Greetings,
Here is a thought that I'd like to throw out there. Its about diversification and cash flow.
When one buys a sf rental for lets say $200,000, and it rents for say $1500/month. After taxes, maintenance and property management one might net $8,000 annually if lucky. Whereas one could invest in businesses where the cash flow could be so much greater. for example, a restaurant that one buys the ongoing business of for the same $200,000 might net $30,000-$50,000 annually. Both ideas have risk, for the houses tenent problems, and damage, vs business failure or underperformance. Both ideas take energy, and while one could hire a property manager for sf rentals, one hires a manager for the business.
Would the eventual asset value of the houses be more than the increased cash flow for the businesses over a 20 year period? I'm not sure it would.