This is one of the easiest and oldest ways to invest in real estate and it works even today as it did years ago. It may be more profitable these days as interest rates are lower and investments are easy to find.
The third way, to make money in real estate is to sell a property to someone who needs a home. I often think of this as “renting to own it” rather than renting from people. One thing about real estate is that there is always some demand for it.
The moral of the story is, if we keep an eye out on the market and spot a bargain, then investing in rental properties makes sense for most people too.