[Ennis]

By passive I'll assume you mean less effort and risk than starting a new business that requires daily attention.

The nice things about the property market are: 1. High leverage - to a very high amount when you put down payments greater than 30-50%. 2. Managed or protected by some governments. Gives a more consistent rate of growth in many fast growth cities. 3. Cashflow and appreciation.

The details matter and there's obviously skill involved in making it work. At some point like other businesses you will need to hire others to manage the day-to-day if you choose to keep growing.