By Diana Olick | CNBC
At the open of trade on Thursday, real estate will be set free.
The S&P Dow Jones Indices and MSCI will give real estate its own unique class, separating it from the gang within the financials sector. The parting of ways comes as real estate as a sector has outperformed the S&P 500 with S&P’s REIT industry index up 24 percent annually since the bull market began in 2009, versus 18 percent for the benchmark.
The new classification will include all real estate investment trusts (REITs) with the exception of mortgage REITs, which will remain classified under financials.
