REITs can offer unique opportunities for investors

Real estate investment trusts, or REITs, have historically topped the list as one of the best performing asset classes. While there are many theories about the unique advantages of REITs François Forget, executive vice president of business developments and strategic initiatives at Presima, has boiled it down to three key points.

For starters, REITs generate a consistent flow of income for investors and hedge against inflation, making them highly attractive—particularly in a low-interest rate environment—Forget told IREI in a video interview.

“We are in a very low rate environment right now,” explains Forget. “Fixed income and bonds are not delivering what they used to and to compound on that, real estate investors have moved from core, to core-plus, to value-add, to opportunistic. And although they’ve achieved really good returns, they have let go of the income component of it.”

Forget adds that as a result, the majority of pension plans and inve