According to the latest Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) Weekly economic report, its economists have once again reiterated their belief that the cash rate will be held firmly at the record low of 1.5% through to 2021.
As a result, I suspect it could be many years before the interest rates on savings accounts and term deposits return to normal levels again.
Because of this, I think investors should consider putting their money to work in the share market due to the vastly superior yields that are on offer.
Three income shares that I would invest in this week are listed below:
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX: ANZ)
I think that the big four banks are all in the buy zone right now, but ANZ is my favourite due to the low multiples its shares trade on, its overweight exposure to a solid performing business lending market, and its generous dividend yield. At present the banking giant's shares offer investors a trailing fully franked 6% dividend yield, which is materially better than anything you would get from one of its high interest savings accounts.
National Storage REIT (ASX: NSR)
National Storage is a real estate investment trust which I think could be a great option for income investors. It provides self-storage solutions through its network of 127 storage centres across Australia and New Zealand. I've been impressed at the way the company has been improving its key metrics over the last few years and expect more of the same in the future thanks to increasing demand for its services. In addition to this, the company has the opportunity to accelerate its growth through acquisitions and has a hefty cash balance to fund this. At present its units provide a trailing 5% distribution yield.
Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)
Rural Funds is a real estate property trust which owns a diversified portfolio of Australian agricultural assets. The trust's investment objective is to generate a stable income stream derived from leasing its assets to high quality tenants and capital growth through any appreciation in the value of those assets. Due to having rental indexation built into the majority of its tenancy agreements, I believe Rural Funds is well-positioned to grow its distribution at a solid rate over the coming years. Rural Funds' units currently offer a trailing 4.7% yield.
