Retail REITs

Retail REITs include those specializing in neighborhood shopping centers malls, and factory outlet centers.

Resolution Trust Corporation or RTC

A public corporation organized by Congress in response to the banking and savings and loan crisis of the early 1990s, to acquire and resell real estate and real estate loans from bankrupt and near-bankrupt lendors.

REOC or Real Estate Operating Company

Refers generally to a public company that owns, manages, and/or develops real estate but which has not elected to qualify for REIT status under federal law. These compaines are thus not required to make any specific dividend payments to their shareholders, nor are they subject to other requirements applicable to REIT organizations, which gives them more flexibility with respect to capital deployment. They pay income taxes at normal corporate rates and often use more debt leverage than do REITs, which creates interest deductions that can offset taxable income. Due to their very low (or non-existent) dividend yields, their shares can be more volatile than REIT shares.

REIT or Real Estate Investment Trust

Either a corporation or a business trust that has certain tax attributes prescribed by federal legislation, the most important of which is that the entity obtains a federal tax credit equal to dividends paid to its shareholders if certain requirements are satisfied (such as the requirement to pay out at least 90 percent of net annual income to shareholders).

Real Estate Investment Trust Act of 1960

Legislation passed by Congress and signed into law authorizing the REIT format, for the purpose of allowing individuals to pool their investments in real estate and receive the same benefits they would receive from direct ownership.