Home ownership is likely the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about investing in real estate but buying a house in today’s market can feel incredibly challenging, if not impossible., according to a poll by Ipsos SA earlier this year. Yet, including real estate in your investment portfolio can be a smart move for a few key reasons.. Over time, property values tend to rise with the cost of living, helping you keep the real value of your investment intact.
Second, real estate can add a healthy dose of diversification to your portfolio, smoothing out the ups and downs of stock and bond movements. Traditional home ownership may not be the right choice for everyone, but there are investment alternatives such as real estate investment trusts (REITs) and private real estate investment funds that offer exposure to the real estate market. Like any investment, however, thorough due diligence is crucial to understand how real estate fits into your overall investment strateg