But does all that counteract prices going up, taxes remaining high, and rents beginning to flatten?

High taxes decay prices lol Those statistics that show the overall Chicago market don't tell the whole story.

If you let your property run down after a tenant moves in, the property condition will decay more rapidly.Take your loos floor tile for example. 

Nothing decays in that desert. 

There is no free lunch.What counteracts risk?  

Friends of mine who came from successful parents might build something bigger than their parents or decay into alcohol and drug abuse.

You are right in that your IRR (not average returns, IRR) will decay in real estate, but again flawed in thinking that there are not ways to reallocate capital into advantageous holdings, and further flawed in thinking that this is a big detractor from investing in real estate.

But Camden is a true "war zone".. a city in pretty much total decay.

The only thing I can do is discourage people from trying to become a real estate investor.Well this post counteracted with one person (me) because you just made me even more hungry for success.

Sign of the times......sigh....Decaying value LOL Almost everything is ironic these daysMore like burning man