This business of buying and borrowing started in Australia in a...

This business of buying and borrowing started in Australia in a different time.

Rates were low and more important were going to stay low for the foreseeable future
Rent returns were in the region of 9% to 10%
Maintenance cost were miniscule as trades men were cheap
There was a genuine gentle 7% Capital Gain which showed every indication that it would go on forever

It was possible to keep buying properties one after the other

I know of one man who built from nothing (Italian migrant)to 2oo plus properties. He sold before the economy changed

Anyone who is doing the same today is crazy and it is not a question of if they will go broke but just a case of when.

The economies of scale are against them and they have to be so highly geared that it is unlikely they will survive any sort of medium downturn