Real Estate Can Be a Great Investment

By David J Emory

Real estate has always been a popular investment as it has stood the test of time. When the market crashed, it opened up another door which is the foreclosure market for investors.

The amount that you should invest in property may be viewed differently among investment brokers; however all will agree that a portion of your retirement portfolio should be invested in the real estate market and more importantly a respected REIT fund. Others may direct you toward rental properties, so it all depends on which investment will yield you the best return at the lowest risk. Another alternative may be a REIT mutual fund which some say is safer than owning and managing property on your own.

Owning rental properties can present some challenges. Typically when you are an investor, a property manager is well worth the money if you can find one that will take care of business.

There is lower leverage with a REIT which will yield a lower return on your investment. However, with rental properties, there is a certain amount of control that you delegate to the property management that also creates some risk. It is known that REIT's are slightly safer than involvement yourself directly in investing in rental property; but one of the advantages of owning real estate directly is you are in total control.

With a REIT mutual fund, you will not have the control, so it really depends on how much involvement you want in your investment and how much of a return you are looking for. It all depends on what you are looking to do and how much involvement you want. Both REIT mutual funds and owning real estate and managing it directly have their advantages and disadvantages.

However, real estate is an investment that you should participate in one way or another.

About the Author

David J Emory is a former banker who regularly contributes to the website Banking 2.0.

This article provided just a simple overview. For a more in-depth analysis, read Real Estate REITs.

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