The REIT sector is seeing more green shoots in recent months as expectations of an interest rate cut rise.
Many REIT managers will be relieved to know that finance costs should ease once interest rates start to decline.
Distributions should also start to recover as interest costs moderate over time.
Meanwhile, optimism is pushing the unit prices of several REITs to new 52-week highs.
Here are five that recently hit a high, and income investors may want to assess if this momentum can carry on.
Suntec REIT (SGX: T82U)
Suntec REIT is a retail and commercial REIT that owns stakes in properties across Singapore, the UK, and Australia.
Some of these assets include Suntec City Mall, Suntec City Convention Centre, One Raffles Quay, 55 Currie Street and The Minster Building.
The REIT’s unit price has risen 8.3% year-to-date (YTD) and recently hit its 52-week high of S$1.38.
For the first half of 2025 (1H 2025), Suntec REIT saw gross revenue rise 3.3% year on year to S$234.5 million.
Net property income (NPI) improved by 5.6% year on year to S$159.5 million.
Distribution per unit (DPU) increased by 3.7% year on year to S$0.03155.
Committed occupancy for its Singapore portfolio was very high at 99% for the office division and 98% for the retail division.
Rent reversion was also strongly positive at 10% and 17.2% for office and retail, respectively.
Over in Australia, committed occupancy dipped slightly from 89.1% to 88.6% but the properties there enjoyed a positive rental reversion of 22.9%.
Suntec REIT’s aggregate leverage stood at 41.1% with an all-in financing cost of 3.82%, lower than the gearing of 42.4% and financing cost of 4.06% just six months ago.
Keppel REIT (SGX: K71U)
Keppel REIT is an office REIT with a portfolio value of over S$9 billion, comprising 13 properties spread across Singapore (4) , Japan (1), South Korea (1), and Australia (7).
The office REIT’s unit price climbed 12.1% YTD and recently hit a 52-week high of S$1.00.
Total property income for 1H 2025 rose 9.1% year on year to S$136.5 million.
NPI improved by 11.8% year on year to S$108.3 million.
However, a 12.1% year-on-year jump in borrowing costs caused distributable income to fall by 1.4% year on year to S$95.5 million.
DPU, in turn, fell by 2.9% year on year to S$0.0272.
Despite the DPU decline, Keppel REIT reported a high committed occupancy of 95.9% and the portfolio also enjoyed a strong positive rental reversion of 12.3%.
The office REIT also enjoyed a well-staggered lease expiry profile with just 2.8% of leases expiring for the remainder of 2025.
Starhill Global REIT (SGX: P40U)
Starhill Global REIT, or SGREIT, is an office and retail REIT with a portfolio of nine properties in Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, Japan, and China.
The total value of these properties is around S$2.8 billion as of 30 June 2025.
SGREIT’s unit price rose 9.8% YTD and hit its 52-week high of S$0.56 recently.
The REIT reported a commendable set of earnings for fiscal 2025 (FY2025) ending 30 June 2025.
Gross revenue inched up 1.2% year on year to S$192.1 million, while NPI crept up 0.8% year on year to S$150.2 million.
DPU edged up 0.6% year on year to S$0.0365.
The portfolio’s committed occupancy stood at 94.6%, with a long portfolio weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of 7.2 years.
Asset enhancement works are planned for Wisma Atria’s taxi stand as part of the mall’s rejuvenation efforts.
The S$800,000 enhancement will create an additional tenancy shopfront while adding safety features and improved disability access, and work will commence in the first quarter of fiscal 2026.
Frasers Centrepoint Trust (SGX: J69U)
Frasers Centrepoint Trust, or FCT, is a retail REIT with a portfolio of nine suburban malls and an office building, all located in Singapore.
The total assets under management (AUM) of the portfolio stood at around S$7.1 billion as of 30 June 2025.
FCT’s unit price has climbed 11.3% YTD and recently hit its 52-week high of S$2.41.
The retail REIT released an encouraging business update for the third quarter of fiscal 2025 (3Q FY2025) ending 30 June 2025.
The retail portfolio’s committed occupancy stood high at 99.9% while shopper traffic and tenant sales rose 2.1% and 4.4%, respectively, for the quarter.
FCT also completed the acquisition of Northpoint City South Wing, paving the way for multiple value creation opportunities through asset enhancement and tenant mix strategies.
The REIT’s Hougang Mall asset enhancement initiative (AEI) has commenced, with the asset achieving around 74% leasing pre-commitment.
This AEI is expected to be completed by September 2026.
Keppel DC REIT (SGX: AJBU)
Keppel DC REIT is a data centre REIT with a portfolio of 24 data centres across 10 countries.
The REIT has a total AUM of around S$5 billion as of 30 June 2025.
YTD, the data centre REIT’s unit price has risen 6.3%, and recently hit its 52-week high of S$2.40.
Gross revenue for 1H 2025 surged 34.4% year on year to S$211.3 million, while NPI shot up 37.8% year on year to S$182.8 million.
DPU increased by 12.8% year on year to S$0.05133.
The portfolio reported a high portfolio rental reversion of around 51% for 1H 2025.
WALE by rental income also increased slightly from 4.4 years to 4.7 years.
The data centre REIT’s portfolio occupancy stood high at 95.8% and with AI causing a surge in demand for data centres, the REIT’s outlook is bright as demand for its properties should increase over time.
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Disclosure: Royston Yang owns shares of Suntec REIT and Keppel DC REIT.
