Scarlett if you are thinking about buying a rental property you need to set your goals. There are people who post here who own rentals and they can tell you thier experiences. You have to think about goals such as appreciation verses cash flow. Are you in for the long run or is it a short run deal? Are you going to live there for awhile, and then rent it in the future? Alot of those kinds of questions need to be answered.

Once you have your goals established, then you can think about locations, types of properties and stuff like that. You may find that the numbers play out better for a small condo in Oceanside or Mission Valley, or you may not. It takes some time and research. Regarding UTC, I think there is still room for downward pressure in that entire area. True there is alot of demand there for a variety of reasons. There is a heck of alot of employment within 5 miles of the area as well so it is not just students. Still though, as far as investments go, to me it does not seem like the right play and needs more time to cook.