The post What are Mortgage REITs? by Eric McConnell appeared first on Benzinga. Visit Benzinga to get more great content like this.
While equity REITs own and manage real estate properties to generate rental income, Mortgage REITs (mREITs) invest in and own mortgage loans. They provide the financing for real estate and in turn generate income from the interest.
Real estate investment trusts, also known as REITs, have long been a favorite for investors. This is because of their ability to perform in adverse conditions while also generating passive income for investors. Although most people immediately think of residential or commercial REITs when it comes to this sector, mortgage REITs are also worth a look.
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How Do Mortgage REITs Work?
Mortgage REITs are real estate investment trusts that use investor capital to fund mortgages or purchase mortgage-backed securities (MBS). Mortgage REIT investors then earn income from the interest on the mortgages included in the REIT. Examples of the kinds of assets you might typically find in a mortgage REIT include:
- Residential mortgages
- Commercial mortgages
- Securities backed by residential mortgages
- Securities backed by commercial mortgages
- A combination of securities backed by both residential and commercial mortgages
In addition to relying on interest earned from mortgage-backed securities to generate returns, many mortgage REITs (mREITs) also own income property.
Benefits of Mortgage REITs
Although equity REITs might get a greater share of the attention, mREITs also offer investors a wealth of benefits.
Passive Income
Like all REITs, mREITs offer investors the ability to generate passive income. As opposed to equity REITs, which pay investor dividends from collected rents, mREITs pay investors through the interest from the loans. This allows investors to build wealth without having to worry about collections and the legwork that actually goes into servicing loans. Additionally, mREITs make money off of mortgage loans, which is an incredibly lucrative investment sector.
Liquidity
One of the downsides of traditional equity REITs is that the assets in the REIT can be difficult to liquidate. Equity REITs mostly consist of institutional assets, which means that if there isn’t another institution or REIT that wants to buy the asset, the REIT could have difficulty moving it.
By contrast, the mortgage-backed securities that make up most mREITs are much easier to move when necessary. That has a lot to do with the fact that potential buyers know the loans are secured by real estate assets. Agency-backed mortgage securities in particular are very liquid because they are guaranteed by the federal government.
Increased Investor Security
As noted above, mREITs mainly consist of mortgage-backed securities. If the borrowers default, the real estate backing the loan can still be liquidated to pay off investors. When it comes to agency-backed securities, the federal government backing that makes them so liquid also provides increased security for investors.
Dividends
Another big potential advantage of mREITs is that they tend to pay higher dividends than equity REITs. While a solid dividend yield from an equity REIT might be in the 3% to 5% range, many mREITs pay out at a 6% annual rate, and some of them can reach as high as 10%.
Necessity
Mortgage lending is the key to America’s real estate industry. At any given point, there are millions of mortgage loans actively making money. Without this lending, the real estate industry would come to a screeching halt. When you invest in an mREIT, you’re not only investing in one of America’s bread-and-butter economic engines, you’re helping boost the economy as a whole.
Risks of mREITs
Investing in mREITs is not without risk.
Interest Rates
Most mREITs use short-term debt to buy the securities they depend on for money. As a consequence, mREITs can be very sensitive to fluctuations in interest rates. When rates rise, the cost of refinancing existing debts carried by the mREIT increases. That eats into profits and lowers investor dividends.
On the other side of the equation, rapidly falling interest rates can pose a different kind of threat to mREITs. When rates fall, it becomes easier for borrowers to pay off their loans early or refinance them. Both of these potential outcomes can have an adverse effect on the dividends earned by REIT investors.
Borrower Default
Every loan in every mREIT is a potential opportunity for default. Although mREITs may account for a small percentage of borrower defaults, mass defaults caused by a declining economy is a real problem for mREIT investors. When borrowers aren’t paying their mortgages, there is no interest income for mREITs to pay investors.
This is especially true in the case of loans that aren’t agency-backed because there is no government backing. That means if there is a default, the mREIT is left holding the bag. Historically, the mortgage default rate is fairly low, but the risk is always a factor for mREIT investors.
How to Invest in mREITs
Investing in mREITs is simple. Many of them are publicly traded, which means you can buy them through a brokerage app the same way you can any other stock. One great place to start your search for mREIT investment opportunities is this list of Benzinga’s best online stock brokers.
Largest Mortgage REITs
Annaly Capital Management Inc. (NYSE: NLY)
Annaly Capital Management is one of America’s largest mREITs. This REIT has been in operation for nearly 25 years and is nearly 14 times larger than the average-size mortgage REIT. This large size allows them to operate with a heavily diversified portfolio.
Starwood Property Trust Inc. (NYSE: STWD)
Starwood Property Trust is an mREIT that focuses on mortgage-backed securities and mortgage origination in the commercial real estate sector. Its 2009 IPO was the third-largest REIT IPO in U.S. history and at the time, made it the largest blind pool company to ever be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Since the IPO, Starwood has lent more than $51 billion in capital and acquired $2.4 billion in equity in commercial real estate assets.
Starwood has a highly diversified portfolio that includes:
- Multifamily
- Hotels
- Office
- Industrial
- Retail
Starwood has a heavy focus on risk mitigation through diversification. Its current share price is lingering around $20 and it has a total market capitalization well over $6.628 billion.
AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: AGNC)
AGNC is America’s second-largest internally managed residential mortgage mREIT. It specializes in agency-backed securities and is one of only two mREITs with a market cap just over $6 billion. AGNC’s management model prioritizes efficiency and cost management, which is why its operating expenses are only 0.08% of its equity capital.
Its current portfolio is worth an estimated $61.5 billion, and the assets break down as follows:
- ~92% or $54.6 billion in 30-year fixed mortgages
- ~3% or $1.7 billion in 15-year fixed mortgages
- ~3% or $1.7 billion in credit risk-transfer (CRT) and non-agency mortgages
- ~2% or $1.5 billion in 20-year fixed mortgages
- ~1% or $300 million in constant maturity treasury (CMT) and adjustable-rate mortgages
Mortgage REIT ETFs
Investors can also gain exposure to mortgage REITs through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). A few prominent ETFs that offer exposure to mREITs include:
Symbol | Company | % Change | Price | Dividend Yield | Invest |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
REM | iShares Trust iShares Mortgage Real Estate ETF |
+ 0.89%
|
$20.50 | N/A | Buy stock |
MORT | VanEck Mortgage REIT Income ETF |
+ 5.79%
|
$10.60 | N/A | Buy stock |
SPRE | SP Funds S&P Global REIT Sharia ETF |
+ 3.7%
|
$17.65 | N/A | Buy stock |
RITA | ETF Series Solutions ETFB Green SRI REITs ETF |
+ 15.29%
|
$19.55 | N/A | Buy stock |
HAUS | Tidal ETF Trust Residential REIT ETF |
– 1.84%
|
$14.40 | N/A | Buy stock |
Industry Overview
Number of REITs | 32 |
Average dividend yield | 11.86% |
YTD total return | 7.63% |
June total return | 12.77% |
2022 total return | -26.61% |
Quarterly Performance Data
Financial Metric | Latest quarter | 2023 YTD |
Dividend Paid $(m) | $2,096 | $2.096 |
Investing in Mortgage REITs
The REIT investment sector features a much larger variety of potential offerings than just equity REITs. Specifically, mortgage REITs allow investors to take advantage of mortgage-backed securities for passive income. Investors who are already heavily involved in equity REITs or traditional offerings who want to diversify their portfolios may want to take a look at this sector for new opportunities.
The beauty of this sector is that the mortgages that finance single-family homes and commercial real estate are going to be necessary for as long as single-family homes and commercial properties are sold. That means mREITs have the potential to generate reliable investor returns for the long-term future. As with all investments, the risk of loss remains, but it’s also true that mREIT offerings have outperformed equity REITs overall.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do mortgage REITs make money?
Mortgage REITs, also known as mREITs, use a combination of short-term financing and investor capital to purchase mortgage-backed securities. When the borrowers make payments on the loans in these mortgage-backed securities, the mREIT makes money off the loan interest.
Answer Link
Are mortgage REITs a good investment?
Mortgage REITs certainly have solid potential as an investment. Historically, they have paid higher dividends than equity REITs, which may come as a surprise to most investors because equity REITs tend to get a lot more attention in the media. In many cases, especially with agency-backed loans that are guaranteed by the federal government, investors have added security.
But there is still some risk associated with mREITs. In spite of their solid performance history, mREIT profits can be adversely affected by rising or falling interest rates. Because most mREITs use short-term financing to purchase mortgage-backed securities, a rise in rates can shrink investor profits. If interest rates should suddenly fall, mREITs can also lose profits if borrowers repay their loans early or refinance them.
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REIT Alternatives
REITs provide a low-cost and simple way to invest in real estate. However, they aren’t the only option available to generate passive income through real estate with a low minimum investment.
Real estate crowdfunding offers investors the ability to decide which properties they want to invest while still enjoying passive income at a fraction of the cost of traditional methods of investing in real estate. Here are some of our favorite real estate crowdfunding platforms.
Get started
securely through CrowdStreet’s
website
Crowdstreet is an online real estate investment platform that lets investors choose from a wide range of real estate investment offerings to crowdfund. Crowdstreet investors are free to buy into managed funds, individual buildings or even build a bespoke investment portfolio that includes both kinds of deals.
CrowdStreet’s platform has a diverse range of property types, ranging from multifamily to office, industrial, self-storage and others.
Best For
- Accredited investors
- Long-term investors
- Investors looking to diversify from stocks
- User-friendly interface
- Diverse investment offerings
- Great investor resources
- Proven performance history
- Many offerings eligible for inclusion in self-directed IRA
- Accredited investors only
- Most offerings require a $25,000 minimum investment
Get started
securely through Yieldstreet’s
website
Yieldstreet is an online investment platform that specializes in alternative investment offerings designed to generate passive income and wealth for investors. The platform offers a 1-stop shop for a range of alternative investments ranging from real estate to structured notes and even art collections.
Best For
- Accredited investors looking to diversify
- Alternative investments to stocks and bonds
- Investors looking for passive income
- Easy-to-use platform
- Carefully selected offerings
- Excellent mobile app
- Full spectrum of alternative offerings
- Options for non-accredited investors
- Majority of investments only open to accredited investors
get started
securely through Fundrise’s
website
Fundrise is an online real estate investing platform with two clear aims: to simplify and democratize real estate investing. While there is no shortage of real estate investing platforms, Fundrise is one of the few that is open to non-accredited investors. Traditional real estate investing, and by extension most real estate crowdfunding platforms, require investors to pledge large amounts of capital. As opposed to the $25,000 to $50,000 investment minimums on many competing platforms, Fundrise distinguishes itself from the crowd by accepting investor contributions as low as $10.
The platform also has some of the highest quality real estate deals available. With a massive portfolio of institutional-quality properties, Fundrise investors can generate cash flow and long-term growth through a diverse portfolio of commercial real estate, multifamily properties, single-family rentals and ground-up developments.
Best For
- New real estate investors looking to get their feet wet
- Non-accredited investors
- Real estate investors who want a “set-it and forget it”-oriented option
- Investors looking for low-to-moderate cost buy-ins
- Multiple offerings available to non-accredited investors
- Simple menu of investment options
- Can use for IRA contributions
- Incredibly affordable buy-ins
- Low, easy-to-understand investor fee schedule
- Extended hold periods
- Limited secondary market
get started
securely through CityVest’s
website
CityVest is a web-based real estate investment platform that was established to give small-to-medium-sized investors access to real estate investment opportunities that typically require 6-figure minimum investments. CityVest does this by pooling multiple investor contributions into 1 bundle large enough to satisfy the minimum investment requirements of the best institutional private equity real estate investment funds.
Best For
- Individual investors seeking access to institutional investments
- Experienced investors looking to diversify their portfolio
- Investors seeking investments with strong due diligence and screening
- Access to high-performance institutional funds
- High returns
- Intense vetting of investment opportunities
- Third-party due diligence on all funds
- No registration needed to review investment opportunities
- Quarterly distributions
- Only available to accredited investors
- Not a lot of investor control of fund options
Compare Platforms
EquityMultiple is a groundbreaking alternative investment platform that leverages high technology to make real estate investing easy to understand and accessible to all investors. The site specializes in offering both short- and long-term growth opportunities that allow hands-on investors to create and diversify their own investment portfolios.
Best For
- Accredited investors
- Hands-on investors
- Investors looking for quick returns
- Investors looking for low buy-in offerings
- Many investments with low buy-ins less than $10,000
- Numerous offerings with pay-outs in less than 12 months
- High-functioning website
- Incredible client support
- Only available to accredited investors
All Mortgage REITs
Ticker | Company | Market Cap | Dividend Yield |
---|---|---|---|
NLY | Annaly Capital Management Inc | $9.717B | 13.77% |
STWD | Starwood Property Trust Inc | $5.916B | 10.82% |
AGNC | AGNC Investment Corp | $5.63B | 15.67% |
NRZ | New Residential Investment Corp | $84.55M | n/a |
BXMT | Blackstone Mortgage Trust Inc. | $3.268B | 13.63% |
HASI | Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital | $2.673B | 6.48% |
CMTG | Claros Mortgage Trust, Inc. | $1.494B | 14.19% |
ABR | Arbor Realty Trust Inc | $2.444B | 13.07% |
ARI | Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance | $1.515B | 13.53% |
CIM | Chimera Investment Corp | $1.193B | 18.66% |
RC | Ready Capital Corp | $1.85B | 12.08% |
TWO | Two Harbors Investment Corp | $1.279B | 19.29% |
LADR | Ladder Capital Corp Class A | $1.276B | 9.54% |
PMT | PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust | $1.087B | 13.75% |
KREF | KKR Real Estate Finance Inc Trust | $814.851M | 15.11% |
MFA | MFA Financial, Inc. | $1.129B | 12.95% |
NYMT | New York Mortgage Trust Inc | $925.934M | 16.08% |
RWT | Redwood Trust Inc. | $720.093M | 15.08% |
EFC | Ellington Financial | $867.729M | 14.35% |
ARR | Armour Residential REIT Inc | $1.007B | 18.75% |
ACRE | Ares Commercial Real Estate Corp | $522.393M | 15.09% |
DX | Dynex Capital Inc. | $630.152M | 13.61% |
BRMK | Broadmark Realty Capital Inc. | $635.035M | 12.02% |
TRTX | TPG RE Finance Trust | $524.085M | 14.95% |
IVR | Invesco Mortgage Capital | $451.481M | 15.09% |
ORC | Orchid Island Capital Inc | $403.481M | 18.71% |
GPMT | Granite Point Mortgage Trust Inc. | $259.949M | 17.13% |
NREF | NexPoint Real Estate Finance, Inc. | $316.672M | 15.05% |
REFI | Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. | $271.329M | 12.75% |
AOMR | Angel Oak Mortgage, Inc. | $183.365M | 16.86% |
AJX | Great Ajax Corp | $134.922M | 14.55% |
SACH | Sachem Capital Corp. | $139.8M | 16.94% |
CHMI | Cherry Hill Mortgage Investment Corporation | $132.304M | 21.69% |
MITT | AG Mortgage Investment Trust, Inc. | $116.016M | 12.97% |
LFT | Lument Finance Trust, Inc. | $96.628M | 12.97% |
EARN | Ellington Residential Mortgage REIT | $98.265M | 13.64% |
ACR | ACRES Commercial Realty Corp. | $73.185M | n/a |
AAIC | Arlington Asset Investment Corp Class A | $118.586M | n/a |
LOAN | Manhattan Bridge Capital, Inc | $55.592M | 9.33% |
WMC | Western Asset Mortgage Capital | $53.799M | 16.43% |
The post What are Mortgage REITs? by Eric McConnell appeared first on Benzinga. Visit Benzinga to get more great content like this.