Real Estate
Real estate has become one of the
most popular forms of alternative investment in
recent years. Despite the recent downturn, putting
money into bricks and mortar or the land it stands
on has undoubtedly been one of the best performing
investments when compared to more conventional
assets such as stocks or bonds over the last four
or five years.
There are, in fact, two main ways that one can
attempt to profit from the buying of real estate.
The most obvious of these is the physical purchase
of a property or land by an investor who is looking
to gain from either capital appreciation or rental
income, or both. However, this is not always straightforward.
Depending on the investor's country of residence
and the jurisdiction where he or she chooses to
buy real estate, a whole host of tax and legal
obstacles may come into play.
There is another, more indirect route, and that
is to buy shares in a property fund or trust.
Along with the growth in the alternative investment
and hedge fund sector in the post-dotcom financial
landscape, property funds have become an increasingly
popular vehicle for both individual and institutional
investors.
Another commonly used indirect investment mechanism
is a real estate investment trust, or Reits as
they are known in the United States and elsewhere.
Reits are to be found in many jurisdictions and
are broadly structured along the lines of the
US model where a company must distribute at least
90% (this level varies depending on the country)
of its taxable income to its shareholders annually
to qualify as a trust.
Reits offer investors the advantage of greater
diversification through investing in a portfolio
of properties rather than a single building. Another
plus point (or minus point depending on one's
own experiences!) is that management of the trust
is undertaken by experienced real estate professionals.
There is a great deal of helpful
material on real estate in investorsoffshore,
and for that matter on our other sites as well,
so here are some links to relevant parts of our
own and other sites, listed below under various
subject headings:
International Property Investment
House
Prices Reloaded is a thorough survey of the
international property market after the blows
of 2008 and 2009.
Is
The Time REIT For You? A detailed analysis
of the pros and cons of REITs and the current
state of the REITs market across the world.
The
LowtaxPro Offshore Real Estate Report: highly
detailed information on real estate investment
in 11 of the top offshore jurisdictions. This
is a paid-for report, but you can see a contents
listing through this link.
Escape
Artist is one of the longest-established commentary
sites dealing with international real estate.
Organizing your finances as
an expatriate - banking, investments, pensions
Investorsoffshore
special_expat_2009 is our special report on
many financial aspects of being an expat.
Offshore Real Estate Providers
The
Investorsoffshore Real Estate Providers Plaza
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