Attractive Investment Opportunities For Investors In Hardwood

In recent years returns on hardwood investments have been excellent. According to the UK based Investment Property Databank’s UK Forestry Index forestry outperformed bonds, shares and commercial property over the medium term and has a five year return running at an annualized rate of 16.2pc. While this is great news the long term figure is set at a more realistic annualized return of 5.2pc.

From 1995 to 2003 timber prices fell sharply following a flood of low cost imports from the Baltic States. However the relative movement against the trend of the market underlines the idea that a hardwood investment could bring some important diversification to an investment portfolio.

There are two basic choices when deciding to invest in hardwood. The first option is to buy a parcel of land, extracting a generous grant from the Government in the process and enjoy a financial return once the timber is ready to be harvested in a decade’s time.

The second option is to buy funds which invest in wood. Funds buy the land, apply for the grants and manage the land on an investor’s behalf. This is certainly the more practical alternative although the idea of owning a forest is definitely the more appealing option.

Funds in the UK include Four Winds Capital Management, which runs the Phaunos Hardwood Fund or the smaller First Steller Forestry Fund. Funds over in Ireland include Greenwood Management and the Irish Forestry Unit Trust.

Learn More how to invest your money in Hardwood:- http://www.hardwoodinvestments.co.uk

Hardwood Investment Information & Experts

Green investing is the new buzz word and offers investors the ability to profit and get a return on their money as well as offering sustainable moral and feel good factors. Forestry Investment is particularly good as it is based on the land sale or lease concept, which mean investors can buy/rent into a plot of land which has trees growing on it. This is your typical plantation model and offers a long term sustainable investment. Wind, Solar and other green technologies are much more difficult to offer to investors as they are huge infrastructure costs and difficult to split into options, so many go through collective investment schemes or funds.

Green investments are typically based in developing countries, so many hardwood plantations are in countries like Sri Lanka, Thailand, Panama, Brazil, Costa Rica. They offer the ability to employ and empower local people, bring money into local economies and offer long term community benefits.

Hardwood Investments offer good short term literal growth. The term of these type investment start from 7 years, where you buy already half grown trees to seedling investments for up to 20 years. Depending on the species harvesting usually starts after 5 years and so returns are paid after that.

Many species are available but the usual suspects are Teak, Paulownia and Eucalyptus as they are all fast growing trees.

Interest in this type of hardwood investment is growing and is a great addition of an investment portfolio. Many investments are suitable to add to a SIPP (UK pension vehicle).