest will be tax deductible (even above the $100,000 amount) so you get a tax deduction on the heloc interest which is fantastic.