What is a REIT?

REIT stands for Real Estate Investment Trust. A REIT is a company that owns and usually manages income-producing real estate property such as apartments, offices and industrial space. Along with meeting additional criteria, to qualify as a REIT the company must: • pay at least 90% of its taxable income to its shareholders every year. • have at least 100 shareholders. • invest at least 75% of its total assets in real estate. • derive at least 75% of its income from rent or mortgage interest from properties in its portfolio. Congress established REITs in 1960 to provide small investors with the opportunity to invest in large, income-producing properties. The stocks of most REITs are freely available on major stock exchanges. They present investors with an efficient method of investing in real estate; each shareholder earns a pro rata percent of the REIT's profits. Perhaps one of the most attractive aspects of REITs is the methods in which taxes are handled. REITs are allowed to deduct ...  more

A Real Estate Investment Trust, or REIT, is a company that owns, and in most cases, operates income-producing real estate. Some REITs finance real estate. To be a REIT, a company must distribute at least 90% of its taxable income to shareholders annually in the form of dividends. A REIT is essentially a corporation or business trust that combines the capital of many investors to acquire or provide financing for all forms of real estate. A REIT serves much like a mutual fund for real estate in that retail investors obtain the benefit of a diversified portfolio under professional management. Its shares are freely traded, often on a major stock exchange. A corporation or trust that qualifies as a REIT generally does not pay corporate income tax to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This is a unique feature and one of the most attractive aspects of a REIT. Most states honor this federal treatment and do not require REITs to pay state income tax. This means that nearly all of a REIT's ...  more

A REIT, or a real estate investment trust, is a corporation that purchases, owns and manages real estate properties and/or real estate loans. Some REITs also develop properties or originate loans. REITs were established in 1960 and operate under Subchapter M, subject to revisions from RIETSA. This legislation provides REITs with a special tax status that allows them to avoid corporate tax as long as nearly all REIT income is distributed to investors. Although the REIT structure avoids double taxation to shareholders, tax losses cannot be passed through. With over 300 corporations qualifying as REITs, approximately one-third are private with the remainder traded on public stock exchanges. There are three types of REITs; equity, mortgage and hybrid - as defined below. An Equity REIT (real estate investment trust) is a corporation that purchases, owns and manages real estate properties; it does not own or originate real estate loans. It may also develop properties. (For more information ...  more

A Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) is a way for individual investors to invest in commercial real estate. A REIT is a corporation or business that combines the capital of many investors to acquire or provide financing for all forms of real estate, including, but not limited to, apartments, offices, self storage and shopping centers. A REIT serves much like a mutual fund for real estate in that retail investors enjoy the benefit of a diversified portfolio under professional management. As of 12/31/05, there were approximately 200 publicly traded REITs.

A real estate investment trust, or REIT, is a company that owns, and in most cases, operates income-producing real estate. Some REITs also engage in financing real estate. The shares of many REITs are traded on major stock exchanges. To qualify as a REIT, a company must have most of its assets and income tied to real estate investment and must distribute at least 90 percent of its taxable income to shareholders annually in the form of dividends. A company that qualifies as a REIT is permitted to deduct dividends paid to its shareholders from its corporate taxable income. As a result, most REITs historically remit at least 100 percent of their taxable income to their shareholders and therefore owe no corporate tax. Taxes are pad by shareholders on the dividends received and any capital gains. Most states honor this federal treatment and also do not require REITs to pay state income tax. Like other businesses, but unlike partnerships, a REIT cannot pass any tax losses through to its ...  more

A REIT is a company that buys, develops, manages and sells real estate assets. REITs allow participants to invest in a professionally-managed portfolio of real estate properties. REITs qualify as pass-through entities, companies who are able distribute the majority of income cash flows to investors without taxation at the corporate level (providing that certain conditions are met). As pass-through entities, whose main function is to pass profits on to investors, a REIT's business activities are generally restricted to generation of property rental income. Another major advantage of REIT investment is its liquidity (ease of liquidation of assets into cash), as compared to traditional private real estate ownership which are not very easy to liquidate. One reason for the liquid nature of REIT investments is that its shares are primarily traded on major exchanges, making it easier to buy and sell REIT assets/shares than to buy and sell properties in private markets.  more

REIT, or Real Estate Investment Trust, is a corporation dedicated to owning and in most cases operating income-producing real estate. In the case of Inland Real Estate Corporation this is neighborhood and community centers, lifestyle centers and single-tenant assts. To qualify as a REIT a company must distribute at least 90 percent of taxable income to shareholders annually. In return, the REIT pays no federal income tax on its earnings, preventing double taxation of shareholders.  more

A Real Estate Investment Trust ("REIT") is essentially a corporation or trust that combines capital of many investors to acquire or provide financing for all forms of real estate. A REIT serves much like a mutual fund for real estate. Its shares are freely traded, often on a major stock exchange. A corporation or trust that qualifies as a REIT generally does not pay corporate income tax to the Internal Revenues Service ("IRS"). This is a unique feature and of the most attractive aspects of a REIT. Most states honor this federal treatment and do not require REITs to pay state income tax. This means that nearly all of a REIT's income can be distributed to shareholders, and there is no double taxation of the income to the shareholder. Unlike a partnership, a REIT cannot pass its tax losses onto its investors. 18.  more

A REIT is a company that owns, and in most cases, operates income-producing real estate such as apartments, shopping centers, offices, hotels and warehouses. Some REITs also engage in financing real estate. The shares of most REITs are freely traded, usually on a major stock exchange.A company that qualifies as a REIT is permitted to deduct dividends paid to its shareholders from its corporate taxable income. As a result, most REITs remit at least 100 percent of their taxable income to their shareholders and therefore owe no corporate tax. Taxes are paid by shareholders on the dividends received and any capital gains. Most states honor this federal treatment and also do not require REITs to pay state income tax. To qualify as a REIT, a company must distribute at least 90 percent of its taxable income to its shareholders annually. However, like other businesses, but unlike partnerships, a REIT cannot pass any tax losses through to its investors.  more

A REIT is a company that owns, and in most cases, operates income-producing real estate such as apartments, shopping centers, offices, hotels and warehouses. Some REITs also engage in financing real estate. The shares of many REITs are freely traded, usually on a major stock exchange.To qualify as a REIT, a company must distribute at least 90 percent of its taxable income to its shareholders annually. A company that qualifies as a REIT is permitted to deduct dividends paid to its shareholders from its corporate taxable income. As a result, most REITs remit at least 100 percent of their taxable income to their shareholders and therefore owe no corporate tax. Taxes are paid by shareholders on the dividends received and any capital gains. Most states honor this federal treatment and also do not require REITs to pay state income tax. Like other businesses, but unlike partnerships, a REIT cannot pass any tax losses through to its investors.