

Built to Last: Investing in Real Estate through REITs
Aug 25, 2025
Steven Wechsler, President and CEO of Nareit, is a leading advocate for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). He discusses the benefits of investing in REITs, emphasizing their structural discipline and tax efficiency. The conversation highlights how public REITs, with conservative management and lower leverage, offer stability. Wechsler also explores the global investment landscape and emerging asset classes within REITs, such as data centers and healthcare facilities, while considering the evolving needs of the real estate market post-COVID.
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Core Legal Framework Of REITs
- A REIT must hold at least 75% of its assets in qualifying real estate and distribute at least 90% of taxable income annually.
- This structure enforces discipline and focuses REITs on long-term income-producing properties.
Scale And Segments Of The REIT Market
- Public REITs represent roughly $2.5 trillion of the U.S. real estate market and total REIT assets are about $4.5 trillion.
- The REIT ecosystem includes public, private, and non-traded (NAV) REITs, offering diverse market exposure.
How New Asset Types Fit Into REITs
- The REIT law from 1960 covered land and structures broadly, enabling new asset types to fit without changing the law.
- As the economy shifts, REITs expanded into healthcare, data centers, and cell towers reflecting changing real estate uses.