Tuesday, March 10, 2009

The Recent Stock Market Closings on the Downward Slide Have You Concerned? Investigate REITs

Consistent Returns with Real Estate Investment Trusts

If you're looking for an investment that has proven returns, you may not be sure just where to look in today's ailing economy. What about REITs? REITs, or Real Estate Investment Trusts are known for consistent returns and can be a strong and always positive part of your investment portfolio.

Sure, everyone wants to find the next great investment, an investment that will bring them the big bucks and make them an overnight millionaire. Although this does happen, the cases of that are few and far between. Instead, you need to focus on making sure you have a diverse portfolio that will hold you through all times.

Consider this scenario. You see the next big thing coming. You sink all of your money into that particular thing and wait for it to reach the top. Before you get a chance to pull out, the market plummets, taking all of your profits with it and possibly even some of your principal. That's a horror story that comes true for plenty of investors year after year. The flaw in their thought is that they put all of their eggs in that one basket! When the basket fell, everything went with it.

Now consider this scenario. You see the next thing coming and put a good portion of your investment funds in that arena, while still also putting some of your money into more secure or long-term investments like real estate. You again wait for the investments to reach the top, but the bottom falls before you expect. While you may take a major hit on the one side, that other, long term investment side of things you had also been putting money into will still be there and will give you a little bit of a base to rebuild from. You will still have a portfolio with some strength, versus one that is nearly empty.

Real estate is often considered the rock when it comes to investment, just ask Donald Trump who says, "It's tangible, it's solid, it's beautiful. It's artistic, from my standpoint, and I just love real estate."

The good news is while being solid, REITs can still bring a pretty good profit. Consider that many REITs make a 10-14 percent return every year. That's a nice strong return when it happens for 10, 20 or 30 years without fail! If you look at the overall performance of the stock markets and most mutual funds, you will see there is not much difference in the two for long-term returns.

When you're ready to start investing in real estate, you need to make sure you know what you're getting into before you buy. While you could search all over and try to find out for yourself, there is another option as well. Consider a website like REITBuyer.com. REITBuyer.com offers all the information you need to understand REITs, where they come from and how to best begin investing. In addition, you don't have to go anywhere else when you are ready to add REITs to your portfolio, as they are also investment real estate brokers. It's one stop shopping for a stronger and more secure financial future!

What to Know Before Purchasing a REIT

Research Your Potential Investments

If you have been thinking about purchasing a REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust), make sure you know what you are getting into before you make the purchase. A lot of people read up a bit on the various investments they are considering and then make purchases because they like the way something sounds.

With stock, bond and mutual fund purchases this may be a normal thing, but when you are doing real estate investing you should do more research, and it's easy.

Location Location Location

The first thing you should get to know when you are considering a REIT is where it is located. What is the market like in that area? This can be easily found with a little Internet research these days. Find out what complexes, properties, malls or industrial parks are included in the REIT you are considering buying and look up those areas. The more you know about the land and building value of the property you are investing in, the more you can know you are making a wise investment decision that has nowhere to go but up.

Stability

If you are investing in a new real estate development REIT this is not as much of an option, as you will not necessarily know how the project will go once construction is complete, but if you are considering purchasing shares in an established REIT, take a look at their history. Have they shown stability in the recent months or years? If they have, this is a good sign they will continue to do so.

One thing you should keep in mind on this front is that all markets, real estate included, have had a tough time over the past year or so, so if their strength only wavered during that time, you should not be too alarmed.

Profits

The bottom line here is that you want to make money. Before you get into a REIT, make sure it is one that will be making you money from the beginning and for years to come. Some REITs make more than others and the key to finding ones that will make you a better return is looking for those that are fully booked with tenants or are in a growing area that will not have a problem filling all the leases so you know the profits will start rolling in.

Doing this research may sound daunting, but it’s not if you know where to go. For example, REITBuyer.com is a website that offers all the information you need about the REIT market. You can do your research, look at past REIT investments, see comparisons of the REITs to the stock market and really get a better understanding of the investments you are considering making.

Once you have become knowledgeable and know which REITs you want to invest in, you then only have to go as far as a few mouse clicks to purchase them through REITBuyer.com, as they are a full service investing real estate broker. Then sit back and watch your work pay off.