REIT Performance
With June's +5.86% average total return, the REIT sector saw monthly gains for just the 2nd time in 2020. Despite the strong June, REITs have endured an average loss of -23.88% over the first half of 2020. The REIT sector yet again underperformed the NASDAQ (+6%), but solidly outperformed both the S&P 500 (+1.84%) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (+1.69%) in June. The market cap weighted Vanguard Real Estate ETF (VNQ) badly underperformed the average REIT in June (+2.41% vs. +5.86%), but has suffered much smaller losses year-to-date (-13.9% vs. -23.88%).