So, why is it so few people are aware of this wealth building strategy? The answer, in today's corporate financial system the goal is to direct investments into the areas that benefit them. It makes no sense to encourage wealth building strategies outside of their own interests. Financial education focuses on investments in stocks, bonds, money market accounts, realestate and so on. Thus, seldom does one hear about investing options outside of this corporate mainstream.

With the world's population growing in both size and affluence, the finite resources available to meet our daily needs are becoming stretched and more scarce. By understanding these trends we can prepare, plan and position ourselves to financially benefit as well as make an important difference in improving the environmental health of our planet. Trees are a real asset which is protected against inflation, sequesters carbon dioxide (greenhouse gases), protects watersheds and wildlife, and builds soils on which we depend for our agricultural wellbeing.

Trees as Wealth Building Opportunities

How many wealth building opportunities do you know of that can:

Trees are real assets not paper assets backed by debt or promises. Currently, there are over 600 Trillion Dollars worth of derivatives floating around that "guarantee" our financial system. When these begin to unravel wouldn't it be good to know that some of your assets are real. To learn more...

What Everyone Should Know About Investing in Trees

Before venturing into any wealth building strategy, one needs to seriously do their homework and investigate all aspects of the options available. Too often we let others with their own vested interests make the decisions for us and then hope for the best. This has worked for many over the past 20 years but, as history has taught us, things change. Today, we are entering into a truly unique scenario that humanity has never faced in history. Will strategies used in the past work going forward? Don't count on it.

Going forward, the world faces a shortage in almost every commodity currently being produced. From food to metals we will be witnessing global competition for all commodities, including hardwoods. In fact, according to the UN hardwood lumber use will increase by 60% by 2025. Where will all this new wood come from?

The Process
Investing in hardwood trees is simple to do and requires no effort on your part. There are only a few tree operations currently in existence that sell trees as investments. Prices for an allotment of 100 trees range from about $2500 to over $5000. Tree investments are long-term in nature usually in the 20 to 30 year range. This doesn't mean you have to wait that long to see a return, harvesting as part of a thinning process begins to return dividends about 10 to 12 years into the investment period. In today’s busy world, this may seem like a long time but for those saving for their retirement or new parents building college funds for their children it is just about right.

In most situations, individuals interested in trees as a wealth building strategy would purchase an allotment of trees that are planted on a farm by the selling company, usually in developing countries in a tropical area. These trees are nurtured and cared for over the life of the trees as part of the original sales cost. As the trees mature, they need to be thinned so that the best trees can grow to their maximum potential. These early thinning harvest bring in some funds with most projections of a return of principle investment in10 to 13 years. Harvest then continue every few years with greater returns as the size and quality of the wood increases. Farms charge a harvesting, milling and sales fee usually not over 15% and many allow the tree owners to hire their own companies (or do it themselves).

The Potential Returns
Returns on an investment in trees are potentially one of the highest of any asset class. Although there are many factors that can affect the final numbers, overall they are very high. Using Teak as an example, an investor may see returns as high as $120,000 or more on an allotment of 100 trees. It is important to keep in mind that even a return of half this amount is almost double what would be considered an exceptional return on investment. These numbers are taken for best current estimates and reflect over a hundred years of growing Teak trees in farm situations.

The Risks
As with all investments there are risks inherit ant with any investment options. Trees are no different except for the type of risk that one assumes when holding them. Trees, as part of nature, face risks from fires, storms, pests and global warming. Additionally, trees are often grown in developing world environments that add a geopolitical risk. Most of these risks can be mitigated by locating farms strategically and taking preventive measures. As an investor, you need to consider the risks and remember that the entire financial world is now dependent on keeping 600 trillion dollars worth of derivatives from imploding. This should help in assessing just how risky a real asset in the ground and growing is compared to paper debt sitting on top a powder keg of derivatives.

The Downsides
If there is a downside to investing in trees it is that they are not a liquid asset and are basically stuck in one location for the entire duration. Thus, if events or geopolitics change, there isn't much you can do about it. If needed, the trees can be sold to other investors as any asset is sold or traded. It may just take a bit longer to do so. The farm is happy to assist you in doing this.

Doing Your Due Diligence
We encourage everyone to take a look at this wonderful opportunity to both make a difference environmentally and receive great financial returns as well. We have attached several links below to other tree businesses to assist you in fully understanding this important opportunity. Whether you choose to go with us, or one of these, we hope you will chose to make trees a part of your wealth building portfolio.