Other equity REITs posting double-digit annual returns were the specialty segment, up 19.95%; freestanding retail, up 17.02%; manufactured homes, up 14.15%; office, up 13.17%; diversified, up 10.27%; and infrastructure, up 10.04%. Among mortgage REITs, the home financing segment outperformed the Mortgage REITs Index overall with a 25.87% total return for the year. The annual total return for the commercial financing segment was 14.33%.

One area in which REITs consistently outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year was dividend yields. The All REITs Index posted a dividend yield of 4.32% as of Dec. 31, the yield of the All Equity REITs Index was 3.96% and that of the Mortgage REITs Index was 10.6%. All bested the S&P 500's dividend yield for the year, 2.1%.

WASHINGTON, DC—The total return of the US equity REIT market fell short of the S&P 500's annual gain over the past year, while mortgage REITs nearly doubled the total return of the broader equity market, NAREIT said Monday. More recently, equity REITs pushed ahead of the S&P 500. “Equity REITs delivered strong results in the first half of 2016, but faced headwinds, in part from investor concerns about rising interest rates, in the second half,” says Steven A. Wechsler, NAREIT's president and CEO.

For the year that ended Dec. 31, the FTSE NAREIT All Equity REITs Index had an 8.63% total return, compared with the S&P 500's 11.96%. The FTSE NAREIT Mortgage REITs Index posted an annual return of 22.85% for the same time period, while the All REITS index was up 9.28% for the year.

Over the past month, equity REIT total returns accelerated ahead of the broader equity market. The All Equity REITs Index was up 4.46% compared to the S&P 500's gain of 1.98% for December. The All REITs Index was up 4.20% for December, while the Mortgage REITs Index lagged the S&P with a monthly gain of 0.65%.

Ten of the equity REIT market segments posted double-digit total returns for '16, led by industrial with a 30.72% return. Single-family homes were up by 26.65%, while data centers weren't far behind at 26.41%. Also coming in at greater than 20% was the lodging/resorts sector, with a 24.34% total return for the year.

Other equity REITs posting double-digit annual returns were the specialty segment, up 19.95%; freestanding retail, up 17.02%; manufactured homes, up 14.15%; office, up 13.17%; diversified, up 10.27%; and infrastructure, up 10.04%. Among mortgage REITs, the home financing segment outperformed the Mortgage REITs Index overall with a 25.87% total return for the year. The annual total return for the commercial financing segment was 14.33%.

One area in which REITs consistently outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year was dividend yields. The All REITs Index posted a dividend yield of 4.32% as of Dec. 31, the yield of the All Equity REITs Index was 3.96% and that of the Mortgage REITs Index was 10.6%. All bested the S&P 500's dividend yield for the year, 2.1%.