Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
Type of investment company that invests money in mortgages and various types of investment in real estate, in order to earn profits for shareholders. Shareholders receive income from the rents received from the properties and receive capital gains as properties are sold at a profit. REITs have been formed by a number of large financial institutions such as banks and insurance companies. The stocks of many of them are traded on security exchanges, thereby providing investors with a marketable interest in real estate investment portfolio. By law, REITs have to distribute 95 percent of their income to shareholders, and in turn they are exempt from corporate taxes on income or gains. In exchange for this special tax treatment, REITs are subject to numerous qualifications and limitations including:
- Qualified asset and income tests. REITs are required to have at least 75% of their value represented by qualified real estate assets and to earn at least 75% of their income from real estate investments.
- Shareholder qualifications. Generally, REITs are not permitted to be closely held and must have a minimum of 100 shareholders.
Popular Real Estate Terms
Considering future occurrences that may possibly arise. ...
time period, as established by state statute, during which a property owner can redeem a defaulted mortgage or land contract or reclaim a foreclosed property. A property owner acting ...
The direction in which a community is growing. Directional growth is measured over time, and its path strongly influences current and future market values of those properties clearly in ...
Markets for long-term bonds and equity securities of real estate companies. ...
Time period for which one expects to keep property such as a real estate investment. ...
Financial institution that channels the savings of its depositors mostly into mortgage and home improvement loans. It concentrates on originating , servicing, and holding mortgage loans. ...
Business entity providing water services in a particular locality. ...
Aerial navigation that may interfere with a property owner, such as creating undue noise. The value of land near an airport may decline in value for this reason. Further airport congestion ...
Region or locality that assesses real estate taxes on the properties located within its borders. Frequently, the local county or city is the property taxing jurisdiction which is empowered, ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.