Permanent Portfolio is not a dividend portfolio. In other words, the gains for this portfolio relies on simultaneous buying and selling of its components during portfolio re-balancing. Only the stocks and bonds provide dividends and coupon payments respectively. But they are not significant. Cash in the bank does not generate significant interest payments. Lastly, gold is a negative yielding asset. It does not generate dividends but incur storage costs. Hence, Permanent Portfolio is not a dividend yielding portfolio. But what happens if we tweak the portfolio a little to improve the yields?

Replacing Gold with REITs

There are concerns about the volatility in gold prices and the long term viability of the precious metal. Many readers and audience have proposed to replace gold with another hard asset. Questions like, “can we use properties instead of gold for Permanent Portfolio?” Without a doubt, REITs are often touted as a good ......