With market volatility wreaking havoc on your portfolio, you can always protect it with high-yielding REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts). REITs are a way for retail investors like you and me to get exposure to real estate without having to become a landlord and all that comes with that.
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With REITs, it’s all about the dividend. By law, a REIT is required to pay out a significant percentage of their earnings (typically around 90%) as dividends. That makes these a prime target for income-oriented investors.
That brings up another benefit of REITs, many come with high dividend yields. After all, you’re just not going to make the money you want in today’s low-yielding savings accounts. You’re lucky if you earn 0.40% these days. And many of these REITs have yields above that of long-dated Treasury bills, so you get both yield and liquidity.
If it’s dependable income you’re after, one of the best things you can do is invest in high-yield REITs. Here are three you may want to consider.
REITs to Buy: Realty Income
Realty Income (NYSE: O), or The Monthly Dividend Company, pays a monthly dividend.
At the moment, with a yield of 5.64%, it just declared its 664th consecutive monthly dividend of $0.2695 per share, or an annualized amount of $3.234 per share, is payable on November 14, 2025 to stockholders of record as of October 31, 2025.
Making it even more attractive, Realty income is one of the biggest lease real estate investment trusts (REITs) you can buy. It also owns more than 15,600 properties, with a vast majority of that in the retail sector. In fact, some of its biggest tenants include 7-Eleven, Dollar General, Walgreen’s, Wynn Resorts, FedEx, BJ’s Wholesale Club, CVS, and Tractor Supply.
O stock is up about 6.3% in 2025, which is in line with its total return over the last three years. It also reflects the slowdown in the housing market. But you’re buying this stock for future growth. And at 13x forward earnings and with about 3.3% expected earnings growth, Realty Income may be ready to outperform in a rate-cutting environment.
REITs to Buy: Agree Realty
With a yield of 4.26%, Agree Realty (NYSE: ADC) is a net lease REIT with a strong focus on retail. ADC just declared a monthly dividend of $0.262 per share, or an annualized dividend amount of $3.144 per share. The dividend is payable November 14, 2025, to stockholders of record at the close of business on October 31, 2025.
Some of its top clients include Tractor Supply, TJX Companies, Walgreen’s, Walmart, Dollar General, Best Buy, CVS, Hobby Lobby, and The Home Depot to name a few.
Like Realty Income, ADC stock is only up about 3.5% in 2025. However, the stock also has an attractive forward P/E ratio of around 17x and analysts project around 4% earnings growth in the next 12 months.
REITs to Buy: EPR Properties
There’s also EPR Properties (NYSE: EPR), which yields 6.91% and invests in amusement parks, movie theaters, ski resorts, and other entertainment properties. That’s a reason why EPR stock is up about 15% in 2025. The experiential economy has still been lifting the broader economy. Lower interest rates may allow that trend to continue into 2026.
EPR Properties just declared a monthly cash dividend of $0.295 per share, which is payable October 15, 2025, to shareholders of record on September 30, 2025. This dividend represents an annualized dividend of $3.54 per common share.
EPR stock has an attractive forward P/E of around 10x earnings and analysts forecast about 2.3% earnings growth in the next 12 months.
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