Too much Real Estate? What Else is There?

[Mark Douglas]

I'm just getting started in REI (one duplex, but planning on picking up more units soon!) and recently I was talking to a gentleman who is 49, who's been investing in RE since he was 20. We were talking about risk-tolerance, and he mentioned he frequently monitors his whole investment portfolio to make sure he doesn't have too much in RE.

Just wondering from those that have been doing this awhile, do you evaluate this by ratios, such as 30% REI, 45% stocks, 25% stake/ownership in business ventures, etc.?

If most people bounce around different investment vehicles, and end up in REI, how do they survive another 2007-2008 cycle? Is is really the best way to go?

A lot of investors who were over-leveraged with mortgages on their rentals, had to quickly sell or sadly were foreclosed on.  Maybe those who owned free and clear property were less impacted if they weren't using those properties as collateral.

Are there realistic strategies to use if you're not 100% mortgage-free on buy/hold?