Balancing yield and risk in the property sector

Bricks and mortar still holds potential

The lure of an attractive yield has made property companies and real estate investment trusts (REITs) particularly interesting at the moment.

But, of course, with a healthy yield comes some unhealthy risk. Just look at the retail property focused companies for evidence of this. The structural shift impacting retail is well documented. The rise of online shopping (now almost 20% of retail spend) has put many traditional high-street retailers in the mire. It has seen many bite the dust and almost all go through some form of 'right-sizing' of their store estate. The effect on rental income for retail landlords has been monumental and has led to huge write-offs in property values, leaving many trading at significant discount...