Real estate investing is a form of investing that has been around for centuries. It is quite possibly the oldest form of investing and it still makes sense today. Even as much as a thousand years ago, someone could take a piece of land and increase its value by draining swamps, clearing brush and removing rocks. The best improvement, however, was always the construction of a building of some kind on the land.

Land improvements are not the only way to invest in property. There are many options available, some of which can be very sophisticated, such as a real estate investment trust (REIT). There are enough simple methods though that make real estate investing viable for just about anyone.

Investing in residential property is one such strategy. This involves purchasing a single family home, duplex, triplex or small apartment building to rent out to tenants. A landlord may put down a deposit on the real estate, typically around 20 percent of the purchase price, and then use the rental receipts received from tenants to pay down the mortgage. This is a great way to leverage your money by using other people's money.

In addition to paying down the mortgage after a period of time, the property owner can also sell the property at the end of the mortgage and realize a very nice capital gain. Another property investing benefit involves the concept of depreciation. Each year the owner uses a portion of the value of the building (not the land) to reduce the amount of taxable income that must be paid. The land and building will be increasing in value but through depreciation, you will pay lower taxes.