Real Estate Stock as a Savings Plan

Real estate stock: Are you one of those people who love the idea of putting money away to make sure you have it if you need it down the road, but never really gets around to it? Perhaps you have a tough time just leaving the money in the bank and when you see something that looks like it would be nice to have you cave in and make a purchase. Either that or you look at the low interest that is coming in from banks these days and think 'what's the use?' as you're not even making interest that will meet inflation.

If this sounds like you, you may need to look at another way to save your money and a REIT may be the answer. A REIT is a real estate investment trust. This is essentially a mutual fund for real estate that will be used to buy, build or manage real estate ventures.

Those who are in REITs purchase shares, just like you would any stock, mutual funds or commodities on the stock market and allow that money to grow. In this case the growth comes from the lease, rent or mortgage insurance paid to the fund. The average return on REITs is 6-10%, which is triple, or quadruple of what most savings plans will net you in the bank.

Additionally, for the most part, REITs are pretty strong investments. Most of them are based on tangible pieces of property that are not going anywhere, so while values may fluctuate, they will still have some value.

Unlike buying real pieces of property, which means a lot of money, paperwork, and quite the hassle finding a buyer if you want to sell, REITs will allow you to instead sell your shares just like you would any other stock, mutual fund or commodities on the stock market.

If you're smart about this type of investment, you will treat it as a savings plan. As you get the money to purchase shares, make a purchase and then allow your annual dividends to be rolled back into purchase more shares. If you keep making your purchases on a regular time frame and let them grow. You may be surprised at just how much it grows for you to have down the road when you need it.

With the recent down market, there's no time like the present to buy. In the immortal words of multi-millionaire T. Harv. Eker, "Don't wait to buy real estate, buy real estate and wait."

If you have never heard of REITs or worked with them before, don't let that be a deterrent to you. Simply by logging on to a website such as REITBuyer.com you will be able to learn everything you need to know to be investing like a pro in no time and start that savings plan.

If you're completely new to this, begin with the basics. Make your way through the website learning all you need to know about REITs and then choose the ones that are best for you. The best part about REITBuyer.com is that you can then make your purchase on their website, as they are a full service investing real estate broker, and watch your portfolio all in the same place.

Some REIT Markets are Stronger than Others

Real Estate Stock and REIT Markets: If you are worried about the state of the economy and what you should do with your investing dollars, you may be able to take a little bit of solace in knowing that things are not always as bad as they seem. Perhaps you just need to look at them differently.

Let's look at real estate investing. Many people like the idea of REITs or real estate investment trusts because they know real estate is always a sound investment. After all, the worst-case scenario is a piece of property loses a little value, but it will never become worthless and always has some trading clout.

But with the housing market struggling in the US over the past year, you may be wondering just how smart it is to fund real estate investment ventures.

The first thing you need to keep in mind is that real estate investment is not only available in the US. There are REIT funds that are putting money into real estate all over the world. In many developing countries real estate developers have so many projects they don't know what to do as countries develop and need new infrastructure. Getting in on one of these investing options could reap large rewards.

There are a wide variety of options available in these countries where you can invest your money. You could look into commercial real estate funds that will help businesses grow in these budding countries. Another option is to have put your money into residential real estate fund programs in the cities of these developing countries. When a country is developing and industrializing, people often move to the city to take part in the growth. This means those residential real estate investments stand to make a great profit.

But how do you know what markets are about to make that boom or are just starting to hit their stride so you know where to invest? This is going to take a little research on your part. If you are a pro in the real estate investing arena, you can do this yourself. If you're not, you may prefer to get a helping hand from some pros.

A website like REITBuyer.com is a great place to start. Not only are they real estate brokers that can help you purchase the REIT funds you want, but they are also a great place to get all the information you need to know which REITs are the best to buy.

By going through REITBuyer.com you will be able to get a better look at the real estate investment options in other countries. You will also be able to find reports and information about the expectations of real estate development in these areas.

Next you will get a peek into the real estate management plans that are in place for those countries. You will see the kinds of real estate listings they want to create or those that they already own and want to manage.

Once you have started deciding which are best for you, you can even have REITbuyer.com do the rest of the work and add the investments that you like to your portfolio. It really doesn't get much better than that.

Real Estate Stock - About REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts)

Real estate stock is a sound investment in assets with tangible value. If you pride yourself on being an up and coming investor, you should make sure you know all of the investing options that are available to you.

While most people are familiar with stocks and bonds, they may not be aware of other investment options such as the various real estate stocks. REITs are Real Estate Investment Trusts. Essentially this is a company that purchases properties and then becomes a real estate management firm.

Anyone can get involved in these investments by purchasing shares of the companies who make the purchases and manage the assets. Essentially, they will allow a certain number of investors to be a part of the trust (it is usually a limited number for each trust).

So where did REITs come from? Well the REIT was born in 1960 by congress. Before this time only those with major money were able to get into real estate investing. Everyone else had to play the regular stock market. So, they wanted to give smaller investors the chance to get in on the profit making market of real estate stock. With REITs instead of having to come up with the money to purchase a property, an investor can get in to the market by purchasing shares.

When choosing a REIT, it is important to realize that there are a variety of REIT styles. Usually a REIT sticks with one type of property. For example, there are commercial REITs that only deal with commercial real estate and ventures. They may purchase office space and rent it out to businesses. Another option is industrial real estate, purchasing and maintaining industrial parks. There are also residential buildings that vary from apartment buildings to condominiums and even complete housing neighborhoods that are owned and operated by the REIT. If you know more about one kind of real estate than another, you may prefer to fund this style of REIT where you can invest in something you undersand.

Understanding how REIT investments work is vital if you are considering going into this type of investment market. Here are some of the basics.

First, if a REIT makes money, its investors are going to make money. As a REIT earns taxable income, at least 90 percent must be paid directly to the investors. So, as a shareholder, as long as the REIT is making money, you are too!

When it comes to shareholders REITs run the gamut from small to massive, but even the small ones are not so small that they can't have any buying power. A REIT must have at least 100 shareholders.

When it comes to operations, REITs have a few major rules to follow. First, they are required to invest 75% or more of the money put into the trust in real estate ventures. Additionally, they have to be getting at least 75% of their income from monies made from the properties they own (i.e. through mortgage interest or rent)

If you are considering investing in REITs it is important to note that they are also a little different in tax structure. Since so much of the profit from a REIT is going to the shareholders, they are able to deduct that money from their taxable income. However, when you as in investor get your dividends you will be responsible for paying the capital gains taxes.

Before you invest, learn more. REITBuyer.com is not only a full service REIT broker, but also has research and educational information to help you get started and build your portfolio.

Real Estate Stock – Pros and Cons

Real estate stock, aka Real Estate Investment Trusts, or REITs, are an avenue of investment that many people have heard of, but have not taken a good look into. Let's take that look now.

About Real Estate Stock – Understanding REITs

REITs are typically an investment in a property management company. As a real estate stock holder, you fund a property management company that handles real estate assets. Investors earn dividends from the profit generated. For example, a commercial real estate REIT may own a shopping center or strip mall. When you purchase shares of that REIT they are going into building and maintaining that structure. As tenants move in and rent those spaces, and the REIT earns profits, those profits come back to you in the form of dividends. This is also the case for residential real estate interests like housing developments, apartments and condominiums.

Real Estate Stock – Pros and Cons of REITs

Starting with the Pros…

Dividends – Unlike other stocks and mutual funds, REITs come with some very strict rules as to how their profits can be used. As profits come into a REIT, at least 90 percent of that profit must go right back to the shareholders in the form of dividends. That means most REITs always see a nice annual return on the initial investment.

Their Own Entity – If you have noticed, the stock market has an all for one kind of approach to things. Often if one area of the market goes down, the rest follows, hitting you across the board. Real estate stock is different. REITs are not as strongly tied to other investments and stock fluctuations; therefore, they can hold strong even when the rest of the market is on a roller coaster ride.

Solid Starting Platform – If you are not a major investor in general, REITs may be the way to begin your investment portfolio. For the most part they are stable purchases and can be capable of earning a steady profit for years to come.

Constant Investment – Since REITs revolve around property investments, there is always something tangible – a piece of land, homes, apartments or businesses. Typically, these involve long-term leases so there will be income generated from those leases to feed your dividends.

And now the Cons…

There aren't that many bad points to REITs, but here are a few:

Slow Growth - If you are looking for a major growth in your REIT, you likely won't see it. Since only 10% of the money made can be put back into the REIT (as 90% has to be paid out as a dividend) that means there is a lot less going back into the business to make it grow more quickly.

Down Times – Just like any other investment, there is always the chance that a downturn in real estate will cause your REIT to earn lower profits.

Despite these few bad points, real estate stock is worth looking into. Start by going to a full service website like REITBuyer.com. There you can get information about REITS, tools and research help as well as education and advice before you buy. When you're ready to invest in real estate stock, they are also investment real estate brokers who can take care of the entire transaction.