Why are REITs attractive investment opportunities?
REITs are total return investments. They typically provide high dividends plus the potential for moderate, long-term capital appreciation. Long-term total returns of REIT stocks are likely to be somewhat less than the returns of high-growth stocks and somewhat more than the returns of bonds. Because most REITs also have a small-to-medium equity market capitalization, their returns should be comparable to other small to mid-sized companies. There is a relatively low correlation between REITs and publicly traded real estate stock returns and the returns of other market sectors. Thus, including REITs and publicly traded real estate stocks in your investment programs help to build a diversified portfolio. There can be no assurances that investors in Ventas will reap all of these advantages.
