Bet on the U.S. housing rebound without going south

You want to bet on the U.S. housing marketing turning around, but you’re not ready to buy a retirement property. There’s a new vehicle developing for just that type of investment. The next wave of real estate investment trusts south of the border is likely to be made of distressed properties bought by private-equity investors so cheaply that they can be rented out and still produce good returns despite the high management costs. This asset class does not exist now among REITs, which, in terms of rental properties, has been restricted to apartment buildings.