Real estate has always been a global people’s asset of choice and investment portfolios. However, everything has its benefits and drawbacks, like investing in anything else. Therefore, anyone willing to invest in the real estate market must consider some factors.
Defining the different real estate investment risk forms
The nature of real estate investment
Real estate investment involves acquisition of property, use of the property for leasing and selling of the same for the purpose of making a profit. Whenever there is an intended investment in properties there is always a positive belief that the investment is there and tangible to generate extra income and may increase in value. Nonetheless, investments in real estate possess immense risks because of the complexity of the assets and the level of capital involved.
Liquidity risk
Most of the investments under the real estate category appear highly illiquid; they could be off at a poor price in case of an emergency of cash. While the stock or a bond can, at times, be sold almost instantly, it can take anything from Months or years to sell a piece of property. Due to the above entrenched conclaves, lack of liquidity could prove dangerous to investors especially when there is a need to realize some of the investments.
Financing and leverage risks
Some of the typical characteristics of real estate investments include using leverage, which is borrowed money. One can observe that with leverage, the return does go up but this is accompanied by risk . They end up in a situation where the worth of property lessens and the mortgage which they are required to pay is more than the current value of the property. Moreover, depending on the possibility of obtaining some financing and the terms of credit that has been secured, the outlook of real estate or its profitability can be viewed as an investment.
Operational and management risks
There are operation risks for investors of rental properties or commercial real estate. These are the maintenance expenses of the property, risks of losses from the tenants and natural calamities, and the difficulty of searching for quality tenants. However, efficient property management is paramount, which may prove tedious, time-consuming, and expensive to investors handling several properties and help determine if is real estate a risky investment.
Conclusion
Real estate is a good addition to diversify an investment since it can offer both income from the rent and capital gains. However, one needs to draw attention to the fact that investing in real estate is very unvigilant. Some of these risks include; market price risk, which will ensure the firm’s marketing price of its asset and price of its liabilities.