There are reasons why it's been sold off and the price is depressed, probably more than you as a layperson would ever begin to know.Buying stocks involve significant risks especially ones where you make any kind of money.

Depressed in some areas (ring suburbs that were overbuilt at the time of the crash).  

However, I was able to purchase these when the market was more depressed than it is now and those deals are difficult to find. 

I think the biggest part of bigger pockets is how much they push whole life style changes, which really can make a person go from being lazy and depressed to focused driven and confident.I was introduced to real estate investing by the rich dad poor dad company, but was dissuaded by their for profit workings.

You'll get some comfort from looking at a graph of historical top tax levels - https://bradfordtaxinstitute.com/Free_Resources/Federal-Income-Tax-Rates.aspxAside from obvious extreme hikes  for WWs 1 and 2 and Korea and Vietnam (seeing a pattern here) and paying for the New Deal in the Great depression - Tax rates haven't changed that much since the tax code went into effect in the early 1900s.Since 1980 ish it's been relatively unchanged around an axis through 3 democratic and 4 republican administrations. 

refinancing and pulling out additional money when the rent hasn't increased substantially would depress ROE further down.

It’s depressing next to areas like downtown, little Italy, Hillcrest, mission hills, Pacific beach.

I hate having to visit them as the area is a depressing sea of bland beige strip malls filled with Outback Steak House and Subway.   

In Vegas I raised rents all through the “depression/recession” for single family homes. 

If you're of a pessimistic bent, as I am, given to bouts of depression as I am, it helps a great deal being proved wrong in your thinking from time to time.