In today’s low interest rate environment, many investors have sought alternatives to traditional fixed-income investments in an attempt to generate the yields that bonds have historically provided. A variety of alternatives have been utilized by investors, including private credit funds, energy investments, pipelines, MLPs and, of course, real estate. Triple-net-lease real estate has garnered specific investor interest as investors and registered investment advisers have come to use it as a fixed-income proxy.

Investments made in commercial real estate, and more specifically investments in REITs, tend to have strong current income attributes. Real estate is seen as a store of value because of the ownership of hard assets that have the potential to appreciate in value over time, but with the added benefit of providing current income. In addition, ownership of REITs has been particularly attractive to investors over the past seven years, as REITs tend to be excellent dividend