Friday, March 6, 2009

How to Get Into Commercial Real Estate with Mutual Funds


How to Get Involved in Business Real Estate


Many people want to learn how to make the big bucks when it comes to investments. Generally this means knowing how to get into commercial real estate and how to do it right. This is how people like Donald Trump made their fortunes. But are you ready to be the next Donald Trump?

For most people the answer is no. Not because they don’t want to be the next Donald Trump, but because they don't have the cash on hand to get started like Donald does. That's ok. You can start small. One way to start small on commercial real estate is through REITs. A REIT is a real estate investment fund. This is a fund that that works much like a mutual fund but in the area of real estate. You can purchase shares of this fund and then that money is used to purchase, build or maintain properties.

As those properties make a profit, you will get a good percentage return on your investment. By US law, 90% of the profit from a REIT has to be returned to the shareholders in dividends, so if a REIT investment goes well, there could be major earnings.

As you wonder if this is the right way to go for you, why not take on this quote from Will Rogers, "Buy land, they aren't making anymore of it."

That is a very true assessment! There is only so much land to go around and with a growing population, more and more people are going to want a piece of it.

While you may think this only impacts residential properties, if you think a little harder you will see how it could also have an impact on commercial real estate.

While all those people in the growing population will indeed need places to live, they will also need places to shop, have their hair done, buy cars, and for any number of other services that they expect these days. That means commercial ventures that are going to serve this growing population are going to need commercial real estate to work from. If you are a part of a real estate REIT that owns that property you can have a tenant that is paying you profits for years and years to come.

Beginning your venture in to commercial REITs is easy. Start by going to REITBuyer.com. This is a website that focuses specifically on REITs instead of all the other types of investments out there.

Now take a little time to research the REITs that are available. You can look into the portfolio of a REIT to see what type of property is in its holdings. Some are residential and industrial as well as commercial, so if you want just commercial, make sure to weed out the rest.

Next, you should take a little time to see what that REIT has done in the past. See if it has been steady (give or take a few tough market seasons) and if the area where they are located is a good market for future revenue.

If so, it only takes a few steps to purchase the REIT through the site and enjoy your first step into the world of commercial real estate.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Get Consistent Returns on Your Investments with 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!