Surveyor I think you have captured the essence of what it takes very thoroughly. I can honestly say that I have known people who have both made and lost alot of money in the stock market and with property investment. However those that lost money in the real estate market did so because they did not put in the time and effort needed to find success. As you have pointed out, your individual needs should dictate what/where you buy. Conversely it does take alot of time and effort. My wife and I purposely have not taken the step to buy out of state because of this. Thus we are being lazy and just piling up cash to plunk down on the next home we buy. However I have done the research to identify the markets that we believe will fit our goals and the returns LOOK great. Yet I know that it requires alot more work beyond that so I cannot pull the trigger until I have the time to go get dirty. I am not anti stock market and have investments in it… still though… I do believe with the time and effort (which I do not have right now), personally I would get a more secure yield that I could rely on with diligent RE investing.
