Healthcare REITs led the charge during the first two months of this year, hoping for a repeat of their stellar 2012 performance when they posted a total return of 20.4 percent.

Through the first two months of the year, healthcare was the leading property type among REITs, rising by 9.6 percent. The sector was closely followed by industrial and office REITs, rising 7.9 percent and 6.5 percent, respectively.

Though retail REITs posted a relatively modest 4.8 percent increase during the period, the freestanding retail subgroup led all categories with a 13.7 percent rise.

“The reason why freestanding properties stood out so much was because there is a lot more secondary-quality and secondary-located assets in those companies compared to the rest of the NAREIT benchmark, and they have typically a lower growth profile,” says Chip McKin