An investment that is in many companies, reducing the risk of complete wipeout of the investment.Chances are these people you are referring to are invested in a broad market fund, and not in a highly volatile industry specific fund. 

But getting homes below retail is very hard.

The purchase is for a single tenant triple net retail space. 

This can change depending on the lender but that is what I have seen across the market in the time I've been in the industry. 

One thing that has changed, is that the majority of unscrupulous individuals in the mortgage industry has been marginalized.

I only know about the times where this was found out prior to closing, obviously I have no way to know about the times this shady behavior wasn't found out.Since you get a vote in who this tenant is, and it's retail, PSA that commercial lenders (especially the ones offering the best terms...) are starting to vet deals by how 'recession proof' the tenants are, even if they are currently paying on time.

Venturing into the real estate industry is a fantastic goal.

Want to understand why our industry is reviled by most people?

@Jonathan Klemm - You have to understand that what @Henry Lazerow and I do is very different than the retail side of things. 

@Steve Kontos I've been a RE developer for nearly 20 years on commercial, mixed use, industrial, and residential developments.