Are you looking for above-average investment income, but don't have a ton of idle cash to work with? It's a tall order to be sure. See, investing is ultimately about trade-offs. Reliable dividend-paying stocks generally don't sport sky-high yields, for instance, just as growth stocks generally don't pay significant dividends.

If you look far off the beaten path, though, you'll find sizable, reliable dividend yields you can count on.

Take AGNC Investment (NASDAQ: AGNC) as an example. This mortgage REIT (real estate investment trust) is yielding an incredible 16.1% right now. A mere $6,500 investment in this ticker would generate $1,000 worth of annual dividend income, presuming the dividend payments that it's dished out for nearly four straight years will persist into the future. Better still, these dividends are paid out on a monthly rather than a quarterly basis. That's convenient if your plan is to use this income to help pay your monthly bills.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com