I believe in reading a good book but field work is a crash course and the best way to go.

If rents don't crash ,my residence would basically break even after the re-fi and higher mortgage payment.

You do it after a crash when you know the market is going to increase.If you lost $1,500 a month, that would cost you $90,000 in five years before accounting for vacancies, capex, and other expenses.Appreciation plays are for the wealthy.

However, most of middle America, home prices are just now recovering from the 2008 crash.

It may not crash, and it may just take a dip.

The Dow Jones hit a record high in 2007 and then came crashing down as soon as the Liberal Congress took over spending!

My real estate 'go bag'.You mentioned a car, you don't need a new BMW or any new car or truck, it needs to be clean, with paint, dent free (not crashed) in good order, no loud muffler and don't pull up with a 10,000 watt stero blaring and clean inside, no trash.

Yes this could of crashed the rental market!

Going a bit off-topic here, but I hope not much.Since I am in this business with my wife (although I do all of the talking here on BP), I'd like to chime in and point out that we have seen a rather large number of married and unmarried couples in this business together crash and burn because they didn't wrap their heads around points like these before going into business together.It's not going to work if you go into this together just because you're both close to broke and both just want a bit more money in your lives to make your life a bit more fun.

@Jessica Hinman You sure are getting quite the crash course in landlording, huh?