It allows you to diversify into a portfolio of homes as opposed to putting all of your proverbial eggs in one basket.Be cautious tho as over the years I have witnessed countless investors buying properties in crappy areas, for more than they are worth and being passed on to crappy property management that nickel and dimes them to death (I guess all of those 15% "awesome" paper cap rates and promises of financial freedom aren't that awesome after all...)This is not just true for real estate deals but life in general (Your "piece of paper" degree does't necessarily dictate success in your chosen profession or your business)Real life experience is different to what any "piece of paper" says.In all reality guys it takes time to build financial freedom, and the more you can diversify your risk across multiple properties in your portfolio the less risk you bear in the long run.I may not be the smartest Aussie you have ever met, however I do understand a few basic rules that I follow on every acquisition I make.Strength in numbers, cash only, patience, and discipline.Let's talk about Strength first.Price point plays a big part of "strength in numbers" as it is safer to acquire 5 homes for a total of $350,000 as opposed to one for $350,000.What happens if "that one" property goes untenanted for 5 months?

Single-family home sales fell 5.8 percent year-over-year, with 6,548 units sold;Days on Market (DOM) for single-family homes was 52 days;Total property sales declined 4.4 percent, with 7,842 units sold;Total dollar volume was down 3.5 percent to $2.2 billion;The single-family home median price edged up 0.2 percent to $232,500, a September high;The single-family home average price also achieved a September record, rising 1.7 percent to $295,765;Single-family homes months of inventory was at a 4.0-months supply, up fractionally from 3.9 months last September and slightly below the national supply of 4.3 months reported by NAR;Townhome/condominium sales fell 6.1 percent, with the average price down 6.6 percent to $191,967 and the median price unchanged at $159,450;Leases of single-family homes dropped 35.4 percent with the average rent down 4.0 percent to $1,812;Volume of townhome/condominium leases plunged 44.5 percent with the average rent down 1.0 percent to $1,584.https://www.har.com/content/newsroom?

Understand the fees involved and calculate the total cost for an entire year of management so you can compare the different managers.

They aren't perfect, but can catch obvious issues.

Is this a catch 22 or am i missing something obvious?

We currently collect 925/625 (total 1550) per month and pay no utilities.

isn't it a total stock market?

But the total employment, keeps going up. 

to be some upside that I am missing in my valuations:Purchase price:  495,000Units:                      16Rental Income:      8,400/moDown:                    20%Down:                    100,000Closing:                      6,400Repairs:                    16,000 (assume 1,000 per unit)TOTAL INVEST:     122,400Costs:  Debt:                  2,800.00 (6%)   Taxes:                   690.00  Insurance:            200.00  Sewer:                   800.00  Heat:                  1,200.00  Yard:                       40.00  Garbage:              300.00  Cap Exp(3%)        252.00 (Lower than I normally go)  Repairs (5%)        420.00 (300.00 per yr/unit)  Mngmnt (10%)    840.00  Vacancy(7%)        588.00  Screening              40.00 (tenant screening)TOTAL COST:     7,600.00 (rounded)Monthly CF:          800.00 (yikes...…...50.00 per unit!!)

If the tenant/buyer wants get credits, just reduce the cost of the property by the total amount of "would be" rent credits.