Board REITs to ride office real estate recovery, absorption hits 8-qtr high

A severe third wave of the pandemic could reverse the ongoing upswing in REIT prices

The office real estate market is recovering from the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. According to JLL’s office market update released this week, net absorption of office space was 11.56 million square feet in the October-December quarter of 2021, the highest in the past eight quarters and up 86 per cent quarter-on-quarter. This augurs well for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), which invest in commercial real estate (primarily office space).  

A REIT collects money from investors and invests it in a portfolio of real estate assets that yield rental income. Three REITs are listed on the exchanges currently: Embassy