Real estate is being added to the investment portfolios of Americans and more are looking for real estate to provide a passive income stream in their retirement years.  

Real estate investing sometimes gets a bad rap from investment advisers.  They often prefer REIT's and other supposed easier forms of investing in real estate because it's easy for them to track and control their clients portfolios.  I don't begrudge them for that attitude, I just think it short changes an investor and eliminates a very powerful source of income when investors will need it most...retirement.