What Is the Best SCPI? How to Choose an Investment in 2026

Type “best SCPI” into a search engine and you’ll get dozens of rankings… all of which are different—or almost all of them. There is no single “best” SCPI, strictly speaking, because each one is tailored to a specific investor profile, time horizon, and wealth management strategy. In 2026, the market remains highly mixed, with some SCPIs seeing their share prices rise while others struggle to process withdrawal requests. Knowing how to interpret the right indicators has therefore become essential for making the right investment choice.

Best SCPI: Yield Alone Isn't Enough to Make a Choice

A high payout ratio can mask a risk

The payout ratio (PR) is the most visible indicator. In 2025, the average market-capitalization-weighted payout ratio stands at 4.91%, up 0.19 percentage points from 2024. However, this average masks very different realities. In fact, the gap between the best- and worst-performing funds is particularly wide: annual total returns range from +15.27% to -41.53% depending on the fund (source).

A high payout ratio can result from three very different situations:

• truly outstanding rental performance;
• a dividend policy that draws on reserves to artificially maintain the dividend;
• a low share price (sometimes because it has fallen) that automatically pushes the ratio higher. 

It is therefore important to always put the figure in context.

Annual Total Return (ATR), a more comprehensive indicator

Annual total return is a new metric introduced by ASPIM in 2025. It is calculated by adding the annual distribution rate to the change in the share price during the same fiscal year. It therefore provides a more accurate picture of what the investor actually gained or lost over the period.

In 2025, the average PGA stood at 1.46%, well below the average distribution rate (4.91%), which can be attributed to the average decline in unit prices. Over the course of 2025, the market-capitalization-weighted average unit price fell by 3.45%. In other words, investors received income, but at the same time, the value of their assets declined.

Financial health indicators to analyze before investing

The Financial Occupancy Rate (FOR): The Rental Pulse of the SCPI

The financial occupancy rate measures the ratio of actual rental income to the maximum theoretical rental income that the SCPI could generate if all of its properties were permanently leased. In practice, this is the most reliable indicator of the future health of the dividend: if the financial occupancy rate declines, the dividend follows suit with a lag of one or two quarters.

The formula is as follows:

TOF = rent collected / (rent collected + market rent for vacant space)

The average TOF for the market is projected to be 92.2% in 2025 (ASPIM data, Q4 2025). A TOF between 90% and 95% is considered healthy. A lower rate indicates either temporary vacancies that can be addressed or more problematic structural vacancies.

Retained earnings (RAN) as a safety net for dividends

Retained earnings represent the portion of an SCPI’s profits that has not been distributed to the partners and is carried forward to the next fiscal year. They demonstrate the company’s ability to maintain or increase its future distributions.

In practical terms, an SCPI that has accumulated a high RAN can continue to pay a stable dividend even if its rental income temporarily declines (due to a temporary vacancy, renovations on a property, lease renegotiation, etc.). An SCPI without reserves, on the other hand, has no safety net, and even the slightest turbulence immediately results in a decrease in distributions.

The RAN is generally expressed in terms of the number of days or weeks of dividends in reserve. Retained earnings equivalent to two or three months of dividends represent a reasonable level of financial security. If the figure falls below one month, caution is warranted.

This figure is included in each SCPI’s annual report and quarterly newsletters, which are freely available on the management company’s website or the AMF’s website.

Evaluation Guide: Criteria to Compare When Choosing the Best SCPI

This table summarizes the indicators to be analyzed, their meanings, and the alert thresholds to be used. The goal is to provide you with a reproducible analytical framework tailored to the specific SCPI being studied.