How risky is investing into a REIT?

I would like to gain a little perspective, as i basically know next to nothing about investing into a REIT. So, how risky is it? Would it be one of the safer investments? I have $400,000 to invest. What kind of return would i get on such an investment?

Thanks in advance.

Reits are very, very risky. Check out the returns for the last year. It will take a lot of dividends to erase those losses and housing hasn't bottomed yet. If you are smart in this market you will stay away from REITS.

REITs are dividend-paying stocks that focus on real estate. If you seek income, you would consider them along with high-yield bond funds and dividend paying stocks. Consider 20 years of returns for the NAREIT Equity REIT Index (an index of about 150 traded REITs) annual returns solely from dividends; they have averaged about 8% and never once fallen below 4.8%. represent total return, price change plus income return. You can see that stable dividends combine with price volatility to create a total return that is often promising, but volatile nonetheless.

REITs are real estate companies that must pay out high dividends in order to enjoy the tax benefits of REIT status. Stable income that can exceed Treasury yields combines with price volatility to offer a total return potential that rivals small capitalization stocks. Analyzing an REIT requires understanding the accounting distortions caused by depreciation and paying careful attention to macroeconomic influences.

REITs are good investments as explained by Joanne. If you are wanting to invest in real estate, why not control the investment yourself rather than leaving it up to others?
$400k is a great start and could easily net you double digit returns. You do need to know how and what to buy.
You may contact me via email for addit. assistance or just to chat further on this subject.

You can read---Investing in REITS by Ralph Block. Invest in Vanguard REIT Index Fund. Also invest in Vanguard 500 Index. You can go to Vanguard .com and invest. Also read --- The Little Book of Common Sense Investing by John C.Bogle and A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton G.Malkiel. You can get these books from the Library
Good Luck