10 Monthly Dividend Stocks to Buy to Pay the Bills

I like making money in the stock market, but I love dividends. You see, the problem with capital gains is that to actually enjoy them, you have to sell your shares. The beauty of dividend stocks is that you get to enjoy the fruits of your investment without having to actually sell anything. {Think of it as|Consider it} milking a cow rather than killing it for meat. Which sounds like the better long-term plan to you?

Even most dividend stocks are imperfect, as dividends are usually paid quarterly. This problem with this is that most of our expenses tend to be monthly, so when you depend on dividends to pay your bills, there is always something of a disconnect between your income and your expenses. This can make budgeting something of a challenge.

Thankfully, monthly dividend stocks do exist, and there are actually quite {a few of them|those hateful pounds|those dreaded|some of them|the excess|the additional} out there.

We're going to look at 10 solid monthly dividend stocks to buy. Many of these names are popular among income investors, but others will almost definitely be new to you. Importantly, all have a long history of taking care of their shareholders with consistent monthly dividend checks.

Monthly Dividend Stocks: Realty Income (O)

Dividend Yield: 3.71%

Type: Commercial REIT

Realty Income Corp (NYSE:O) styles itself as “the Monthly Dividend Company,” and frankly, this conservative retail real estate investment trust (REIT) deserves the title of king of the monthly dividend stocks. Realty Income has paid its investors like clockwork for 585 consecutive months and even raised its dividend for 86 consecutive quarters.

A stock is always going to be considered more risky than a bond, but Realty Income is about as close to a bond as you can realistically get in the stock market. Its cash flows are backed by long-term leases to high-quality tenants. Its properties are generally high-traffic retail sites that are mostly recession proof and “Amazon.com proof.”

Think of your local convenience store or pharmacy. Chances are decent that Realty Income owns it.

In the interests of full disclosure, I own some shares of Realty Income that I bought nearly a decade ago and that I never intend to sell. I've been reinvesting my dividends, slowly building up my share count. One of these days, I'll flip the switch and start taking those dividends in cash. But for now, I'm enjoying watching the number of shares that I own increase with every passing month.

Stag Industrial (STAG)

Dividend Yield: 4.53%

Type: Industrial REIT

Stag Industrial (NYSE:STAG) is a small-cap REIT that I have had in my portfolio for several years, but it’s a REIT that most investors have never heard of. “STAG” stands for “single tenant acquisition group,” and that pretty well sums up its business model. STAG acquires single-tenant properties in the industrial and light manufacturing space. A warehouse or small factory would be a typical property for the REIT.

stag stock

Source: Shutterstock

STAG has enjoyed explosive growth since it went public in 2011. And unlike a glitzy hotel or office building, STAG’s gritty industrial properties don’t require a lot in terms of maintenance and upkeep.

At current prices, STAG yields a little below 5%, which is a respectable yield for a REIT these days.

If you don’t need the dividend for current living expenses, instruct your broker to reinvest the dividends. A few years from now, you’ll have a much larger share count … and a much larger monthly dividend.

LTC Properties (LTC)

Dividend Yield: 4.82%

Type: Healthcare REIT

Among monthly dividend stocks, few have better demographic prospects than health and senior-living REIT LTC Properties Inc (NYSE:LTC).

Source: Shutterstock

In case you couldn’t immediately figure out what LTC does, take a good look at its stock ticker symbol. “LTC” is short for “long-term care,” and that’s exactly what its tenants provide. Substantially the entire 200-plus-property portfolio is invested in skilled nursing and assisted-living facilities spanning 30 states.

Health and senior living aren’t exactly the most exciting markets, but they have stable and growing demand due to the aging of the baby boomers. Over 10,000 boomers turn 65 every single day, and this generation will need more and more health services with each passing day. So, demographic trends are definitely on LTC’s side.

LTC sports a dividend yield approaching 5%. And while that’s not mouthwateringly high, it’s not bad considering the low yields available in the bond market.

LTC is far from exciting, in fact, it’s pretty boring. But boring is just fine in a portfolio of monthly dividend stocks.

EPR Properties (EPR)

Dividend Yield: 5.72%

Type: Commercial REIT

This list is getting a little heavy in REITs, but I’d like to add one more to our list of monthly dividend stocks — alternative retail REIT EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR). As with LTC and STAG, EPR’s name is an acronym that stands for “Entertainment Properties.”

Source: Shutterstock

EPR specializes in quirky, nontraditional assets, including properties like golf driving ranges, movie theaters, water parks, ski parks and private schools. But it is this quirkiness is that makes EPR so attractive.

Think about it. You have to have specialized knowledge to successfully invest in these sorts of properties, and very few managers have it. This gives EPR a competitive advantage and allows it to grab higher yields than it would normally find in more traditional properties.

But at the same time, the strangeness of the portfolio also tends to be a turn-off to a lot of money managers accustomed to analyzing apartment or office REITs. This has a way of depressing the share price and giving us an attractive entry point.

In addition to its high yield, EPR has value as a portfolio diversifier. The prices of driving ranges or movie theaters are not tightly correlated to those of apartments or office buildings.

Stag Industrial (STAG)

Dividend Yield: 4.53%

Type: Industrial REIT

Stag Industrial (NYSE:STAG) is a small-cap REIT that I have had in my portfolio for several years, but it’s a REIT that most investors have never heard of. “STAG” stands for “single tenant acquisition group,” and that pretty well sums up its business model. STAG acquires single-tenant properties in the industrial and light manufacturing space. A warehouse or small factory would be a typical property for the REIT.

stag stock

Source: Shutterstock

STAG has enjoyed explosive growth since it went public in 2011. And unlike a glitzy hotel or office building, STAG’s gritty industrial properties don’t require a lot in terms of maintenance and upkeep.

At current prices, STAG yields a little below 5%, which is a respectable yield for a REIT these days.

If you don’t need the dividend for current living expenses, instruct your broker to reinvest the dividends. A few years from now, you’ll have a much larger share count … and a much larger monthly dividend.

LTC Properties (LTC)

Dividend Yield: 4.82%

Type: Healthcare REIT

Among monthly dividend stocks, few have better demographic prospects than health and senior-living REIT LTC Properties Inc (NYSE:LTC).

Source: Shutterstock

In case you couldn’t immediately figure out what LTC does, take a good look at its stock ticker symbol. “LTC” is short for “long-term care,” and that’s exactly what its tenants provide. Substantially the entire 200-plus-property portfolio is invested in skilled nursing and assisted-living facilities spanning 30 states.

Health and senior living aren’t exactly the most exciting markets, but they have stable and growing demand due to the aging of the baby boomers. Over 10,000 boomers turn 65 every single day, and this generation will need more and more health services with each passing day. So, demographic trends are definitely on LTC’s side.

LTC sports a dividend yield approaching 5%. And while that’s not mouthwateringly high, it’s not bad considering the low yields available in the bond market.

LTC is far from exciting, in fact, it’s pretty boring. But boring is just fine in a portfolio of monthly dividend stocks.

EPR Properties (EPR)

Dividend Yield: 5.72%

Type: Commercial REIT

This list is getting a little heavy in REITs, but I’d like to add one more to our list of monthly dividend stocks — alternative retail REIT EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR). As with LTC and STAG, EPR’s name is an acronym that stands for “Entertainment Properties.”

Source: Shutterstock

EPR specializes in quirky, nontraditional assets, including properties like golf driving ranges, movie theaters, water parks, ski parks and private schools. But it is this quirkiness is that makes EPR so attractive.

Think about it. You have to have specialized knowledge to successfully invest in these sorts of properties, and very few managers have it. This gives EPR a competitive advantage and allows it to grab higher yields than it would normally find in more traditional properties.

But at the same time, the strangeness of the portfolio also tends to be a turn-off to a lot of money managers accustomed to analyzing apartment or office REITs. This has a way of depressing the share price and giving us an attractive entry point.

In addition to its high yield, EPR has value as a portfolio diversifier. The prices of driving ranges or movie theaters are not tightly correlated to those of apartments or office buildings.

Stag Industrial (STAG)

Dividend Yield: 4.53%

Type: Industrial REIT

Stag Industrial (NYSE:STAG) is a small-cap REIT that I have had in my portfolio for several years, but it’s a REIT that most investors have never heard of. “STAG” stands for “single tenant acquisition group,” and that pretty well sums up its business model. STAG acquires single-tenant properties in the industrial and light manufacturing space. A warehouse or small factory would be a typical property for the REIT.

stag stock

Source: Shutterstock

STAG has enjoyed explosive growth since it went public in 2011. And unlike a glitzy hotel or office building, STAG’s gritty industrial properties don’t require a lot in terms of maintenance and upkeep.

At current prices, STAG yields a little below 5%, which is a respectable yield for a REIT these days.

If you don’t need the dividend for current living expenses, instruct your broker to reinvest the dividends. A few years from now, you’ll have a much larger share count … and a much larger monthly dividend.

LTC Properties (LTC)

Dividend Yield: 4.82%

Type: Healthcare REIT

Among monthly dividend stocks, few have better demographic prospects than health and senior-living REIT LTC Properties Inc (NYSE:LTC).

Source: Shutterstock

In case you couldn’t immediately figure out what LTC does, take a good look at its stock ticker symbol. “LTC” is short for “long-term care,” and that’s exactly what its tenants provide. Substantially the entire 200-plus-property portfolio is invested in skilled nursing and assisted-living facilities spanning 30 states.

Health and senior living aren’t exactly the most exciting markets, but they have stable and growing demand due to the aging of the baby boomers. Over 10,000 boomers turn 65 every single day, and this generation will need more and more health services with each passing day. So, demographic trends are definitely on LTC’s side.

LTC sports a dividend yield approaching 5%. And while that’s not mouthwateringly high, it’s not bad considering the low yields available in the bond market.

LTC is far from exciting, in fact, it’s pretty boring. But boring is just fine in a portfolio of monthly dividend stocks.

EPR Properties (EPR)

Dividend Yield: 5.72%

Type: Commercial REIT

This list is getting a little heavy in REITs, but I’d like to add one more to our list of monthly dividend stocks — alternative retail REIT EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR). As with LTC and STAG, EPR’s name is an acronym that stands for “Entertainment Properties.”

Source: Shutterstock

EPR specializes in quirky, nontraditional assets, including properties like golf driving ranges, movie theaters, water parks, ski parks and private schools. But it is this quirkiness is that makes EPR so attractive.

Think about it. You have to have specialized knowledge to successfully invest in these sorts of properties, and very few managers have it. This gives EPR a competitive advantage and allows it to grab higher yields than it would normally find in more traditional properties.

But at the same time, the strangeness of the portfolio also tends to be a turn-off to a lot of money managers accustomed to analyzing apartment or office REITs. This has a way of depressing the share price and giving us an attractive entry point.

In addition to its high yield, EPR has value as a portfolio diversifier. The prices of driving ranges or movie theaters are not tightly correlated to those of apartments or office buildings.