Real estate investment trusts (REITs) just don’t get the respect they deserve. And that’s too bad, because owning just a handful can make a huge difference in your investment returns.

I’ll reveal four of my favorite REIT buys now in just a moment.

First, let me explain why I’m pounding the table on the sector today.

The main reason: REITs often pay dividend yields far above your average S&P 500 stock. What’s more, they’re obligated to pay out 90% of their taxable income as dividends, which forces management to take a disciplined approach to growth.

In addition, REITs give you a very liquid way to invest in physical assets; your shares represent a part of the actual buildings the trust owns.… Read more

Analysts are divided by whether they think this hard-charging bull market can last through the rest of 2017, but most market watchers agree on one thing: It’s going to be a bumpy ride no matter what. That’s why today, I’m going to show you a trio of funds that are designed to fend off volatility … and deliver high income to boot!

Within just a few days, President Donald Trump has signed a slew of executive orders and presidential memoranda with wide-reaching missions – withdrawing from the Trans Pacific Partnership, freezing federal workforce hiring and, of course, starting to roll the “border wall” rock down the hill.… Read more

Many people think a conservative, disciplined approach to retirement will help you reach your financial goals. They’re wrong.

If you invest too conservatively, you’ll never retire. At the same time, if you educate yourself about the financial options out there and invest accordingly, you can retire much, much earlier.

Let’s take a look at the math.

Higher Returns, Earlier Financial Freedom

In the chart above, I’ve broken down how much money you need according to how much you spend per month and what rate of return you get on your investments.

At one extreme, if you spend $1,500 per month and get a 9% annual rate of return, you need just $200,000 to retire.… Read more

If you’re wondering which sector is set to take off in 2017 (and who isn’t?), look no further than real estate investment trusts (REITs).

I’ll get into why I’m so bullish on REITs—and name 5 great buys now—in a moment.

First, let’s look at the sector’s recent performance, and what it says about where REITs (which own properties ranging from warehouses to apartment buildings) are headed.

Here’s how the Vanguard REIT ETF (VNQ) has done since January of last year, compared to the benchmark SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY):

REIT Investors Fall Behind

Three things stand out here: 1) REITs spiked last summer, when the Brexit vote sent investors scrambling for stability and yield; 2) they didn’t get much pop from the year-end Trump bump; and 3) they’re still way off their 2016 peak and trailing the market as a whole.… Read more

Goldman Sachs recently recommended over 80 stocks that are poised to jump during President Trump’s administration.

That’s a lot of stocks. Not all of them are dividend payers, and many of them have already jumped dramatically in the last few weeks, bringing them at or near their 52-week highs.

You might think this means it’s too late to buy into the Trump rally, but it isn’t.

I’ve gone through Goldman’s picks and selected a dozen high-quality, low-priced stocks with a history of strong dividend payouts and the potential for dividend growth. Half the portfolio has a history of very high dividend growth, while the other half has very good dividend coverage and the potential for future dividend growth.… Read more

As interest rates rise, the best defense will be a good offense. Research from Nuveen and Ned Davis confirms what we already knew – that dividend growth stocks outperform everyone else in the 36 months after a Fed rate increase:

Stock Returns After Fed Increases

That’s no surprise either, because payout growers always outpace their counterparts.

Everyone loves dividends, but dividend hikes are underappreciated. Not only do they increase the yield on your initial capital, but they often are reflected in a price increase for the stock.

For example, if a stock pays a 3% current yield and then hikes its payout by 10%, it’s unlikely that its stock price will stagnate for long.… Read more

Today, we’re going to highlight the four best retirement funds Vanguard has to offer. Since my favorite retirement fund closed its doors to new investors, I had to find more high quality, high income and low cost options for readers like you to consider.

The Vanguard Group is the top mutual fund provider by assets under management, boasting nearly $3 trillion across more than 125 mutual funds. And almost all of that is locked up in long-term assets — a statement about Vanguard’s elite standing among buy-and-hold retirement investors.

Vanguard doesn’t do leverage, it doesn’t do inverse. With very few exceptions, Vanguard’s funds aren’t trading instruments.… Read more