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Category Archives: Property

Surging Chinese property prices stoke bubble fears

December 11, 2009 in China, Property by Roy

Property prices in Chinese cities rose at the fastest pace in 16 months in November, the government said Thursday, amid growing concerns about bubbles building in real estate.
Property prices in 70 medium and large cities rose 5.7 percent in November from a year ago, the biggest jump since July 2008, figures from the National Bureau [...]

Distressed commercial property sales increasing around the world

December 1, 2009 in Property by Roy

Over 80% of key real estate markets around the world have seen a rise in distressed sales in the commercial property market, according to new research.
The survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors of its members in 25 countries found that the biggest pick up in distressed sales was in South Africa, the US, [...]

Survey: 2010 Will Be Buyers’ Market for Commercial Real Estate

November 17, 2009 in Property by Roy

The ideal time to invest in commercial real estate is 2010 – that’s when commercial property prices will hit bottom, according to a recently published survey of industry experts, including investors, developers, lenders, brokers, and consultants.
The Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2010 study, released last week by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) and the Urban Land Institute [...]

UK commercial property market makes comeback

November 17, 2009 in Property by Roy

The first quarterly increase in property values since June 2007 is expected to boost British Land’s net asset value by up to 4pc over the three-month period. Land Securities, which does not report quarterly, is likely to show a slight decrease in the value of its portfolio over the six-month period. However the company is [...]

UK house prices to fall over the next three months: Rightmove

November 17, 2009 in Property by Roy

According to the latest Rightmove House Price index, the fall in prices over the last month will be the first of three monthly falls before asking prices resume their recovery in February of next year.
The 1.6 per cent decrease compares with falls of 2.9 per cent in November last year and 0.7 per cent in [...]

Active versus Passive in European Property

November 9, 2009 in ETFs, Funds, Property, Theory by Roy

A fund mentioned on Offshore Capitalist recently is the Insinger de Beaufort Real Estate Equity Fund which invests in the shares of European REITs and real estate companies.
The objective of the fund is to generate superior risk-adjusted returns, by reducing the volatility and protecting the downside using shorts and derivatives.  In other words, it’s not [...]

A Closer Look At Global Property Markets

November 8, 2009 in ETFs, Property by Roy

Indices make a useful way to track market sectors.  Property is one example.  The FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Global Real Estate Index Series is a set of indices that let investors keep track of different regions of the global property market.
(EPRA = European Puplic Real Estate Associateion.  NAREIT = National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts.)
Conveniently, many [...]

Landbanking: the plots thicken

November 7, 2009 in Property by Roy

From Guardian Money:
Double, treble or multiply your money even further – and all within a few years. It sounds an ideal alternative to low-interest savings and high-risk shares, especially, as the promoters point out, “They’re not making land any more”.
Gains like these are held out by “landbankers”, unregulated firms that buy land without planning permission [...]

China Bank Regulator Said to Plan Study of Developers

November 4, 2009 in Property by Roy

Nov. 3 (Bloomberg) — China’s banking regulator plans to review debt levels at some real-estate developers on concern the companies’ borrowings are fueling excessive gains in property prices, a person familiar with the matter said.
The China Banking Regulatory Commission wants to reduce leverage at developers that bought land at inflated prices and at large state-owned [...]

IMF warns over surge in Hong Kong property prices

November 4, 2009 in Property by Roy

The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday that Hong Kong faced a potential surge in property prices and endorsed a government plan to cool any overheating in the market.
The Washington-based organisation’s warning came as prices in the southern Chinese city soared with luxury developments up more than 40 percent since January this year. Concerns about the [...]

A European multi-manager real estate fund

November 3, 2009 in Funds, Property by Roy

The Insinger de Beaufort Real Estate Equity Fund invests in the shares of European REITs and real estate companies.
The objective of the fund is to generate superior risk-adjusted returns, by reducing the volatility and protecting the downside using shorts and derivatives. Security selection is based on the expected total returns of different real estate securities [...]

Land-banking directors banned for 12 years

November 1, 2009 in Property by Roy

Hambrook & Greenstock, a Swiss-based company, sold plots of greenfield land in Sible Hedingham, Essex, Marlow, Bucks, and Chalford, Glos, with the understanding that planning permission had been obtained. The company bought the land for £600,000 before splitting it into 750 plots and selling it on for £5m.
After it was revealed that the land had [...]

A dollar-denominated fund for global property

October 25, 2009 in Funds, Property by Roy

Henderson Horizon Global Property Equities Fund USD
The investment objective of the Global Property Equities Fund is to seek long term capital appreciation by investing in the quoted equity securities of companies or Real Estate Investment Trusts (or equivalents) listed or traded on a regulated market which derive the main part of their revenue from the [...]

A euro fund to invest in global property

October 25, 2009 in Funds, Property by Roy

Franklin Global Real Estate (EUR) Fund
The Fund’s investment objective is to maximise total investment return consisting of income and capital appreciation, by investing in real estate investment trusts (REITs) and other companies whose principal business is real estate oriented. The Fund will seek to invest in companies across a wide range of real estate sectors [...]

Global Property Prices Turning Upward

October 25, 2009 in Property by Roy

Real estate markets worldwide are stabilizing and showing signs of a tentative recovery, according to a newly released report from London-based global property consultancy Knight Frank. The quarterly Knight Frank Global House Price Index shows property values increasing in almost half of 32 countries surveyed during the second quarter of this year.
“Significantly, quarterly price falls [...]

Property – Prepare for the pick-up?

October 14, 2009 in Property by Roy

By early this summer, average commercial property prices had fallen by more than 40 per cent from their peak in June 2007, according to the Investment Property Databank (IPD).
Recent data, however, suggest the worst may be over, with evidence of prices stabilising and renewed competition among buyers. This month, the IPD reported that UK commercial [...]

Property Global Market View: Back from the Brink… But What Next?

September 22, 2009 in Property, Sector & Specialist Reports by Roy

A report from CB Richard Ellis provides an update on the global property market. In summary, commercial real estate markets remain mixed, with Asia looking good but other regions experiencing ‘muddled recoveries’.
via CB Richard Ellis – Global Reports.

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