REITs and Dividend Income (2024)

FAQs

REITs and Dividend Income? ›

REIT shares trade on the open market, so they are easy to buy and sell. The common denominator among all REITs is that they pay dividends consisting of rental income and capital gains. To qualify as securities, REITs must payout at least 90% of their net earnings to shareholders as dividends.

By default, all dividends distributed by a REIT are considered ordinary, or non-qualified, and are taxed as ordinary income. REIT dividends can be qualified if they meet certain IRS requirements. The Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 separated dividends into these classes.

A real estate investment trust (REIT) is a company that owns, operates, or finances income-generating real estate. Modeled after mutual funds, REITs pool capital investors who earn dividends from real estate investments. Investors do not individually buy, manage, or finance any properties.

To qualify as a REIT, a company must have the bulk of its assets and income connected to real estate investment and must distribute at least 90 percent of its taxable income to shareholders annually in the form of dividends.

Reinvesting REIT dividends can help retirement savers grow their portfolio's investment, and historically steady REIT dividend income can help retirees meet their living expenses. REIT dividends historically have provided: Wealth Accumulation. Reliable Income Returns.

Unlike many companies however, REIT incomes are not taxed at the corporate level. That means REITs avoid the dreaded “double-taxation” of corporate tax and personal income tax. Instead, REITs are sheltered from corporate taxes so their investors are only taxed once.

You can easily make your purchase through a brokerage account. Keep in mind that though you can earn passive income from REIT dividends, the IRS does not tax these dividends as passive income. Instead, the income you earn from REIT dividends is usually taxed as ordinary income.

Is Five Years the Standard "Hold" Time for a Real Estate Investment? Real estate investment trusts (REITS) and other commercial property investment companies frequently target properties with a five-year outlook potential.

REITs and stocks can both pay dividends, usually on a monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis. Some investments will also offer special dividends, but they're unpredictable.

What is bad income for REITs? ›

For purposes of the REIT income tests, a non-qualified hedge will produce income that is included in the denominator, but not the numerator. This is generally referred to as “bad” REIT income because it reduces the fraction and makes it more difficult to meet the tests.

“I recommend REITs within a managed portfolio,” Devine said, noting that most investors should limit their REIT exposure to between 2 percent and 5 percent of their overall portfolio. Here again, a financial professional can help you determine what percentage of your portfolio you should allocate toward REITs, if any.

Publicly traded REITs have the risk of losing value as interest rates rise, which typically sends investment capital into bonds.

This broader mix of stocks offers higher payouts and greater diversification than what you'll get with the Invesco QQQ Trust. And if you've got a large portfolio totaling more than $1.1 million, your dividend income could come in around $50,000 per year.

The majority of REIT dividends are taxed as ordinary income up to the maximum rate of 37% (returning to 39.6% in 2026), plus a separate 3.8% surtax on investment income. Taxpayers may also generally deduct 20% of the combined qualified business income amount which includes Qualified REIT Dividends through Dec.

Qualified REIT dividends from a fund are reported in Box 5, Section 199A dividends, of your Form 1099‑DIV. The table below reports the percentage of the ordinary dividend paid by the T. Rowe Price funds that may be eligible for the deduction.

Income that is within your dividend allowance counts towards your basic or higher rate limits and may therefore affect the amount of personal savings allowance that you are entitled to, as well as the rate of tax you pay on dividend income that exceeds your allowance.

Yes, dividends are taxable income. Qualified dividends, which must meet special requirements, are taxed at the capital gains tax rate. Nonqualified dividends are taxed as ordinary income.

REIT Tax Advantages

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act created the IRC Sec. 199A qualified business income deduction, (“QBI”) allowing non-corporate taxpayers to deduct up to 20% of their qualified REIT dividends and qualified publicly traded partnership income.