Safer, maybe, but nothing beats truly owning real estate. I have a few rental properties, all managed by a property management co. I can cash out re-fi and ro

Safer, maybe, but nothing beats truly owning real estate. I have a few rental properties, all managed by a property management co. I can cash out re-fi and roll it into another property tax free, rinse and repeat. Buy > Rehab > Rent > Refinance > Repeat. I can take the property and sell if it appreciates. I can do a 1031 tax exchange for a similar property. Or I can just continue to rent it out. Best part is I can use other people's money as leverage to buy much more property, and if the deal makes sense at the time of purchase/deal analysis, I won't be over-leveraged and will stand to make money, with multiple exits as options. After paying off the note, I can seller finance it to someone (rent-to-own) if I wish, at whatever interest rate I/my buyer deems appropriate. Can't do that with REITs, unfortunately. But in terms of being truly passive, REITs fit the bill!