I spoke with a retired high school principal who said he has been buying real estate since he was 21.  Pulled all of his stock out of the market before the crash, and put it into real estate.  His property is worth so much more than when he bought it and doesn’t fluctuate like the stock market.  Look at the long term:  there is a limited amount of land in desirable areas, a growing population, and people need a place to live.  There will always be buyers, sellers and renters.  Yes, this is an excellent time to buy because the prices are low.

What is the major difficulty?  Financing.  Cash is king.  If you have tenants, it is not as difficult to get a loan, especially if your credit is good.

New regulations limit personal real estate investments to 4.  Any more than that need to be done with commercial loans.  Many lenders are no longer lending for investment properties, so this is a good time to establish relationships with local banks.  If you are going to renovate your investment property and finance it, you’ll need a commercial loan anyway.