OH ya the sf neighborhood were top earners billionaires multi millionaires and same with Tiburoun maybe not billionares but very rich. 

Honestly I love doing real estate especially in this area because of the strong manufacturing presence and strong wage growth. 

Minimum wage is $2.50 USD.  

A $12k commission may actualy break down to less than minimum wage with brokerage commission splits, taxes, insurance and all expenses factored in.That's why agents are careful to make sure they are going to be paid for their work, if they want to stay in the business.

But there will be fewer of them, they’ll be paid for direct client service instead of self-promotion, and there will be many fewer big earners and low earners.

If your a high income earner living below your means then this isn't a horrible strategy. 

I'm a real estate professional and she's a high income earner, so together, we're able to take advantage of some great tax strategies through real estate. 

I think you're thinking not prioritizing cash flow is synonymous with avoiding it-- it's not.A high earner is not prioritizing cash flow, that's fine.

Another excludes  money he pays out of his monthly wages toward paying off the HELOC from the investment basis when calculating his “ROI”.  

ya well every guru talks about quitting your job which frankly for most is the absolute worse thing you can do very few people really live solely on rental income unless they were high wage earners and basically set.