you were talking about paying cash for a house, if you have enough cash to pay for a house then you can easily afford a few properties using the same money
im no expert, but i know of people who have done exactly that. a family friend being 1 of em, but instead of a few different properties he just bought 1 massive piece for 300K (got lucky) in South Morang, built 12 units in it and easily made $1 mill just in profit. like i said if you know what you're doing and what to look for and where to look for then it can be done, easier for some than others