I am younger and I am looking at this as a way to create additional side income throughout my life, they are looking at it as a supplement for retirement. 

Our plan is to use the passive income to supplement our retirement. 

Those things can only help to supplement your core teachings.

Darren.....we are looking for private investors to supplement the personal funds we have in our flips.

I have tried to get her into a duplex where she will have rental income to supplement SS but she can't afford a mortgage.

My goal in real estate is to supplement my income and eventually (in about 15 years) replace my day job - I love what I do but I do not want to be hurting like the old-timers I work with now.  

They may already be supplementing the parents in this case anyway.

I work full time in IT and I am looking to supplement my income with real estate, specifically buy and hold.

I want to establish an income stream to provide a supplement in case my next posting isn't as lucrative as this one.

It's certainly not necessary but it can give you a bit of an edge.If you're thinking you can get licensed and start doing rentals or sales to supplement your income, I can tell you that it's WAY harder than you think.