Vident Financial launched a new fund on Mar 27, focused on providing exposure to the real estate space of the United States equity market.U.S. Diversified Real Estate ETF PPTY seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the performance of the U.S. Diversified Real Estate Index.Fund CharacteristicsThe fund’s index seeks to employ a rules based approach to offer investors a multi-factor alternative to traditional market cap-weighted real estate funds. “If you ask for the three most important factors when investing in real estate, you’ll probably hear ‘location, location, location.’ To this we’d add property type and leverage,” per a Business Wire article citing Fred Stoops, head of real estate investments at Vident.The fund amassed $9 million in AUM within a few days of trading. It charges a fee of 53 basis points a year. The fund’s top three holdings include Equity Residential EQR, Avalonbay Communities Inc AVB and Terreno Realty Corp TRNO, with 3.8%, 3.4% and 3.0% exposure, respectively.How Does it Fit in a Portfolio?The Real Estate segment of the U.S. market has played an integral role in the expansion of the U.S. economy. Although it requires immense knowledge about the sector and bears significant risks, equity funds providing exposure to the sector are a great way to diversify traditional portfolios. Owing to its low correlation with other asset classes, the real estate sector is a great diversifier. Moreover, real estate investments are a great way to gain inflation protection, as rising prices increase the resale value of the property and it can also be used to generate rental income. CompetitionThe fund faces intense competition. Below we discuss a few ETFs that seek to provide exposure to the real estate sector.iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF IYRThis fund seeks to provide exposure to real estate stocks and tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index. It has AUM of $3.7 billion and charges a fee of 44 basis points a year.The fund’s top three holdings are American Tower Reit Corp AMT, Simon Property Group Reit Inc SPG and Crown Castle International Reit Co CCI with 6.3%, 4.8% and 4.5% allocation, respectively. The fund has lost 1.4% in a year and 6.5% year to date.Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund XLREThis fund seeks to provide exposure to real estate stocks and tracks the Real Estate Select Sector Index. It has AUM of $2.3 billion and charges a low fee of 13 basis points a year.The fund’s top three holdings are American Tower Reit Corp, Simon Property Group Reit Inc and Crown Castle International Reit Co with 10.1%, 7.7% and 7.3% allocation, respectively. The fund has returned 0.4% in a year but lost 3.8% year to date.First Trust Consumer Discretionary AlphaDEX Fund FXDThis fund seeks to provide exposure to real estate stocks and tracks the MSCI US REIT Index. It has AUM of $29.2 billion and charges a low fee of 12 basis points a year.The fund’s top three holdings are Vanguard Real Estate II Index Fund VRTPX, Simon Property Group Reit Inc and Prologis Inc PLD with 10.1%, 7.7% and 7.3% allocation, respectively. The fund has lost 5.6% in a year and 8.4% year to date.Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox? Zacks’ free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report American Tower Corporation (REIT) (AMT): Free Stock Analysis Report Crown Castle International Corporation (CCI): Free Stock Analysis Report FT-CONSUMR DIS (FXD): ETF Research Reports SPDR-RE SELS (XLRE): ETF Research Reports ISHARS-US REAL (IYR): ETF Research Reports Simon Property Group, Inc. (SPG): Free Stock Analysis Report AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (AVB): Free Stock Analysis Report Equity Residential (EQR): Free Stock Analysis Report Prologis, Inc. (PLD): Free Stock Analysis Report Terreno Realty Corporation (TRNO): Free Stock Analysis Report US-DVSFD RE (PPTY): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report