Aside from the "sell the dream" marketing aspect, the biggest issue with gurus is that 99% of the time they sell you on shortcuts and apples to oranges comparisons.

@Mark Alexander You should probably just to an apples-to-apples comparison with/without the student-loan debt!  

Make sure you are comparing "apples to apples".

I tend to think the list is extremely short if we truly compare apples to apples.

The work required is higher from what I have seen so this higher ROE is not without an additional labor component.Make sure you account for your labor apples to apples in both industries for any analysis you do.  

Years ago, in NYC, I used to hide a key in a magnetic key box outside attached to the underside of metal stairs. 

You're comparing apples and pears.

There is an old apple orchard that could be cared for... i could expand it to house a green organic, Maine made local products- i could rent out rooms to different vendors?

@John ThedfordWhile I cannot argue with your logic - there are tax advantages for investing in real estate outside of a 401k or IRA - you are answering a different question in my opinion... or comparing apples and oranges.When one invests within an IRA or 401k, the tax implications are what they are, and they are different than investing with after tax funds.In that sense, comparing investments in a particular asset class, between qualified and non-qualified funds -  whether stocks or real estate or whatever - is not a true comparison.What one should compare is how will my retirement plan perform investing in real estate vs investing my plan in other assets.  

Do one task at a time in each app so you can compare apples to apples.Load a property with pictures and details.Market that property.See what your marketing looks like from the public's perspective.Submit a fake application to see how easy the process is.