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REITS: Upsizing real estate stocks

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Like trying to find a nice place to live in a capital city, the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) business is vast and very competitive, hence why there are dozens upon dozens of funds operating in the US with market capitalizations way over $1bn. Typically, REITs come under three brackets: equity REITs (own and manage real estate), mortgage REITs (money lenders to real estate owners), and hybrid REITs (you guessed it - a mixture of the two). As long as land and property ownership stays relevant (it probably will), REITs offer an exposure into companies that own, operate, or finance income-generating real estate, covering property like warehouses and self-storage units, or commercial property like offices and retail stores.

We've put together this list of middleweight REIT funds in the US. These all boast market capitalizations greater than $4bn but come in below $10bn. For the bigger guys, checkout the other Spark we did on REITs. Be sure to do your research before investing, though. This Spark does not constitute advice.