Investors, especially those who are in retirement, should dedicate a portion of their portfolios to real estate investment trusts no matter who wins the U.S. presidential election, said Brad Thomas, investing group leader of iREIT®+HOYA Capital.

Specifically, Thomas thinks a minimum portfolio allocation of 10% should go towards REITs in a "bipartisan pitch," he said Wednesday during Seeking Alpha's first-ever Virtual Investing Summit.

“Harris’s plan is appealing to residential housing segment, but unless rates continue to come down it is still a tough environment,” he explained. “In terms of lowering taxes, taxes on tips – it sounds like a good marketing pitch, but I don’t really think it’s going to happen.”

Lowering income and capital gains tax rates for individuals, as proposed former President Donald Trump, would likely lead to "more investment dollars poured into pass-through entities, said Scott Kaufman, managing partner at High Dividend Opportunities. Pass-through entities are exempt from corporate income tax, as profits are directly allocated to the owners.

With mortgage rates still high, affordable housing remains one of the biggest issues ahead of the election. Harris, in turn, wants to give homeowners $25K towards a down payment for prospective homebuyers, as well as provide tax incentives for companies to build more starter homes. Trump, meanwhile, wants to lower regulations for homebuilders and open up portions of federal land for large-scale housing construction.

"For affordability to change… mortgage rates need to come down 300 basis points for us to see significant transaction activity," said David Auerbach, chief investment officer of HOYA Capital. So regardless of whose plan works, there is still so much work that needs to be done.”

For investors looking to track the elections through market instruments, here are some politically driven Republican and Democratic exchange-traded funds:

• God Bless America ETF (YALL)
• American Conservative Values ETF (ACVF)
• Point Bridge America First ETF (MAGA)
• Democratic Large Cap Core ETF (DEMZ)
• Unusual Whales Subversive Democratic ETF (NANC)
• Unusual Whales Subversive Republican ETF (KRUZ)

Readers interested in investing topics tied to the upcoming election can find more information at the ongoing Seeking Alpha Investing Forum: Election 2024; please visit the event website.

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