BruceM:

Rather than go back and forth on the issue with you, I will just let my posts speak for themselves and urge people interested in this type of investment to do more research on the subject. I believe these boards are a good *starting point* for research -not the be all and end all of it. My goal with my last post was not to make you defensive (I apologize for doing so as that was sincerely not my intent) but to simply point out some misinformation. At the end of the day, I don't expect anyone will rush out and act (or not act) on your or my advice without digging deeper into what we have said. So let's be gentlemen about it, leave the sarcasm out of the discussion, and try not to prove who is right.....but rather offer a starting point for those interested in these types of vehicles.

As a last point, I'm sure (as you point out) that you work with a lot of smart people who have never invested in RE. But I know and work with a lot of smart people who couldn't/can't make money in the stock market -that doesn't mean the stock market is a bad place to be. It means they never did their due diligence -although I admit, sometimes even that isn't enough. But not much in life is certain, right?

Best of luck to all!
canuck104