Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT)

Managed diversified portfolios of real estate and mortgages. REITs are usually publicly traded like mutual funds and qualify as excepted investment funds (EIF).

REITs are publicly traded companies that pool investors' capital to invest in a variety of real estate ventures, such as apartment and office buildings, shopping centers, medical facilities, industrial buildings, and hotels.

After an REIT has raised its investment capital, it trades on a stock market just as a closed-end mutual fund does.

There are three types of REITs: Equity REITs buy properties that produce income. Mortgage REITs invest in real estate loans. Hybrid REITs usually make both types of investments.

All three are income-producing investments, and by law 90% of a REIT's taxable income must be distributed to investors. That means the yields on REITs may be higher than on other equity investments.