For a lot of Canadians, the thought of incomes month-to-month rental earnings is interesting — till the realities set in. Tenants, upkeep, financing stress, and unpredictable vacancies can flip a “passive” funding right into a second job. 

Fortuitously, there’s a neater approach to flip hire into dependable cheques: actual property funding trusts (REITs). These publicly traded corporations let buyers earn month-to-month earnings from diversified property portfolios with out ever fixing a leaky faucet.

As we head into 2026, just a few Canadian REITs stand out for his or her stability, yield, and long-term earnings potential. Listed here are three of essentially the most compelling choices.

Selection Properties REIT: Stability you may money in on

Among the many three REITs highlighted, Selection Properties REIT (TSX:CHP.UN) has been the clear winner in 2025, rising 12% regardless of market volatility. 

The key to its resilience lies in its distinctly defensive portfolio: 83% of its properties serve necessity-based retail, anchored by its strategic partnership with Loblaw. 

As Canada’s largest grocery and pharmacy chain, Loblaw alone accounts for almost 58% of Selection Properties’s income, offering a basis of reliable money move that few REITs can match.

Selection operates over 700 properties, diversified throughout retail, industrial, and mixed-use areas. Whether or not measured by property rely, sq. footage, or honest worth, retail and industrial property dominate the portfolio — exactly the sectors that are inclined to carry out nicely in unsure markets.

With a formidable 98% occupancy fee, Selection Properties demonstrates constant tenant demand. Items presently yield about 5.1%, supported by a strong weighted common lease time period of 5.9 years, which helps lock in steady income. 

Traders additionally profit from progress potential, with 68.1 million sq. toes presently in operation and a considerable 18-million-square-foot growth pipeline that may drive future money move.

Granite REIT: Industrial powerhouse with rising payouts

In second place, however not far behind in efficiency, is Granite REIT (TSX:GRT.UN) — an industrial REIT that has gained greater than 10% yr thus far. Granite REIT owns 134 income-producing properties together with six growth tasks, sustaining a powerful 97.1% dedicated occupancy fee.

What units Granite aside is its earnings progress report. The REIT has elevated its money distribution for roughly 15 consecutive years, a uncommon achievement within the Canadian REIT area. Its five-year distribution progress fee sits at 3.4%, reflecting disciplined administration and dependable tenant demand throughout its e-commerce, logistics, and manufacturing properties.

Granite REIT items commerce close to $77, providing a 4.4% yield. Analysts see the items as undervalued, with a consensus value goal that means an 18% low cost — translating to roughly 22% upside potential for affected person earnings buyers.

CAPREIT: A contrarian alternative in residential housing?

The laggard of the group has been Canadian Residence Properties REIT (TSX:CAR.UN), down roughly 8% yr thus far. The underperformance largely stems from Ontario’s rent-control surroundings, which impacts about 41% of its portfolio and has stored progress muted in comparison with different residential markets.

But beneath the headline softness, CAPREIT’s operations stay resilient. Yr thus far, its Canadian residential portfolio maintained a powerful 97.8% occupancy fee, whereas common month-to-month rents rose 4.4% to $1,709 by the top of the third quarter. Administration additionally seems assured within the REIT’s long-term worth: it repurchased $200 million price of items at a median value of $43.

With items buying and selling round $39 and yielding 3.9%, analysts see a 19% low cost to honest worth — implying 23% upside for buyers prepared to embrace a contrarian residential play in 2025.

Investor takeaway

Canadian buyers in search of hands-free month-to-month earnings can flip to REITs as a passive various to managing rental properties. 

Going into 2026, three names stand out, providing resilience and yield: 

• Selection Properties REIT, buoyed by necessity-based retail and a powerful partnership with Loblaw; 
• Granite REIT, an industrial powerhouse with a protracted observe report of distribution progress; and 
• CAPREIT, a residential REIT going through short-term strain however providing enticing worth and long-term upside. 

Collectively, they symbolize a few of the most dependable methods to show hire into regular month-to-month cheques with out the complications of being a landlord.