Independent financial research   /   Evidence before inferenceAbout Jeong-Mo Goo
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Learning center/Beginner
Level 01 / Beginner

Build the foundation.

Start with what a REIT owns, how a shareholder gets paid, and the difference between income and investment return.

Before you start

No accounting background required. Bring curiosity and a willingness to separate a company from its share price.

What you will be able to do

Explain the business model, identify the income measure in a claim, and calculate a simple dividend return without confusing yield with safety.

6 guides · Self-paced · Free access
Levels describe material difficulty, not a qualification or professional certification.

Illustrated map of net-lease retail, apartments, logistics warehouses, offices, data centers and healthcare properties.
Different buildings earn income in different ways. Net lease describes a contract structure and can apply to more than one property type. Open full-size illustration ↗Conceptual educational illustration; not company data. Image and source policy.
Read in this order

Your learning route.

Keep the glossary nearby ↗
  1. 01

    What is a REIT? Follow the asset, the income and the claim

    Understand how a US REIT earns income, what shareholders own, and why a dividend is different from a guaranteed property return.

  2. 02

    Listed, non-traded and private REITs: access changes the risk

    Separate a REIT's business model from its trading structure, liquidity, fees and disclosure obligations.

  3. 03

    The 90% REIT rule: taxable income is not cash flow

    Why the US distribution requirement cannot be used as a dividend safety test or an AFFO payout target.

  4. 04

    Dividend yield versus total return: count both sides

    Calculate income and price change together, and understand why a rising dividend yield can be a warning rather than a reward.

  5. 05

    Dividend reinvestment: compounding with assumptions visible

    Understand what a DRIP changes, what it cannot fix, and how to interpret a constant-yield reinvestment model.

  6. 06

    How to read a REIT filing without getting lost

    A practical reading sequence for the 10-K, 10-Q, earnings release and supplemental operating tables.

Apply what you have read

The practical exercise.

Choose a REIT you already know. Write three sentences: what it owns or finances, where its income comes from, and which document you would read first. Then use the total return calculator with a price decline as well as a dividend.

Open the related calculator ↗
Check your understanding

Can you explain the difference?

1. A US REIT must generally distribute 90% of which base?
2. A share starts at 100, pays 6 and ends at 90. Simple pretax total return is:
3. Which question best distinguishes equity and mortgage REITs?

This self-check is for learning, not an assessment of investing suitability. Answers stay in this tab and are not saved.

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