This is the first subject in years I have responded to. What I have called the P3 Phenomenon. This is very philosophical at one level. The term 'ROI' is an honorific.
People use it as a bad of philosophical correctness.
We all mortgage homes over many years, up to twenty typically. We have belief and faith that real estate is a good investment, and we all need homes. Many people who use the term 'economic' never ask the key philosophical question. The answer is simple. In Greek it meant 'househoild accounts'.