RWR and VNQ and IYR. Each is up about 38% ytd. Sort of a broad brush approach to picking the best. Just pick them all.

HOWEVER…as legalities vary from state to state on private investors, I think you really need to find a good small business attorney in your area, pay him a fee, and find out the in's and out's from there. A lot to consider with investors. 1) Are they going to be silent partners? Or 2) Are they going to have an equal say in how the company is run? Would be worth the fee.to find a good business attorney to lay it all out for you. Or find a book on amazon about starting a business. Once you are using someone elses' money, the company is no longer yours exclusively, unless you have a proven track record and your investors are willing to leave you in full control.

See if there are any real estate investment groups in your town. Google it.

Then go to yahoo groups, msn groups and google groups and search for real estate investment groups in your community.

Find out when they meet and go sit in on the meetings. Don't discuss your plans until you know who you're dealing with. You're there to learn first, network second, and do business third.

Your goal is to build your team (investors – contractors – etc)

Now an investment fund would give the idea of a mutual fund. A lot of time and red tape involved with selling stock on the market. This would also cost you the start up and leave nothing for investing.

I set it up as an LLC.

Sole Proprietor is generally a bad move in my opinion as it offers no protection of personal assets should something happen to that property.

If you want to send me an email through the system here, I'm more than happy to chat about what I've done, who I've talked to, and what contacts I've made.