REITs as a whole offered solid returns during 2017, and mortgage REITs topped the category with a nearly 20 percent return, according to Nareit, a global trade organization for REITs and listed real estate companies. Still, the returns were weaker than the S&P 500’s.

Mortgage REITs led the performance of the overall U.S. REIT market last year; the FTSE Nareit Mortgage REITs Index delivered a 19.79 percent total return for the year, despite a negative 0.21 percent total return for the fourth quarter.

The FTSE Nareit All Equity REITs Index returned 8.67 percent for 2017, with a 2.48 percent gain for the fourth quarter, and the FTSE Nareit All REITs Index, which contains both equity and mortgage REITs, enjoyed a total return of 9.27 percent for the year with a 2.37 percent gain for the fourth quarter. This compares to the S&P 500’s total return of 21.83 percent for the year and gain of 6.64 percent in the fourth quarter.

“The performance of the total U.S. REIT market last year is representative of the market’s long-term performance,” said Nareit president and CEO Steven A. Wechsler in a statement.

“Since the beginning of 1972, when the index was created, its average annual return has been 9.72 percent. Over the longer term, REITs have been a remarkably consistent investment, delivering solid long-term performance and consistent income for their shareholders,” he added.

At the same time, nearly half of all equity REIT market segments had double-digit total returns in 2017. The infrastructure sector, including cell phone tower REITs, led the equity REIT market’s performance with a 35.38 percent total return for the year. Data centers delivered a 28.43 percent return for the year, followed by manufactured home communities with a 21.93 percent gain.

Among mortgage REITs, home financing REITs delivered a 23.33 percent total return for 2017, and commercial financing REITs gained 9.07 percent.

For income investors, REITs offered strong dividend yields. The home financing segment of the FTSE Nareit Mortgage REITs Index provided a dividend yield of 10.57 percent and the commercial financing segment offered a yield of 7.68 percent.

In comparison, the dividend yield of the S&P 500 at year’s end was 1.86 percent.

REITs raised a record $92.14 billion in equity and debt in the public capital markets last year, 20 percent more than the $76.96 billion raised in 2013, the industry’s next most active year for capital raising.