In this section I provide my name and number (I manage all 5 SF rentals myself, remember) along with a statement which reads "Tenant will pay Landlord the first $250.00 of the cost to repair each conditiono in need of repair, and Landlord will pay the remainder, except for the following conditiosn which will be paid as follows:..." and then it goes on to discuss 4 conditions which are "Landlord negligence", "wastewater stoppages caused by roots/malfunctioning equipment", "health/safety issue not caused by Tenant or guest of Tenant", and "heating/AC, water heaters, water penetration".

If you have the option, that is a great way to save on all the items I mentioned earlier; no state income taxes, cheap licensing and vehicle registration, low cost auto ins, and low cost health ins.

If one area has, say, 40% of its employment in one industry where the other has a more even distribution, I see that as a reduced risk because you're not banking on the health of one industry to quite the same degree.I would be leaning heavily toward San Antonio, just because I haven't been sold on the revitalization of the rust belt quite yet. 

I have several out of state clients, specifically from california that like the KC market for it's recession resistant work force (warehousing, industrial, health, and government + a mix of tech and ag) and returns (6.25-7.25% cap rate for medium sized properties).

Health care, education, technologies, clothes, goods and service...

-Getting outside the real estate focus a bit here, but there are a ton of resources out there for figuring ranch profitability:https://extension.sdstate.edu/...https://texnat.tamu.edu/https://www.grainews.ca/livest...Obviously ranch profitability has several variables (rainfall, forage types and health, soil health, cattle prices, feed/hay prices, etc.), it seems to me one of the biggest factors that are controllable is the initial investment in land.

Esp wrt to financial health and previous ground up experience. 

I understand that I'd probably only get my dream home when I'm 50, and that major things like changing budgets, children, health will impact this timeline, but it seems like a low risk real estate method, that will have a similar enough payoff due the fact that I'm fortunate to be making a good salary.

Utah and was fully self sufficient.Installed 1/2 acre pond,12 ft deep, with rubber liner, 60 ft tall wind generator, auto tracking solar panel system, batteries, a 300 ft deep well, low voltage elec, solar fridge, timber on the acreage, a 24x30 basement UNDER a garage for food storage, sleeping bags, pillows, guns, ammunition etc.

My marriage vows had something like "for richer or poorer, better or worse, sickness and health."