REZ ETF Overview: Returns, Expense Ratio, Holdings, and Alternative ETFs
A US REIT ETF focused on residential, healthcare, and self-storage sectors, suitable for investors seeking to avoid commercial real estate risk.
SubscribeWhat is this ETF?
It tracks the FTSE Nareit All Residential Capped Index, investing in US REITs that operate apartments, student housing, hospitals, nursing facilities, and self-storage properties. It offers differentiated exposure by excluding traditional office or mall REITs.
It is well-suited for income investors seeking lower volatility than broad real estate indices, while expecting long-term benefits from an aging population and growing housing demand.
This passive (index-tracking) ETF was launched by iShares (BlackRock) in 2007.
How does it invest?
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Benchmark Index | FTSE Nareit All Residential Capped Index |
| Management Style | Passive (index-tracking) |
| Sector Allocation | Focused on residential, healthcare, and self-storage |
| Dividend Frequency | Monthly |
| Total Expense Ratio | 0.48% |
It uses a market-cap weighting approach to concentrate on specific core US real estate sectors, while applying caps to prevent any single holding from becoming overweight. This allows the fund to steer clear of uncertainty in the commercial office market.
- Excludes exposure to office, retail, and industrial real estate
- Concentrates on cyclical-defensive residential and healthcare sectors
Size and Cost
Assets under management (AUM) stand at $781.9M, with a total expense ratio of 0.48% annually.
The fee is somewhat higher than that of the broad real estate ETF VNQ, but it offers differentiated value by building a portfolio that is not sensitive to the commercial real estate crisis.
Performance and Flows
1-Year Price Performance
Dividend & Yield
52-Week Price RangeRental income from residential and healthcare properties has remained solid through changing rate environments, supporting relatively favorable price action versus traditional office REITs.
Whenever concerns over a commercial real estate crisis emerge, capital tends to flow into alternative investment venues such as this, and long-term income funds seeking stable dividend returns have held steady positions.
Strengths and Weaknesses
It pursues stable dividends and defensive performance through concentrated exposure to specific real estate sectors, but the high sector concentration warrants caution.
💪 Key Strengths
⚠️ Risks to Watch
VNQ, SCHH, and XLRE shown in the table are low-cost core ETFs covering the broader US real estate market. They carry meaningful office and retail exposure that REZ excludes, so their portfolio character is fundamentally different. If you want even greater focus on residential, consider SRVR or the data center-oriented SRVR, while investors prioritizing dividend growth could pair it with dividend-growth names like VIG.
Peer Comparison ETFs| Ticker | Name | Price | Change | AUM | Total Expense Ratio | Dividend Yield | 1Y |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 VNQ | Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF | $92.28 | +1.7% | $36.4B | 0.13% | 3.69% | +0.2% |
 SCHH | Schwab U.S. REIT ETF | $22.62 | +1.7% | $10.7B | 0.07% | 3% | +3.9% |
 XLRE | State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF | $42.38 | +1.7% | $7.8B | 0.08% | 3.4% | -0.2% |
 USRT | iShares Core U.S. REIT ETF | $62.71 | +1.9% | $4.1B | 0.08% | 2.8% | +5.8% |
 IYR | iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF | $98.00 | +1.8% | $3.9B | 0.37% | 2.43% | +0.0% |
Top Holdings| Ticker | Name | Weight | Price | Change | Market Cap | P/E | Dividend Yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WELL | Welltower Inc | 0.47% | $238.08 | +2.0% | $171.6B | - | 1.32% |
| PSA | Public Storage | 0.18% | $301.76 | +2.0% | $56.4B | 28.8 | 3.99% |
| VTR | Ventas Inc | 0.15% | $86.49 | +2.3% | $45.4B | 158.6 | 2.4% |
| EXR | Extra Space Storage Inc | 0.11% | $141.05 | +2.1% | $31.1B | 31.6 | 4.62% |
Investor Checklist
Before deciding to invest in the REZ ETF, closely monitor the current sector divergence within the US real estate market and the rate trajectory shaped by the Fed's monetary policy.
| Checkpoint | What to Confirm | Current Status |
|---|---|---|
| 💵 Expense ratio | Whether the cost level is appropriate for a specialized ETF | Maintained |
| 📊 Dividend yield | Stability of monthly distributions and rent trends by sector | Stable |
| 📉 Interest rate environment | Impact of the Fed's rate policy on real estate funding costs | Needs monitoring |
Profitability could deteriorate if interest rates spike sharply or if residential real estate regulation tightens. Additionally, the heavy weighting in certain large REITs leaves the fund exposed to single-company risk.
It is an excellent alternative for investors who want US real estate exposure but are uneasy about office and retail sectors. It works well as a tool to strengthen portfolio defensiveness through essential assets like housing and healthcare.
SubscribeDisclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. All investment responsibility lies with the investor.
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