Have you ever made an amazing discovery that happened to be right in front of you the entire time? For example, after hours of racking your brain, you find a forgotten business card in your rolodex of someone who is the perfect person to assist with a project. It could even be something as simple as making the connection of how two people know each other at a party.

Whatever the reason, we make simple yet important discoveries every day with the information we have at hand, probably sitting in front of us the entire time. It is termed what scientists call the “aha” moment.

Similarly, NAREIT made a connection with data that has been developing right in front of our eyes for the past 15 years with total REIT returns and data from the S&P 500 index. We found that REIT investment performance is quite unlike that of any other stock sector or investment style. It is more of an “aha” moment for investors—REITs outperform in the long-term investment proposition.

During the more than 15 years since the modern REIT era, REIT total returns have averaged approximately 15.6 percent per year, approximately 45 percent higher than the S&P 500. To read more on this discovery, turn to Shining Stars.

Also in this Issue

Two years ago, Portfolio ran an article on how REITs were Dividend Kings. We revisit this article and pose the question, do REITs still rule? Turn to Beyond the Yield to read how the REIT investment proposition has gained awareness and acceptance in recent years, and how they will continue to be a strong and reliable source of income from their dividend yield.

Also, corporate governance continues to be a topic of interest among institutional investors and the media. Once again, the numbers from Institutional Shareholder Services confirm that REITs operate at or above the level of governance quality seen in other industries. For the third year in a row, data shows that the real estate industry ranked second only to the utilities industry in the ISS Corporate Governance Quotient (CGQ) rankings. To read more on the details on the strengths and weaknesses of the real estate industry, turn to Investor Insights.

Erin Corcoran
Managing Editor