REITs and Dividend Income (2024)

FAQs

REITs and Dividend Income? ›

REITs are companies or institutions that buy and manage income-producing properties, such as hotels or retail centers. When you become a shareholder in a REIT, you receive distributions in the form of dividends. REITs must pay shareholders a minimum of 90% of their taxable income.

REITs, also known as real estate investment trusts, do make dividend payments to investors. In fact, due to its nature, a REIT must pay at least 90% of taxable income to qualifying holders.

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.

Reinvesting REIT dividends can help retirement savers grow their portfolio's investment, and historically steady REIT dividend income can help retirees meet their living expenses. REIT dividends historically have provided: Wealth Accumulation. Reliable Income Returns.

This is known as the geographic market test. Section 856 (d)(2) (C) excludes impermissible tenant service income (ITSI) from the definition of rent from real property, making it “bad income” for the 75% and 95% REIT gross income tests.

Unlike many companies however, REIT incomes are not taxed at the corporate level. That means REITs avoid the dreaded “double-taxation” of corporate tax and personal income tax. Instead, REITs are sheltered from corporate taxes so their investors are only taxed once.

Is Five Years the Standard "Hold" Time for a Real Estate Investment? Real estate investment trusts (REITS) and other commercial property investment companies frequently target properties with a five-year outlook potential.

Interest rate risk

The biggest risk to REITs is when interest rates rise, which reduces demand for REITs.6 In a rising-rate environment, investors typically opt for safer income plays, such as U.S. Treasuries.

REITs hold great appeal because they must pay out at least 90% of their income in the form of dividends to their shareholders, resulting in some REITs offering yields of 10% or more. For investors looking to generate monthly income, things get a little trickier. Most of them distribute dividends on a quarterly basis.

How to make $5000 a month in dividends? ›

To generate $5,000 per month in dividends, you would need a portfolio value of approximately $1 million invested in stocks with an average dividend yield of 5%. For example, Johnson & Johnson stock currently yields 2.7% annually. $1 million invested would generate about $27,000 per year or $2,250 per month.

And the higher that balance gets, the less of a dividend yield you'll need to generate some significant income. If, for example, your portfolio gets to a value of $1.5 million, you could invest in a fund or multiple investments that yield an average of 3.3%. At that rate, you could generate $50,000 in annual dividends.

Avoiding REIT dividend taxation

If you own REITs in an IRA, you won't have to worry about dividend taxes each year, nor will you have to pay taxes in the year in which you sell a REIT at a profit. In a traditional IRA, you won't owe any taxes until you withdraw money from the account.

High dividend payments make sense, but how exactly can the yield be as high as 15%? Debt is the simplest answer. AGNC, for example, finances much of its business through debt. It also issues both common and preferred stock so it can acquire more mortgage assets that generate cash to satisfy the sky-high dividend.

1. ARMOUR Residential REIT – 20.7% ARMOUR Residential REIT Inc.

REITs provide yield in the form of dividends. As noted earlier, REITs are required to distribute at least 90 percent of their taxable income to shareholders.

Because REITs generate income in different ways, there are typically three types of dividends: Ordinary income: Money made from collecting rent or mortgage payments. Capital gains: Money made from selling property for more than the REIT paid for it.

REITs generate a steady income stream for investors but offer little capital appreciation. Most REITs are publicly traded like stocks, which makes them highly liquid, unlike real estate investments.

For investors seeking a steady stream of monthly income, real estate investment trusts (REITs) that pay dividends on a monthly basis emerge as a compelling financial strategy. In this article, we unravel two REITs that pay monthly dividends and have yields up to 8%.