One of the key factors many income investors overlook is how often a company pays its dividends. Sure, quarterly income is great, but monthly dividend payouts are even better with a whole different level of cash flow consistency — especially when it comes from a real estate investment trust (REIT) that’s packed with blue-chip tenants and long-term leases.
Now, think about owning 2,000 shares of this TSX-listed stock and sitting back as it drops nearly $308 into your account every month. It might sound like a dream, but that’s exactly how this REIT runs.
In this article, I’ll tell you why SmartCentres Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX:SRU.UN), one of Canada’s most reliable monthly dividend stocks, could be a smart pick for reliable income for long-term investors.
A top monthly dividend stock to buy in Canada
To put it simply, the Vaughan-based SmartCentres REIT owns one of Canada’s largest portfolios of income-producing retail and mixed-use properties.
After climbing 8% over the last 10 months, it currently trades at $26.18 per share and carries a market cap of around $3.8 billion. For investors seeking regular income, its annualized dividend yield of roughly 7.1% makes it one of the most generous monthly dividend stocks on the TSX today.
Now, let’s dig into what’s been keeping this REIT in great shape. In the third quarter of 2025, SmartCentres posted an in-place and committed occupancy rate of 98.6% across its portfolio. That’s one of the highest among Canadian REITs and shows just how resilient its leasing business is. During the quarter, the REIT leased another 68,000 square feet of space, pushing its year-to-date total to nearly 394,000 square feet. On the brighter side, it renewed 84.3% of leases maturing this year with rental growth of 8.4%, excluding anchor tenants.
Notably, many of SmartCentres’s properties are anchored by very popular companies like Walmart, Canadian Tire, Loblaw, and Dollarama. Such big players don’t just rent space but help pull traffic across entire shopping centres. This strong tenant base gives it financial stability and offers SmartCentres investors confidence in its monthly payouts.
Its growth pipeline adds more reason to buy it now
With new facilities opening soon in Quebec and British Columbia, SmartCentres is actively expanding its self-storage footprint. The REIT recently completed 13 townhome closings in Vaughan and has nearly finished Phase One of that project, with 111 of 120 units already sold.
It also has a flagship Canadian Tire store under construction in Toronto and a major presence at the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre. I see these projects as income streams waiting to be unlocked, giving me more confidence in the REIT’s ability to keep paying high, dependable dividends every month.
| COMPANY | RECENT PRICE | NUMBER OF SHARES | DIVIDEND | TOTAL PAYOUT | FREQUENCY |
| SmartCentres REIT | $26.18 | 2,000 | $0.15417 | $308.34 | Monthly |
| Prices as of Nov 18, 2025 |
Foolish bottom line
If you buy 2,000 shares of SmartCentres REIT at the current market price, you’d earn around $308 every month in passive income, or about $3,708 annually. But that would also mean investing nearly $52,360 into a single stock. Instead of putting that much into just one or two picks, you may want to spread it across a few quality dividend stocks to diversify your income portfolio.
