REITs Feel Crunched
Real Estate Investment Trusts (Reits) are feeling the fallout which began when the subprime loan problems affected financial stocks, spread to the homebuilders, and have now found their home with the real estate stocks. Reits - which are stocks of companies that invest in commercial or residential real estates, such as shopping centers, office buildings and apartment complexes - have fallen into the grip of the subprime woes’ ripple effect as it works its way through various investment classes, perhaps eventually through the broader market. Large Reits such as Simon Property Group (SPG), Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRT), and Boston…