The immediate gratification of the cash flow positive rental is motivating.  

I'm an "Instant Gratification" kind of guy.

Aaahhhh, deferred gratification.  

I was surprised to find that their is a person registered as a sexual offender about a block away from the home I am currently leasing.  

When children are involved my gut reaction is to get a ball bat.....but,Then I found a cases where girlfriends and wives used claims of sexual abuse to get rid of the guy.

You might want to have some confirmation regarding criminal records, drug offenses and sexual offenses of the occupants - you might accept the employer's checking of this but reserve the right to perform your own for verification purposes. 

I Definitely agree Bryan however the work hard, save, and learn incrementally by waking up early reading, and working from small tiny SFR's up to 400 unit apartment method over a career of 2-5 years in REI would not be as appetizing as the get rich instant gratification culture we have right now haha.

@Will PritchettWe'll never really know what renters on the lower end are thinking but adding to the list of reasons people rent vs buy is a general concept I call 'financial immaturity' where people don't plan, save, delay gratification, etc. in order to invest for the future.

Most people who want more instant gratification give up. 5) Tax benefits - The government gives very real benefits for real estate investing. 6) Control - This is actually a double sided benefit.  

And guess what, even though paying it down was 100% the right decision, if someone gave me the chance to take the money back, it would be tempting.My point is, life can get in the way of the 'we'll pay off the 30 yr note early' people, even those that do have the ability to delay gratification, and a proven track record of making good decisions with money.Truly, if you can get a 30yr or 15 yr loan for a rental, you're improving your financial position.