At a glance
- The three major listed REIT benchmarks Stanger tracks averaged a 6.2% decline.
- The Stanger Composite NAV REIT Total Return Index, which includes private placement NAV REITs, gained 1.8% for an eleventh straight positive quarter.
- For advisors, the 7.8 percentage-point gap between the public NAV REIT index and the listed benchmark average is an appraisal-versus-market comparison, not a like-for-like trading return.
The Stanger Public NAV REIT Total Return Index rose 1.6% in the third quarter, its seventh consecutive quarterly gain, according to Robert A. Stanger & Company's Q3 2026 Non-Listed REIT edition of The Stanger Report. The three major listed REIT benchmarks Stanger tracks averaged a 6.2% decline.
The Stanger Composite NAV REIT Total Return Index, which includes private placement NAV REITs, gained 1.8% for an eleventh straight positive quarter. The listed benchmark average had risen 11.5% in the second quarter, making the third quarter a 17.7 percentage-point swing. Stanger said the NAV REIT indices also beat the listed average over one and five years but trailed substantially over three, a result it linked to the timing of the 2023 market downturn.
For advisors, the 7.8 percentage-point gap between the public NAV REIT index and the listed benchmark average is an appraisal-versus-market comparison, not a like-for-like trading return. Stanger chairman and CEO Kevin T. Gannon said NAV REIT valuations are based on underlying private real estate values and operating fundamentals, while listed REIT prices move with daily swings in the broader stock market. A client holding both wrapper types in the same quarter had one sleeve marked at private property values and the other at daily trading prices, which changes the comparison in a performance review.
Year-to-date gross sales for publicly registered non-listed REITs reached $5.0 billion through September 2026, up 15.9% from $4.3 billion in the same period of 2025, Stanger reported. Trailing 12-month fundraising was $6.4 billion, up 9.4% year over year. Blackstone accounted for $3.1 billion of that total, or 48%.
On the credit side of the semi-liquid shelf, Stanger data previously showed credit interval fund repurchases absorbing 79% of gross sales. Credit tender-offer fund net sales fell 15% to $1.8 billion, as Private Wealth Daily reported.
NAV REITs gained in Q3 while listed REITs fell 6.2%
Q3 2026 total return by index, in percent
- Above zero
- Below zero
- Composite NAV REIT index+1.8%
- Public NAV REIT index+1.6%
- Listed REIT benchmark average−6.2%
Show as table
| Label | Value (%) |
|---|---|
| Public NAV REIT index | +1.6% |
| Composite NAV REIT index | +1.8% |
| Listed REIT benchmark average | −6.2% |
Reported by the Liquidity desk from Robert A. Stanger & Company, Q3 2026 Non-Listed REIT edition of The Stanger Report and Private Wealth Daily, Oct. 27, 2026. Published . Corrections