In the interests of diversifying, has anyone moved into A-REITS? Or as they used to be called, listed property trusts. Provided you don't go for a REIT with industrial land in the Simpson Desert expecting it to pay off, to me as a layman just educating myself on the subject, they seem pretty straightforward and you can invest in ones with capital growth, dividends or a balance. I'm keen to hear from people who had them in the recent past as well as the present. I'm reading through what the ASX says on them, all glowing of course. Anyone experienced a downside with them?
Have a look at what happened to what was once a conservatively managed property trust, GPT, in the Global Financial Crisis. A new management took the shareholders into new areas, like East Germany apartment blocks, and more heavily geared the company. Supposedly the sector has become less geared and more cautious in the aftermath - I wouldn't really know. I doubt they are all that simple a proposition though.
