Five types of REITs and how to invest in them - The Globe and Mail

Real estate investment trusts (REITs) are a key consideration when constructing any equity or fixed-income portfolio. They provide greater diversification, potentially higher total returns and/or lower overall risk. In short, their ability to generate dividend income along with capital appreciation make them an excellent counterbalance to stocks, bonds and cash. REITs generally own and/or manage income-producing commercial real estate, whether it's the properties themselves or the mortgages on those properties. You can invest in the companies individually or through an exchange-traded fund or mutual fund. There are many types of REITs available. Here we look at a few of the main ones and their historical returns. By the end of this article you should have a better idea when and what to buy. (For a primer on buying real estate, take a look at Simple Ways To Invest In Real Estate.)

Historical Returns

Real estate investment trusts are historically one of the best-performing asset classes available. The FTSE NAREIT Equity REIT Index is what most investors use to gauge the performance of the U.S. real estate market. Between 1990 and 2010, the index's average annual return was 9.9%, second only to mid-cap stocks, which averaged 10.3% per year over the same period. In comparison, fixed income assets managed 7% annual returns and commodities just 4.5% a year. Real estate was the worst performer of eight asset classes in just two years out of 20. Fixed income, on the other hand, was the worst performer six times in the same 20-year period. Historically, investors looking for yield have done better investing in real estate than fixed income, the traditional asset class for this purpose. A carefully constructed portfolio should consider both. (Learn more in How To Assess A Real Estate Investment Trust.)

Realtor Leads: Can They Really Help You To Make Money?

Do you know anything about the realtor leads? Do you have some ideas about what they do and their many services that you can acquire from them? Do you also know about their specific functions and as to why they do exist? If you don’t know any sort of things about the sad matter then reading the entire content of this blog post article would definitely be a helpful sort of way for you to know some things about it. For your great information, there are actually several and various sorts of alternatives on how you can possibly be able to find the most efficient and or formidable type of realtors today.

One of the most effectual ways on how you can possibly seek-out for the most formidable and or efficient sort of leads is through the utilization of the email leads, phone verified leads, internet leads and so many more types of leads.

How can you specifically and efficiently check-out if you have been able to find and use a formidable sort of realtor leads? How can you specifically be able to know if what you have chosen is high in quality and or profitability and not just a certain senseless data that had already been used and tested by several individuals to be such of an inefficient sort of lead?
To let you know, you can surely be able to get the best type of leads through simply using the internet as the main passage of getting what you need and want about the said type of matter and this is according onto the experiences of certain brokers.

You should know that there are already many brokers today who had been very successful through the great help of the real estate broker leads that they have got out from the internet.

In fact, aside from that of the successful independent brokers today, there are also certain broker firms and companies that had also been successful through simply using the realtor leads that they had acquired out from that of the usage of the internet. You should know that relying onto the internet in getting reliable broker leads is such of an efficient sort of approach and this is because of the matter that there are already numerous numbers of brokers who have been triumphant in each and every time that they had conducted a particular sort of broker transactions such as that of selling, buying and commercializing and or endorsing certain kinds of properties.

Through simply depending onto the internet, you can definitely make your search for the best types of realtor leads a certain kind of success. You should know that there are several and various real estate broker companies and firms that had been successful in all of their attempts to meet their expectations upon selling, buying, endorsing and or commercializing particular kinds of real estate properties such as that of the homes or houses, condominium units, apartment homes, commercial buildings and a lot more.

Despite of the fact that you really can be able to seek-out for the best sorts of realtor leads via internet these days, there are certain sorts of considerations that you greatly need to have in hand and this is because of the fact that all things have its own advantages and disadvantages.

If you have some plans to start doing a real estate business, you greatly need to start purchasing efficient sorts of realtor leads coming only from those that are formidable and professional real estate brokers.

You should know that the there are certain problems that you can possibly encounter most especially if you have chosen a low-quality type of broker lead. You also need to know that there are certain mortgage and or real estate broker firms and individuals that are just greatly efficient by its name but not really by its deeds, services and actions.

This kind of matter is just like that of buying a wrong kind of medicine for a certain sort of illness and or ailment. However, if you are just able to look out for the most efficient and recession-proof kinds of realtor leads then you can definitely say that succeeding in the said kind of business would just be like that of eating a piece of cake.

Moreover, can you really entrust your confidential real estate business schemes and or plans onto your chosen broker personnel and or firm?
Well, trusting a certain sort of broker firm and or individual is greatly a helpful way for you to seek for an efficient kind of realtor leads and this is because of the matter that they can really provide the best sorts of ideas, tips, advices and suggestions on how you can possibly meet your real estate business goals and or targets.

On the other hand, you greatly need to ensure that your chosen broker really has what it takes to be considered as a reliable source of accurate and efficient types of realtor leads. Because if you will not do this kind of thing then it is very certain that you will just waste your time, money and effort upon searching for the aforementioned kind of matter.

You should specifically know that not the entire realtor leads that you can seek-out over the cyber world are efficient enough to help you in meeting your real estate business dreams. There are just a few that are really efficient and the rest are just pure scam. Therefore, you really should be very careful in choosing the kind of lead that you want to use in your real estate business. In this sort of way, you can be sure that you are investing your finance, time and effort in the right kind of way. Lastly, you should make it sure that you have selected a legitimate kind of broker firm so that you can assure to yourself that you are in good hands.

Making Real Estate Money-California Real Estate Investments

Planting California real estate investments today is a wise idea for those who want to quickly reap the harvest of what they sowed. California is not only good for Sunkist oranges, it’s also home to a very lucrative real estate market. It is up to you if you will scatter “seeds” in this farm. Here are two of “fast harvest” investing methods in California today.

The first is wholesaling houses. This is much like plant and harvest. That’s because California real estate investments are wholesaled fast and fast can be a few days. Reading this maybe contrary to the popular method of buying and holding real estate properties, but it is true. You can make money even just be quickly reselling properties, which is the basic premise of wholesaling and short-term real estate investing in general.

In this business, you will need to look for two things: sellers and buyers. You will serve as the bridge between the two parties. As a wholesaler, it is your duty to ensure that a seller is able to sell his property and a buyer is able to buy it. But if you think you need huge money to start in this business, you’re wrong. All you’ll need is enough money to convince sellers to place their property under contract. They will need a small deposit from you. Sometimes it could be as little as $10. Then, you will assign that contract to the buyer. The holder of the contract will have the right to buy the property. Since the buyer will need the contract, he will pay you a small amount for it. A small assignment fee in a state like California is probably at least $5,000.

The other method of planting California real estate investments fast is called rehabbing. This method is similar to plan-water-harvest. You will need to “grow” the house a bit before reselling it. By watering, it means improving the condition of the property. So to rehab houses, you will need to buy rundown properties at bargain prices. Then, you will spend some money to improve their condition. You will then resell them and cash you pay check. This method can last from a few weeks to a few months, depending on how fast you work.

To learn more about these “planting” methods, go to REIWired.com right now. The website has informational content about real estate investing in California and other parts of the country.

Making Real Estate Money-REITS

I personally believe that the real estate market has bottomed out, but it may a couple years before prices start to move up. It doesn't necessarily mean that you should go out an buy a rental house, but there are other ways you can invest in real estate.

One of the best ways of speculating on real estate is through the use of Real Estate Investment Trusts, more commonly known as REITs. These investments pass through almost all their income to avoid double taxation, which is what most regular corporations are subject to. The REITs have several advantages over owning real estate directly.

First, REITs are liquid. If you need to get your money out, you can sell it and get your money in two days. Second, you can receive a decent income through dividends. Third, dividends can be received quarterly or even monthly for some REITs, just like rental income checks. Fourth, you don't have to worry about making sure the insurance, property tax, and other expenses are paid. Fifth, you won't get a call at two o'clock in the morning about a leaking toilet. And last but not least, you don't have to deal with evictions.

Although there are hundreds of REITs to choose from, you need to be cautious about which one you choose, especially the debt level. In terms of specialties, you can choose REITs that invest in apartment, commercial, industrial, government building, medical buildings, mortgages, and many other sub-categories.
Zeromoneyinvestment.com has just come up with a list of 15 of the highest yielding Real Estate Investment Trusts, none of which have debt to capital ratios more than 25%. As a matter of fact, three of them are debt free. Yields range from 3.3% to over 20%, but I would recommend avoiding any REITS yielding above 7% as I don't believe those high yields are sustainable.

One example, is National Health Investors Inc. which pays a decent yield of 5.7% and has a debt to capital ratio of only 7.21%. The REIT invests in health care properties, mainly those involved in the long-term care industry. The company has been paid quarterly dividends since 1992, The total dividend payout is $63.64 million on an operating income of $72.96 million. The company showed an earnings growth for the latest quarter of 5.9%.

Another high yield REIT is LTC Properties, Inc. (LTC) which sports a yield of 6.25% and carries a low debt to capital ratio of 7.94%. This is another long-term care real estate investment trust. This is a REIT that pays monthly dividends, and the dividend track record dates back to 1992 also.

Public Storage (PSA) offers a yield of 3.51%, and has a debt to equity ratio of 5.53%. This REIT has a different approach to the REITs described above, as it owns and operates self-storage facilities in the United States and Europe. The company has a long track record, with monthly dividends paid since 1988.

Read more: http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Creative-Real-Estate-Investments-----Zero-Money-no-Money-Down/1250320#ixzz0rBNzfXIC
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