Following the success of our Stockspot ETF Report, we road test the best Australian and global property ETFs across a range of different metrics, to provide our analysis on the most suitable choice for Australian investors.
Owning a property has long been referred to as the Australian Dream, but as house prices rocket, the barrier of entry to the property market rises, and possible CGT discount changes for investment properties, many are seeing property ETFs as an alternative way of getting a foothold on the property ladder.
Exchange traded funds (ETFs) provide a great avenue for investors to gain exposure to property, both Australian and global, by investing in real estate investment trusts (REITs).
REITs are an indirect way of owning property by investing in companies that own income-producing real estate across a range of sectors such as residential, commercial and industrial.
For example, they could own things like shopping centres (e.g. Westfield), office spaces (e.g. Dexus) and hotels (e.g. Marriott and Hilton).
Stockspot investors with portfolios over $20,000 can add a property and real estate theme to their investment portfolios.
Best Australian property ETF
There are three ETFs available for investors to gain exposure to Australian property after BetaShares Martin Currie Real Income Fund (Managed Fund) RINC was delisted:
- Vanguard Australian Property Securities Index ETF (VAP)
- VanEck Australian Property ETF (MVA)
- SPDR S&P/ASX 200 Listed Property Fund (SLF)
Size
The Vanguard Australian Property Securities Index ETF (VAP) is the largest Australian property ETF in the Australian market with over $3 billion in funds under management (FUM).
SLF, launched in 2002, is the oldest ETF in the group and currently has just under $545 million in FUM, shrinking from $559 million to $544 million in the final quarter of 2025. By comparison MVA, the second largest ETF of those compared, grew by just over $50 million between Q3 and Q4 2025, while VAP grew by almost $8 million over this same period..
Costs and slippage
SLF is the lowest cost in the group at 0.16%, followed by the Vanguard Australian Property Securities Index ETF (VAP) charging 0.23% in management fees per year while MVA is the most expensive, charging 0.35%.
The spreads on VAP are the tightest, at 0.07% whereas SLF has a spread of 0.19% making its cost of ownership 0.35%, which is less than MVA, which costs 0.35% in management fee alone (plus a buy/sell spread of 0.17%).
| ASX CODE | COST (MANAGEMENT FEE) | BUY/SELL SPREADS (SLIPPAGE) |
| VAP | 0.23% | 0.07% |
| MVA | 0.35% | 0.17% |
| SLF | 0.16% | 0.19% |
Liquidity
One of the key advantages of using an ETF to gain exposure to property is the ability to quickly buy and sell your investments.
You don’t have to wait weeks or months to finalise a property transaction or settlement, as ETFs trade freely on the share market every business day.
VAP is the most liquid Australian property ETF, trading $5.9 million in average daily volume, while MVA trades $2.3 million in average daily volume and SLF has lower trading volumes of $1.1 million.
Returns
Over the three and five year periods, VAP and SLF have delivered stronger returns thanks to their broad, diversified exposure. Larger property trusts and major banks held up better as interest rates rose, providing steadier income and more consistent performance.
However over the past 12 months, MVA has outperformed. MVAs greater concentration and rate-sensitive property exposure tends to move more sharply, so when rate pressures ease and sentiment improves, making it rebound faster than its peers.
| ASX CODE | 1 YEAR TOTAL RETURN | 3 YEAR TOTAL RETURN (P.A.) | 5 YEAR TOTAL RETURN (P.A.) |
| VAP | 7.9% | 14.2% | 8.5% |
| MVA | 22.3% | 13.5% | 8.2% |
| SLF | 8.2% | 14.6% | 8.5% |
Track record
SLF is the oldest ETF in the category, launching in 2002 and tracks the S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index.
VAP is the second oldest ETF in the category but tracks the broader S&P/ASX 300 A-REIT covering more companies in the Australian share market.
MVA tracks an index constructed by a related party of VanEck and is more concentrated, only holding 15 companies.
| ASX CODE | INDEX TRACKED | INDEX INCEPTION | ETF INCEPTION |
| VAP | S&P/ASX 300 A-REIT TR | June 2001 | October 2010 |
| MVA | MVIS Australia A-REITs GR AUD | December 2012 | October 2013 |
| SLF | S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT TR | June 2001 | February 2002 |
Stockspot’s verdict
Since we introduced Stockspot Themes in 2016, we’ve given clients the ability to add Australian property as a theme to their Stockspot portfolio. We prefer the Vanguard Australian Property Securities Index ETF (VAP) for this exposure.
VAP has the lowest cost, largest size and is the most liquid ETF in the Australian market. It’s also got a long history, solid returns and broader diversification, which, all combined, makes it our preferred choice.
Read more about Stockspot’s Property Theme bundle here
Best global property ETF
There are three ETFs available for Australian investors to gain exposure to global property:
- SPDR Dow Jones Global Real Estate ESG Fund (DJRE)
- VanEck Vectors FTSE International Property (Hedged) ETF (REIT)
- iShares Core FTSE Global Property Ex Australia (AUD Hedged) ETF (GLPR)
Plus two active funds within the market:
- Hejaz Property Fund Active ETF (HJZP)
- Resolution Capital Global Property Securities Fund – Active ETF (RCAP).
Size
DJRE has lost its first-mover advantage, having launched on the ASX in November 2013, it currently has almost $513 million in FUM, making it the smallest of the ETFs compared. REIT, which launched in March 2019, has become the largest global property ETF, having amassed $667 million. Despite its relative infancy, launching in May 2023, GLPR has already reached almost $550 million in FUM.
Costs and slippage
Both REIT and DJRE offer 0.20% as their annual management fee while GLPR has undercut at 0.15%.
REIT has the widest spread at 0.19% compared to DJRE at 0.18% and GLPR at 0.16%.
| ASX CODE | COST (Management Fee) | BUY/SELL SPREADS (SLIPPAGE) |
| DJRE | 0.20% | 0.18% |
| REIT | 0.20% | 0.19% |
| GLPR | 0.15% | 0.16% |
Liquidity
REIT has overtaken GLPR to become the most liquid of the global property ETFs trading almost $2.0 million vs GLPR that trades $1.3 million in daily value.
DJRE trades considerably less than its peers at almost $730,000 daily.
Returns
DJRE has outperformed REIT over the 3 and 5 year period, but has lagged over the past 12 months. REIT however has significantly outperformed DJRE over the one year period, returning 4.6% more. A big reason is currency: DJRE is unhedged, so when the Australian dollar falls, overseas investments are worth more in AUD terms, boosting long-term returns. Over shorter periods, currency can move the other way and reduce returns, which can reverse that advantage.
The two funds also differ slightly in sector exposure. DJRE has more invested in retail and residential property, which can be more sensitive to economic conditions, while REIT’s broader global mix may behave differently depending on the cycle.
GLPR is newer and has a limited performance, but has generated strong 1 year returns of 6.7%.
| ASX CODE | 1 YEAR TOTAL RETURN | 3 YEAR TOTAL RETURN (P.A.) | 5 YEAR TOTAL RETURN (P.A.) |
| DJRE | 2.4% | 7.5% | 6.6% |
| REIT | 7.0% | 5.0% | 2.6% |
| GLPR | 6.7% | N/A | N/A |
REIT pays the largest dividend yield at 4.5% per year and does so via quarterly distributions. DJRE and GLPR also pay dividends of 2.8% per year and 3.4% respectively. The hedged nature of REIT provides more consistent and smoother distributions for investors too.
Track record and index
DJRE changed its tracking index in February 2022 to be more sustainability focused meaning it weights its companies by their environmental, social and governance (ESG) score.
However, the new index which it will now track has a limited track record only launching in April 2021.
REIT’s underlying index has a longer track record having been launched in 2006. It holds a larger number of companies (more than 341 holdings vs DJRE’s 253 companies) and tracks developed markets (such as the U.S., Europe and Japan) excluding Australia.
It provides broad geographical diversification for global exposure. REIT is also hedged in Australian dollars which limits the currency movements against the U.S. dollar.
GLPR tracks the FTSE EPRA Nareit Developed ex-Australia Rental AUD Hedged Net Tax Index, which is a benchmark tracking the performance of REITs and real estate companies in developed markets (excluding Australia).
| ASX CODE | INDEX TRACKED | INDEX INCEPTION | ETF INCEPTION |
| DJRE | Dow Jones Global Select ESG RESI (AUD)* | April 2021 | November 2013 |
| REIT | FTSE EPRA Nareit Developed ex Australia Rental Index AUD Hedged | December 2006 | March 2019 |
| GLPR | FTSE EPRA Nareit Developed ex-Australia Rental AUD Hedged Net Tax Index | April 2009 | May 2023 |
*On 1 February 2022 DJRE changed its index from Dow Jones Global Select Real Estate Securities Index. “Benchmark” reflects linked performance returns. The index returns are reflective of the Dow Jones Global Select Real Estate Securities Index from fund inception until 01/31/2022 and of the Dow Jones Global Select ESG Tilted Real Estate Securities Index effective 01/31/2022 to present.
Stockspot’s verdict
Stockspot’s preferred ETF is currently REIT, which replaced DJRE as our global property theme in 2022.
REIT is over six years old and has attracted almost $670 million of assets. Its lower management fee, broader diversification and increasing trading volumes are attractive reasons for being our preferred global property ETF choice.
REIT also pays a decent dividend yield and more frequent distributions which can help investors enhance income in their portfolios.
Read more about Stockspot’s Property Theme bundle here.
Interested in having a diversified portfolio that has exposure to all asset classes including property?
