Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below.
The late Charlie Munger, longtime friend and business partner to the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett, was himself an investing magnate with a trove of wisdom for everyday investors.
Aside from his knowledge, Munger’s wit was on frequent display at Berkshire Hathaway annual meetings, including airing his opinions on U.S. housing habits.
One of his core arguments? Homes should be reserved for families who intend to live in them.
At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway’s shareholders in 1998 (1), Munger famously quipped: “The single people, I don’t care if they ever get a house.”
It was a bold statement, and one that doesn’t necessarily align with conventional wisdom — although some modern gurus disagree.
That’s because real estate is often regarded as one of the best wealth-building assets for many middle-class households, regardless of marital status. And the numbers arguably support this view: The total value of home equity for homeowners in America skyrocketed between Q1 2020 and Q1 2025, rising from $21.5 trillion to $34.1 trillion in those five years alone (2).
So, before you go off selling your home alone, here’s what investors should consider about real estate as a long-term asset class.
For many Americans, buying a home is seen as the ultimate financial milestone and a cornerstone of the American dream. But not everyone agrees it’s a smart investment.
Grant Cardone, a real estate mogul, claims your primary home is a “terrible investment.”
“[A home] doesn’t cash flow. You don’t get big tax write-offs because of it. You have no leverage. You’re living in it. You’re paying for it. You never own it,” Cardone said during a podcast interview with Sean Kelly in 2024 (3).
Even after the mortgage is paid, you’re still on the hook for things like taxes, insurance, HOA fees and maintenance. According to a 2025 analysis by Zillow and Thumbtack, these costs average about $15,900 across America, soaring to as high as $24,000 in larger metropolitan areas like New York — all of which comes on top of your mortgage payments (4).
On the flip side, Buffett sees real estate as a potential wealth-building powerhouse because it can generate income.
Unlike a primary residence, rent-paying apartments are productive, cash-flowing assets. In fact, he once famously said that if someone offered him 1% of all the apartment buildings in the U.S. for $25 billion, he’d “write you a check (5).”
Either way, if you want to earn income from real estate but aren’t keen on the headaches of being a landlord, there are ways to invest without the stress.
Read More: I’m almost 50 years old and don’t have retirement savings. Is it too late?
For most individuals, the most significant investment one will ever make is in their primary residence.
The ability to take on a highly leveraged position in real estate and grow equity as property values rise over time offers significant financial benefits. Instead of paying rent and having “nothing” to show for it after 30 years, homeowners who make their monthly mortgage payments will accumulate substantial equity by retirement.
This “forced savings” phenomenon is a key reason why most household net worth is so often tied up in real estate.
But for those looking to expand their residential real estate portfolio beyond their primary residence, or even invest in real estate while saving for a down payment on their own home, there are several options.
For example, new investing platforms are making it easier than ever to tap into the real estate market.
Crowdfunding platforms like Arrived allow you to invest in shares of vacation and rental properties, earning a passive income stream without the extra work that comes with being a landlord of your own rental property.
To get started, simply browse through their selection of vetted properties, each picked for their potential appreciation and income generation. Once you choose a property, you can start investing with as little as $100, potentially earning monthly dividends.
Once you’re an investor with Arrived, you’ll also gain access to their newly launched quarterly secondary market, where investors can buy and sell shares of individual rental and vacation rental properties directly on the platform.
This allows you to buy into properties you may have missed at the initial offering or sell shares before a property reaches the end of its hold period.
With access to more than 400 properties in 60 cities, this new way to trade real estate opens up flexibility and opportunities to gain access to more properties every quarter.
For a limited time, when you open an account and add $1,000 or more, Arrived will credit your account with a 1% match.
For those looking to diversify beyond short-term rentals, one option worth exploring might be multifamily real estate investing.
In a report prepared by JPMorgan, Al Brooks — the firm’s vice chair of Commercial Banking — said, “I think multifamily housing is absolutely where you want to be as an investor (6).”
If diversifying into multifamily and industrial rentals appeals to you, you could consider investing with Lightstone DIRECT, a new investing platform from the Lightstone Group, one of the largest private real estate companies in the country with over 25,000 multifamily units in its portfolio.
Since they eliminate intermediaries — brokers and crowdfunding middlemen — accredited investors with a minimum investment of $100,000 can gain direct access to institutional-quality multifamily opportunities. This streamlined model can help reduce fees while enhancing transparency and control.
And with Lightstone DIRECT, you invest in single-asset multifamily deals alongside Lightstone — a true partner — as Lightstone puts at least 20% of its own capital into every offering. All of Lightstone’s investment opportunities undergo a rigorous, multi-stage review before being approved by Lightstone’s Principals, including Founder David Lichtenstein.
How it works is simple: Just sign up with your email, and you can schedule a call with a capital formation expert to assess your investment opportunities. From here, all you have to do is verify your details to begin investing.
Founded in 1986, Lightstone has a proven track record of delivering strong risk-adjusted returns across market cycles with a 27.6% historical net IRR and 2.54x historical net equity multiple on realized investments since 2004. All told, Lightstone has $12 billion in assets under management — including in industrial and commercial real estate.
As such, even if multifamily rentals don’t appeal to you, Lightstone could still serve you well as an investment vehicle for other real estate verticals.
Get started today with Lightstone DIRECT and invest alongside experienced professionals with skin in the game.
Investing in REITs or ETFs will also give you access to the growth of the real estate market through the stock market.
Additionally, there are a number of funds that offer diversified exposure to different types of real estate assets, so you can spread your risk and ensure balance in your portfolio. These assets can include residential, commercial and industrial properties.
But great money makers need great tools.
Platforms like Robinhood are designed to make investing simpler and more approachable.
If you prefer a more hands-on approach, you can also buy and sell individual stocks, fractional shares and options (for qualified traders) — backed by 24/7 support. Stocks, ETFs and their options trades are commission-free.
With access to popular ETFs like the Vanguard S&P 500, you can build diversified exposure without needing to pick individual stocks.
The platform also offers both a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA, so you can choose the tax strategy that fits your retirement plan.
With its recurring investment feature, you can set up automatic investments of your preferred fractional shares, stocks and ETFs on your own schedule.
Over time, this helps make investing a habit and steadily grows your portfolio.
Even with a mix of real estate funds, it helps to have a strategy—and that’s where expert research comes in. Analysts’ insights can guide you on which funds match your goals and which to avoid.
Moby offers expert research and recommendations to help you identify strong, long-term investments backed by advice from former hedge fund analysts.
In four years, and across almost 400 stock picks, their recommendations have beaten the S&P 500 by almost 12% on average. They also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Moby’s team spends hundreds of hours sifting through financial news and data to provide you with stock and crypto reports delivered straight to you. Their research keeps you up-to-the-minute on market shifts, and can help you reduce the guesswork behind choosing stocks and ETFs.
Plus, their reports are easy to understand for beginners, so you can become a smarter investor in just five minutes.
Join 250,000+ readers and get Moneywise’s best stories and exclusive interviews first — clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now.
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.
@investorarchive (1); Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (2); @DigitalSocialHour (3); Zillow Group (4); CNBC (5); JPMorgan Chase (6)
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
