STOCKS VS REAL ESTATE – WHICH WINS OUT?

Stocks used to be all the rage. 30 or 40 years ago, playing the stock market was essentially a necessary pass time. If you weren’t playing it, you were watching it. The stock market was the national monitor for how well the entire world economy was fairing, so it was something every single person cared about.

While it is true that the stock market is still a global economic thermometer, the number of average Joes who pay attention to it has dwindled. Even those who are financially savvy are starting to shy away from it – in fact, a recent Bankrate survey shows that only 17% of Americans actually use the stock market as their preferred form of investment and cash output.



This begs the question – if people aren’t using the stock market as a major form of investment, what are they using?

Some Astounding Statistics

Take a look at the following numbers and you’ll see exactly where everyone is placing their bets:

23% of Americans prefer to invest in cash.

27% of Americans prefer to invest in real estate.

Men prefer real estate while women prefer cash investments like CDs and savings accounts.

The younger you are, the more likely you are to prefer cash over other investment forms.

The 30 to 49 age bracket prefers real estate in general as their favored investment strategy.

Those who attended college prefer stocks over other forms of investment.

Those who invest in stock also favor investing in gold and other precious metals, while their least preferred method of investment was found to be through bonds.

This might make it seem like a smattering of different investment strategies, but real estate still won out at the end of the day. It has a lot of competition from cash, but it still reigned supreme compared to all other investment strategies.

One of the reasons that real estate is preferred is because it’s very low risk. The stock market is a volatile way to make money. If you’re good at it, you can find a great way to make lots of money for a long-term plan. Real estate offers you both long- and short-term methods of making money depending on the specific vehicle you use to make your earnings.

Think about this? Would you rather have a lot of money over a gradual period of time, or an uncertain amount of money you can lose or increase at any given time?

The more educated and insightful college-graduates were more likely to play the stock market because they understand better how to make the system work for them. Meanwhile, the more life-experienced 30 to 49 age group understands the value of being sure and steady.

Real estate also offers investors a good mix of pros and cons. There are some risks, yes, but the risks are very mitigated. You get money at a regular pace, so you aren’t waiting a decade to get the money you would need to make playing the stock market worth it.

But the greatest thing about real estate investment? You don’t have to do a lot of leg work. Sit back and enjoy yourself as the cash starts coming in.

Written by Jason Gordon