

Alternative investments: Private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, and other non-traditional investments may outperform in an environment of low interest rates and high liquidity.Commodities: Inflationary environments can lead to an increase in the prices of certain commodities, making them a favorable asset class to use as an inflation hedge.However, rising interest rates can put a damper on mortgage borrowing. Real estate: A strong economy and low unemployment can lead to a robust housing market, which may benefit real estate investments.Some specialized ETFs are also designed to focus on commodities. A benefit of commodity pools is that an individual investor's risk is limited to her financial contribution to the fund. A commodity pool or "managed futures fund" is a private investment vehicle combining contributions from multiple investors to trade in the futures and commodities markets. There are multiple ways of accessing commodity investments. Commodities: Commodities refer to tangible resources such as gold, silver, and crude oil, as well as agricultural products.Like a hedge fund, private equity firms tend to focus on long-term investment opportunities of 10 years or more. Other private equity fund strategies include targeting fast-growing companies or startups. Private equity funds often take a controlling interest in an operating company and engage in active management of the company in an effort to bolster its value. A private equity firm, known as the "adviser," pools money invested in the fund by multiple investors and then makes investments on behalf of the fund. Private equity fund: Private equity funds are pooled investment vehicles similar to mutual and hedge funds.Hedge fund investments may tie up an investor’s money for substantial time periods. They also tend to impose net worth requirements. Typically only available to accredited investors, these vehicles often require high initial investments of $1 million or more. Hedge funds: Hedge funds may invest in a spectrum of assets designed to deliver beyond market returns, called “alpha.” However, performance is not guaranteed, and hedge funds can see incredible shifts in returns, sometimes underperforming the market by a significant margin.They trade like stocks on the same exchange. REITs act like mutual funds wherein a group of investors pool their money together to purchase properties. Alternatively, they can purchase shares in real estate investment trusts (REITs). Real estate: Investors can acquire real estate by directly buying commercial or residential properties.
