This requires deep dives into the finances of various companies, bonds, and individual assets—not to mention staying ahead of macro market trends.

Most financial advisors just tell you that you want a 60/40 split stocks and bonds they put it into their funds and charge you, their fees. 

With a risk-free benchmark of 9.62% in I bonds, I will first max out my annual allotment of those (which is almost significant if you have entities) Then buy something that doesn't call me or have me concerned about weather, tenants, toilets, roofs,  heating and air or bad mgmt. 

But the thought of paying a lender 8.5% when I have the money sitting in stocks/bonds which almost surely will not go up 8.5%/year over the next several years (and potentially could go down a lot) is very unsettling. 

Net income is the income before we pay debt service (a mortgage) and taxes.The hard part in real estate is finding "like investments" as no two parcels of real estate are identical or very similar as we can find in stocks or bonds. 

These are smaller properties being bought for cash mostly 1 million and under.With government and business bonds giving returns around mid 4's I have clients floating millions to tens of millions of dollars to get some kind of return while waiting for 1031 volume money to flush out of the market. 1031 exchange money thinks different.

Mortgage rate are more driven by the bond market than the Fed rate.You can probably expect mid-5% for a 1-4 unit investment property.

We get our money from longer-term Wall Street investors, so our rates are tied to the bond market, particularly the Treasury (watch the 10-Year Treasury...rates will move in that direction).

My financial advisor scolded me for buying another house and said I should go for non-RE investments (bonds and index funds). 

A termite treatment and bond later and we were back in business.