Easy entrance with low downpayment, minimal risk and high long-term returns, and constant rental demand make it an ideal first investment. So many people start by turning their home into their first rental property and repeat the process over and over again to build their own little real estate empire. With the 1031 exchange process single family rental homes can be traded into larger multi-unit residential and commercial properties. Through family trusts a real estate legacy can be handed down to future generations. That’s how wealth is built. Andrew Carnegie claimed that 90% of all millionaires get to that level of wealth through an investment in real estate.