How are real estate investment trusts valued?
The 3 most common metrics used to compare the relative valuations of REITs are: Cap rates (Net operating income / property value) Equity value /
Price/FFO per Share
The most popular REIT valuation method is P/FFO. P/FFO (or Current market Price/Funds From Operations) per share is very common amongst retail and institutional investors alike.
To calculate NAV for U.S.-based REITs, project the 12-month forward Net Operating Income from properties, divide it by an appropriate Cap Rate or Yield (based on similar transactions or companies in the market), and then take the market value of the other assets and add them up.
Net Asset Value (NAV) is the value per share of all the investments and other assets owned by the trust. It is calculated by taking away the total liabilities from the total assets and divided by the number of shares in issue.
If a REIT's dividend yield is above its long-term average, then the trust is undervalued; conversely, if a REIT's dividend yield is below its long-term average, the trust is overvalued.
To qualify as a REIT, a company must have the bulk of its assets and income connected to real estate investment and must distribute at least 90 percent of its taxable income to shareholders annually in the form of dividends.
Real estate investment trusts, also known as REITs, typically offer high yields, making them appealing choices for income investors. The real estate stocks that Morningstar covers, as a group, look 12% undervalued as of Feb. 9, 2024.
Interest Rate Risk
The value of a REIT is based on the real estate market, so if interest rates increase and the demand for properties goes down as a result, it could lead to lower property values, negatively impacting the value of your investment.
Publicly traded REITs have the particular risk of losing value as interest rates rise, which typically sends investment capital into bonds.
Getting out of a non-traded real estate investment trust, or REIT, can often be rather difficult and expensive. Once a REIT is closed to new investors, the board of directors of the REIT can suspend the redemption policy.
How are real estate investment trusts sold?
Publicly traded REITs can be purchased through a broker. Generally, you can purchase the common stock, preferred stock, or debt security of a publicly traded REIT. Brokerage fees will apply. Non-traded REITs are typically sold by a broker or financial adviser.
To qualify as a REIT a company must: Invest at least 75% of its total assets in real estate. Derive at least 75% of its gross income from rents from real property, interest on mortgages financing real property or from sales of real estate.
Net fair market value of a trust means the fair market value of the assets of the trust, less the noncontingent liabilities of the trust.
While higher rates negatively impacted nearly every sector of the economy in 2022 and most of 2023, real estate was hit especially hard. Rising interest rates hurt not only the value of REITs' property holdings but also the cost of debt to finance those properties or even refinance already-owned assets.
Risks of investing in REITs include higher dividend taxes, sensitivity to interest rates, and exposure to specific property trends.
He says: “Our analysis shows REITs perform very well historically in periods of high inflation. I could easily see global REIT returns in the low double-digits over the next 12 months – and if the economic situation turns out to be more positive it could be considerably more than that.”
Summary of Why Investors May Not Want to Invest in REITs
But, REITs are not risk free. They may have highly variable returns, are sensitive to changes in interest rates, have income tax implications, may not be liquid, and fees can impact total returns.
For Group REITs, the consequences of leaving early apply when the principal company of the group gives notice for the group as a whole to leave the regime within ten years of joining or where an exiting company has been a member of the Group REIT for less than ten years.
There is no minimum holding period on public REITs for retail investors. Probably some large ones have market makers that day trade. Large Caps REITs are the most likely to provide liquidity. Real Estate ETFs are likely to provide more.
Does Warren Buffett invest in REITs? The short answer is yes. Berkshire Hathaway does allocate capital real estate ownership throughout REITs. Learn Warren Buffett REIT investments below.
How often do REITs go out of business?
What this means is that REITs are ideal borrowers for banks. They are exactly who they want to do business with because they know that the risk of a REIT bankruptcy is extremely low. Just look at the past. There have been very few REIT bankruptcies over the past 50+ years.
With healthy property fundamentals and a favorable interest rate environment, REIT fund managers expect the sector to deliver double digit returns this year. Publicly-traded REITs had a rough go of things during the Fed's regime of rising interest rates.
A lot of REIT investors focus too way much on the dividend yield. They think that a high dividend yield implies that a REIT is cheap and a good investment opportunity. In reality, it is often the opposite, and the dividend does not say much, if anything, about the valuation of a REIT.
REITs allow investors to pool their money and purchase real estate properties. By law, a REIT must pay at least 90% of its income to its shareholders, providing investors with a passive income option that can be helpful during recessions.
REIT SUBGROUP | AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN (1994-2023) |
---|---|
Retail | 11.2% |
Office | 10.1% |
Lodging/Resorts | 9.0% |
Diversified | 7.9% |
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