One way to invest in the US real estate sector is the Real Estate Investment Trust (REITs). Simply put they are the American version of real estate funds, such as we have in Brazil. If you don’t know them, the system consists of a company that receives resources from investors so that it can purchase and manage real estate or real estate investments. Once this initial funding is made, investors receive quotas from this company. These shares are traded on the secondary market – the stock exchange – as well as the shares. From the investor’s point of view, the rationale is to provide the opportunity to be a shareholder in large ventures that are often not easily accessible.

Here we list a few examples for you to expose yourself to real estate investment in the USA.
^{Please, keep in mind that these are not recommendationss.}

Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund is a fund (ETF) that allows investors a broad exposure to the real estate sector at a low cost. The investor pays the equivalent of 0.12% per year in administration fee for the fund to offer a balanced exposure to more than 180 different REITs, in the most diverse segments and sectors. The fund’s portfolio has about two-thirds of the American REITs market, most of which are large or medium-sized companies (~ 75% of the fund’s portfolio). In the last few months, it has provided a yield of 3.3%.⁵

This is an alternative for those who want to be exposed to the real estate sector and value diversification, avoiding the risk of a specific asset.

The fund’s top five portfolio positions: