Singapore's stock market has built a reputation as one of the highest-yielding equity markets in the world, and the numbers back it up. The Straits Times Index (STI) currently offers a dividend yield of around 4% to 4.5%, well ahead of Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index near 3%, and more than double the S&P 500's sub-2% yield. Beyond the blue-chip index, Singapore's deep and mature REIT sector pushes that advantage further, with several counters offering distribution yields of 6% to 9%, a scale rarely matched by developed-market equities.
Three REITs illustrate this well: NTT DC REIT, United Hampshire US REIT, and Lendlease Global Commercial REIT.
NTT DC REIT (SGX: NTDU)
A data centre REIT, exposed to the AI boom, NTT DC REIT has a current forward yield of about 8 to 8.5%/ The REIT owns six data centres across California, Virginia, Vienna, and Singapore, anchored by NTT's global tenant base. First-half FY2025/26 results beat IPO forecasts, with net property income and distributable income ahead of projections by 1.7% and 3.3% respectively. Occupancy stood at 95.1%, positive rental reversions came in at 5.1%, and a weighted average lease expiry of 4.4 years gives income visibility through the decade. Gearing of just 32.5%, an interest coverage ratio of 4.1 times, and 70% of debt fixed or hedged, all support the durability of the payout.
United Hampshire US REIT (SGX: ODBU)
It owns grocery-anchored and necessity-based retail properties, plus self-storage assets, across the US East Coast. Grocery and necessity occupancy reached 97.7%, WALE extended to 8.0 years, and distributable income grew 10% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026. Gearing stands at 41.1%, with no refinancing required until 2028, a meaningful buffer against near-term rate volatility. With a forward yield of 8.5% at 49 US cents, the REIT looks bound to have increasing DPU with the onboard rent-generating from its new built shopping mall extension and the rental escalations built into contracts
Lendlease Global Commercial REIT (SGX: JYEU)
An almost 100% Singapore concentrated REIT, Lendlease offers a trailing yield of around 6.5% to 7%, with FY2026 forecasts pointing toward roughly 7.4%. Its portfolio spans Jem, 313@Somerset, and the newly fully-owned PLQ Mall in Singapore, plus the Sky Complex office towers in Milan. Portfolio occupancy improved to 95.3% as of March 2026, retail occupancy held at 99.7%, and retail rental reversion came in positive at 12.2% for the third quarter of FY2026. Gearing of 38.7% remains comfortably within regulatory limits.
What ties these three together is sustainability, not just headline yield. Each maintains gearing well inside the Monetary Authority of Singapore's 50% leverage ceiling for REITs, positive rental reversions, and multi-year lease profiles — the hallmarks of distributions funded by growing operating income rather than capital erosion.
The yield gap against "risk-free" benchmarks is striking. Singapore's own 10-year government bond currently yields around 2.3%, while even the US 30-year Treasury, near a near-two-decade high of roughly 5.3%, still falls short of what these REITs pay out. That leaves a spread of several hundred basis points for investors willing to take on equity market risk in exchange for income growing well above global benchmark rates.
For income-focused investors in any part of the world, Singapore's REIT sector remains one of the most compelling dividend stories in global markets today. What's more Singapore does not levy a dividend tax
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