Today we are featuring top-performing “Real Estate" equity mutual funds, which primarily invest in equity securities of real estate companies.

Investors can find such funds by checking out the entire list of the Zacks #1 Rank Real Estate Equity Funds.

3 Excellent Samples

Fidelity International Real Estate (FIREX) was incepted in September 2004. The investment seeks capital appreciation.

The fund primarily invests in non-US securities. It allocates investments across different countries and regions considering the size of the market in each country and region relative to the size of the international real estate securities market as a whole.

Shareholders have to make a minimum initial investment of $2,500 to enter this Zacks#1 Rank (“Strong Buy") fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.18%.

ING International Real Estate A (IIRAX) seeks high total return by focusing on companies with superior current income and growth potential relative to

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Today we are featuring top-performing “Real Estate" equity mutual funds, which primarily invest in stocks of companies that are part of the real estate and REIT sectors.

Investors can find such funds by checking out the entire list of the Zacks #1 Rank Real Estate Equity Funds.

3 Solid Samples

Thrivent Real Estate Securities A (TREFX) seeks to provide high current income and long-term capital appreciation by investing primarily in the equity securities of companies in the real estate industry.

The fund focuses on real estate equity securities, but may invest in other types of real estate securities or in companies from other industries. It may invest up to 20% in equity and fixed-income securities of companies that are not principally engaged in the real estate industry.

Reginald L. Pfeifer has managed the fund since its inception in June 2005. Pfeifer has 22 years of industry experience.

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Today we are featuring top-performing “Real Estate" equity mutual funds, which primarily invest in stocks of companies that are part of the real estate and REIT sectors.

Investors can find such funds by checking out the entire list of the Zacks #1 Rank Real Estate Equity Funds.

3 Balanced Options

Thrivent Real Estate Securities A (TREFX) seeks to provide high current income and long-term capital appreciation by investing primarily in the equity securities of companies in the real estate industry.

The fund focuses on real estate equity securities, but may invest in other types of real estate securities or in companies from other industries. It may invest up to 20% in equity and fixed-income securities of companies that are not principally engaged in the real estate industry.

Reginald L. Pfeifer has managed the fund since its inception in June 2005. Pfeifer has 22 years of industry experience. The

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Today we are featuring top-performing "Real Estate" equity mutual funds, which primarily invest in stocks of companies that are part of the real estate and REIT sectors.

Investors can find such funds by checking out the entire list of the Zacks #1 Rank Real Estate Equity Funds.3 Great Picks

Thrivent Real Estate Securities A (TREFX) seeks to provide high current income and long-term capital appreciation by investing primarily in the equity securities of companies in the real estate industry.

The fund focuses on real estate equity securities, but may invest in other types of real estate securities or in companies in other industries. It may invest up to 20% in equity and fixed-income securities of companies which are not principally engaged in the real estate industry.

Reginald L. Pfeifer has managed the fund since its inception in June 2005. Pfeifer has

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A new property index has just been launched that should help gauge what is going on in GCC's market. The MSCI Arabian Markets Real Estate Capped Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization index, and contains more than 60 leading real estate securities of the largest and most liquid companies from 11 Arab countries. The Index will be calculated daily.

Newcastle Investment Corporation (NCT) is a mortgage real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in real estate securities and other real estate-related assets. The company owns a diversified portfolio of real estate debt investments including securities and loans.NCT reported a loss of ($2.83) per share in 3Q08 primarily due to impairment charges of $160.9 million. Residential mortgage markets have not yet bottomed and the liquidity crisis is getting worse. Commercial real estate could be the next shoe to drop in 2009, in which case future margin calls could force NCT into bankruptcy. On the other hand, delinquencies are still low in the company's loan portfolio and most commercial investments are performing. If the company can weather the current downturn, and commercial real estate values remain somewhat stable, now could be a good buyingopportunity. In either case, expect a large dividend cut, ...

The ETF's quantitative-based selection process and its resulting portfolios are expected to be updated on a monthly basis.

 

Already the first to market with actively managed stock exchange-traded funds, Invesco PowerShares Capital Management has filed to launch a similar portfolio focused on real estate markets.

In an exemptive relief filing dated Oct. 31, PowerShares is asking for the Securities and Exchange Commission to approve its plan to offer the Active U.S. Real Estate Fund. The new ETF's proposed ticker symbol would be PSR and trade on the NYSE Arca exchange. (See request here.)

The institutional money management arm of parent Invesco would subadvise the new fund, using quantitative models to select stocks. Its aim would be to outperform the FTSE NAREIT Equity REITs Index.

According to the filing, the fund's portfolio will be disclosed on a daily basis.

The ETF's annual expense ratio is expected to be around 0.80%.

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For the past several months, this is what you've heard from the financial industry about the scope of the credit crisis:"It's just subprime mortgages."Then ..."No, it's just Alt-A and subprime."Then ... "Okay, you're right. Prime doesn't look so hot anymore either. But clearly, it's just residential mortgages.Then ..."Those auto loans? Alright. You caught me there too. But that's it. I swear."But time and again, I have made the point that this credit crunch was never the result of just reckless subprime residential mortgage originations. It's the result of stupid LBO lending ... stupid commercial mortgage lending ... high-risk Alt-A and prime mortgage lending ... risky auto lending ... and so on. While the residential mortgage lenders were the worst offenders, banks and nonbank lenders went overboard extending other forms of credit. Now they're paying

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The four big asset classes are stocks, bonds, cash and real estate. Direct ownership of real estate is the pure form of the asset class. To achieve diversification within the financial capability of most investors, securitization of a direct real estate portfolio (REITs) is a second best solution.

REIT vs REAL ESTATE FUNDS:

The problem with publicly traded securitized real estate is that it takes on some of the characteristics of stocks, and loses some of the distinctions of the direct real estate asset class. Except in bubble times, the yield of REITs also tends to make them trade a bit like bonds. Overall, REITs are hybrid in nature, but still generally thought of as a separate asset class more than as a separate sector within the stocks asset class.

Because REITs are not as widely authorized internationally, and because of investor demand …