Realty Income: A Monthly Check & My Mild Obsession

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I’ll admit, I have a thing for passive income. Not because I’m lazy, exactly. More that the idea of money…arriving…while I’m preoccupied with, say, alphabetizing my spice rack, feels fundamentally right. It’s a small victory against the relentless demands of modern life. And so, I’ve been looking at Realty Income (O 0.16%). It’s not a thrilling stock, let’s be honest. But then, neither is doing laundry. And yet, here we are.

The Dividend, Obviously

They boast a yield of over 5.2%. Which, in the current climate, feels almost… indecent. I’ve seen higher, of course. I once knew a man who claimed to be getting 18% on some obscure bond. He also wore a tinfoil hat, so I took his advice with a grain of salt. Realty Income, though, is a REIT. Which means they’re legally obligated to hand over a significant chunk of their earnings. It’s like they’re being punished for making money. Which, frankly, I can relate to.

They made over $766 million in the first nine months of 2025, which is a number that feels both enormous and strangely meaningless. I tried to visualize $766 million in dollar bills. I gave up after approximately 17 seconds. My spice rack needed attention.

Thirty Years of Incremental Gains

The dividend has been creeping upwards for over 30 years, with a compound annual growth rate of 4.2%. It’s not going to make you a millionaire overnight. It’s more like a slow, steady drip of financial reassurance. They’ve increased it 133 times since 1994. 112 consecutive quarterly increases. It’s the sort of consistency that makes me deeply suspicious. No one is that reliable. Except maybe my grandmother, and even she occasionally forgets where she put her glasses.

Monthly Payments: A Small Rebellion

They pay monthly. Which is… nice. Most dividends are quarterly, forcing you to wait. It’s like they’re deliberately making it difficult to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Realty Income, bless their pragmatic hearts, understands the appeal of frequent, small rewards. They’ve even trademarked “The Monthly Dividend Company.” It feels a little desperate, but I admire the commitment. They’ve paid dividends for 667 consecutive months. That’s a lot of checks. Or, more likely, direct deposits. I haven’t seen a physical check in years.

Stability in a Chaotic World

I’ve always been drawn to things that don’t change much. My childhood bedroom, for example. Or a reliable brand of tea. Realty Income has delivered 29 consecutive years of positive total operational returns. They’ve outperformed the S&P 500 more often than not. When the market is plummeting, they tend to hold steady. Which, in my experience, is a rare and valuable quality. They own over 15,500 properties, spread across 92 industries. Diversification. It’s a boring word, but a smart one.

The S&P 500 has fallen by 10% or more 13 times since 1994. Realty Income’s shares only declined more than the index twice. It’s like they’ve built a financial bunker. I’m starting to think I should invest. Not for the money, necessarily. But for the peace of mind.

Growth, and a Slightly Ambitious Outlook

They’ve generated a compound annual total return of 13.7% since listing. Not bad. The S&P 500 has outperformed them recently, thanks to the AI boom. Everyone’s chasing the next big thing. But Realty Income is sticking to what they know: real estate. They estimate their total addressable market is around $14 trillion. They’re particularly interested in Europe, which accounts for a significant portion of that market.

They’re also exploring private capital markets. Apparently, their industry expertise gives them an edge. I have no idea what that means, but it sounds impressive. They believe this could boost their long-term earnings growth. It all feels a little… ambitious. But then, what isn’t these days?

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So, is Realty Income a thrilling investment? No. Is it a solid, reliable, monthly income stream? Probably. And sometimes, that’s all you need. Now, if you’ll excuse me, my spice rack is calling.

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2026-01-25 13:54