Tim, I have to take issue with most of your points here. I'm not sure you've ever owned investment property? Better to write about what you know, isn't it? As a landlord with seven single-family rentals and one commercial building, I can tell you from personal experience your analysis is way off the mark. Money is made by positive cash flow (rent minus expenses) and leveraged appreciation. If your house appreciates at 4% per year, and you used a 25% down payment, then your return is 16% beacuse you get all of the appreciation for only 1/4 of the investment. Most of my houses have been making over 20% returns for many years and have helped me generate significant wealth. If you buy at a good price, the returns are even better. This beats inflation by a wide margin (and inflation eats up returns on ALL assets, not just real estate). For my portfolio, I use management companies and spend about 2 hours per month keeping the books. It is very passive, and I have had great success with this approach. The time spent is in finding a good deal, which is the same for stocks or businesses. Yes, debt does increase risk, but if you know what you are doing and ensure your properties always have positive cash flow, it can be managed. I have a lot of debt and sleep at night just fine because my finances are conservative. Other assets can make money as well, but few are as stable and powerful as real estate. Building a business can work if successful, but the vast majority fail. Real estate is much more likely to be successful. Same with venture capital, most fail. Real estate is not nearly as risky as these options. It has downside and certainly isn't for everyone, but the false narrative given by people who have never been landlords should stop, deal? The snake oil is trying to write about something you don't understand.