U.S. REITs fell 2.5 percent in March, according to the FTSE Nareit Equity REITs Index, significantly underperforming the broader equities market amid concerns about rising interest rates and an unsettled banking sector. By comparison, the S&P 500 Index rose 3.5 percent in March. REITs also declined in February, but on a year-to-date basis, REITs are still in the black, with a first-quarter total return of 2.7 percent.
The worst performance was recorded by the office sector, which fell 15.3 percent in March. Year-to-date, office REITs are down 15.9 percent. Office valuations are collapsing as the future of the sector remains uncertain. One of the challenges facing the office sector is relatively higher leverage than other property types, according to an alert from S&P Globa
