Real Estate Investment Trusts


Summary

Generally, a real estate investment trust (REIT) is a company that either owns and leases real property or holds debt secured by real property and makes an election to be taxed as a REIT. REITs are designed to function like mutual funds for real estate – that is, they provide investors with the opportunity to invest in a diversified portfolio of real estate much in the same way that a mutual fund provides investors to invest in a diversified portfolio of securities.