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Rethinking Office REITs: Risk and Return after COVID

D.K. Malhotra

The Journal of Wealth Management2026https://doi.org/10.3905/jwm.2026.002article
AJG 1ABDC B
Weight
0.50

What the paper says

This study evaluates the performance of office real estate investment trusts (REITs) based on monthly returns from January 2010 to December 2024, with a particular emphasis on the post-COVID-19 period. Once considered reliable components of diversified portfolios, office REITs have faced growing structural headwinds due to remote work trends, declining occupancy rates, and weakening lease fundamentals. Using Sharpe, Sortino, and Omega ratios, the author finds that office REITs have consistently underperformed both equity and broader REIT benchmarks, especially since 2020. Across all models, office REITs produced persistent and statistically significant negative alpha, indicating underperformance not explained by standard risk factors. In addition, downside risk metrics such as Value at Risk and conditional value at risk highlight the sector’s heightened exposure to extreme losses. This article underscores the need for reassessment of office-specific real estate exposure amid shifting economic and workplace dynamics.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3905/jwm.2026.002

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@article{d.k.2026,
  title        = {{Rethinking Office REITs: Risk and Return after COVID}},
  author       = {D.K. Malhotra},
  journal      = {The Journal of Wealth Management},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3905/jwm.2026.002},
}

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.