In the great debate between real estate versus stocks, I give a slight nod towards real estate. When I was young, I wanted real estate because having it felt like I had arrived. Now that I’m middle-aged, I want real estate so I can provide a stable environment for my family.

After taking over 500 long walks around my neighborhood since 2014, I’ve made a very interesting observation. All the adult kids still living at home seem to be men, none are women. Within a four block radius, I often see between 4-6 adult young men waving goodbye to their moms or washing their cars in their parents’ driveway.

This, in turn, made me wonder, where have all the adult women children gone? What are the reasons men seem more destined to live at home with their parents than women? Perhaps maturity is what drives women to be more independent.

This observation worries me because I have a son. I want him to feel the joy of independence well before he’s 30 years old. If he still lives at home playing video games all day into his 20s, as a father, I will feel like a complete failure.

But sometimes, no matter how hard we try, we’re still destined to fail and there’s nothing we can do about it. Therefore, I got to thinking about how real estate can be used as a hedge against many bad or suboptimal situations. Here are 10 things I can think of. 

I recently had lunch with Jilliene Helman, Co-Founder and CEO of RealtyMogul. I was impressed with her focus on creating a long-term, sustainable business versus pursuing every real estate deal for growth’s sake.

I’m currently in platform due diligence mode as some of my real estate fund investments are starting to pay out. I expect all $810,000 of my principal invested across 18 investments to be returned by 2021.

In addition to platform risk, one of my main interests as an investor is how a real estate crowdfunding platform performs its due diligence and selects its deals. As a multi-property real estate investor, I am extremely thorough in my due diligence process, even coming up with a new property buying signal.

I want to invest in deals that have already been carefully vetted with a fine tooth comb. Once I make an investment, I want to forget about my investment and enjoy life under the assumption the platform will do everything possible to ensure the deal performs as advertised. Otherwise, what am I paying them a fee for?

Of course not every deal will do well since there are no guarantees in any risk asset. But we need to do the required work before making any investment. Due to the importance of due diligence, I asked Jilliene to write a guest post to share their process at RealtyMogul, one of the leading real estate platforms founded in 2012 after the JOBS Act was passed.

Given the relative illiquidity of real estate, there is huge room to get your property transaction right or wrong. My hope is for all of you to get maximum value whether you’re buying or selling.

There are many variables that determine the current and future value of a property. These include, but are not limited to location, marketing prowess, seasonality, condition, curb appeal, surrounding noise, interest rates, job environment, tax laws, housing laws, and demographic trends.

But all of these variables are derivative variables that leave a lot of wiggle room for price interpretation. A property is only as valuable as what someone is willing to pay. Therefore, I’ve come up with a new property leading indicator that if used properly, could save and make you a lot of money down the road.

Although it seems absurd to pay a 5% commission to sell a property in the internet age, a great real estate agent with good connections may be worth it.

Let’s say the best price you thought you could have gotten for your property was $1 million. But your real estate agent was able to work her connections and get you an out of town buyer for $1.1 million.

Paying $55,000 in commissions still leaves you with $45,000 above what you thought you could get. In this case, you probably are happy with your real estate agent even if the market was mostly responsible for dictating price.

But there are situations where a real estate agent will not only charge you a 5% – 6% commission but also unsuccessfully market your property to the point where it sells for below fair market value.

During my hunt for ocean view homes in Golden Gate Heights, I stumbled across one example. It’s a case study of what not to do as a seller and as a real estate agent. It’s also a case study for buyers to take advantage.