Ever think how much Real Estate is like Gambling?

Has anyone ever equated real estate to Gambling? There is a lot of stink about gambling! Even where it is legal, is it morale or not? Does God really mind? Is it really all that different from a church raffle? I once saw my husand bid on a cake at a Cub Scout Cake Contest. Every year, the Cub Scout, and their dad, have to bake a cake without any of moms assistance, actually decorate it and bring it in for judging/selling to raise money for scouts! Well, my husband is a Boy Scout leader and it was one of the boy's in his den's cake... one that was not getting judged very highly. I'm sure it tasted better than it was decorated but he felt bad for them anyhow. So, the bidding stopped at $20 or so. As we left the Scout event, we stopped on the way home at the Volunteer Fire Department. It was packed with volunteers. He donated the cake to the Department who assured us nothing ever went to waste nor had time to go bad there. Was there any act comitted that was so terrible by bidding on that cake? I think the dad and the scout got some serious bonding time together doing something out of their usual relm of expertise, they felt good about themselves for someone actually bidding on it, money was raised for Scouting, and some local volunteer fire fighters were treated to a special treat! Anything else... oh yeah, there was one mighty proud of their husband/dad family. Talk about paying it forward and teaching kids to give back to the community.

Now obviously, I am not against gambling at all. But, I do not gamble. I do not play the Lotto nor even care who wins the big bucks... don't even really care what the state proceeds get used for although I do think Education is our best bet! I just do not find it fun or exciting to take a chance on blowing my hard earned money... even for high stakes. No thank you. I'll earn it the old fashioned way. Keep in mind, I'm not one of those reality tv junkies either. I don't think I would go on a national tv and risk embarassing myself by possibly throwing up after eating a grub/worm/whatever. Everytime I see stuff like that I'm like, "Just get a  job like a normal person!" And, yet, when my sister, a very traditional Monday through Friday, salaried, 9-5er asked me the other day why on earth I work, possibly (and lately, more like probably) for free,  and said she could never do it, I did not have an answer. But, she is a gambler. She and her husband enjoy little gambling trips atleast two to three times per year. Sometimes they lose money. Sometimes they make a little. But, the thrill, I guess, is that possibility of hitting the big load. Although the odds are almost always with the house, there has to be something in it for them to keep them hoping for even the possibility of winning the big bucks. On their last little trip, she won a little bit. She said it wasn't much but was enough to pay for their trip: gas to & from, a few really nice meals, a nice room, a couple of massages, and a new, high end designer bag with matching wallet!   I told her real estate was just like that. Sometimes I make a little. Sometimes I don't. But, the lure of that mansion in Cary, NC that is $2.4 mill drives me to keep on keeping on. I also get the benefit of being able to work from home, have some tax advantages, get to meet some really exciting people, make my own hours, etc. It's like gambling!