- 34% of institutional investors believe the biggest investment opportunities will be in the office and hotel sectors over the next 12 months
- 31% thought the industrial sector and 19% cited the retail & leisure sector
- 44% expect commercial property yields to increase in the next 12 months
- 40% plan to increase their allocation to European commercial real estate
- Main challenge when investing in commercial real estate is a lack of liquidity
- Despite the overwhelming majority planning to access commercial real estate investment opportunities using property funds and REITs, 19% plan to use a direct investment platform
- Follows announcement that BrickVest has completed £7M fundraise, representing one of the largest series A fundraise in proptech sector
More than a third (34%) of institutional investors believe the biggest real estate investment opportunities will be found in the office sector and the same number in the hotel & hospitality industry over the next 12 months. This is according to a new study1 with property-focussed institutional investors by BrickVest, the real estate investment platform.
BrickVest’s study showed that three in ten (31%) institutional investors thought the industrial sector would present the biggest commercial real estate investment opportunities over the next 12 months while one in five (19%) cited the retail & leisure sector.
The research revealed that 44% of institutional investors expect commercial property yields to increase in the next 12 months, just 22% believe they will decrease. Moreover two in five (40%) plan to increase their allocation to European commercial real estate.
Emmanuel Lumineau, CEO at BrickVest, commented: “Through our online investment platform we continue to see rising demand for high quality commercial real estate, especially in the form of debt like investment opportunities which offer good risk adjusted returns in a volatile market environment. We expect to see the highest level of volatility from the office sector as many international firms currently headquartered in the UK may put decisions on hold over their long-term office space requirements. If the UK no longer gives businesses access to the European market, they may need to spread their staff across multiple locations to more efficiently access both the UK and European market.”
BrickVest’s research showed that the main challenge facing institutional investors when investing in commercial real estate is a lack of liquidity. Nearly three in five (58%) highlighted this option. More than a third (36%) cited that regulatory and compliance reporting costs are too high while the same number felt real estate projects did not match the criteria (e.g. location, risk, investment return). A third (33%) thought the process is too slow and inefficient and one in five (22%) didn’t think there was enough access to their investment.
The study also highlighted the ways that institutional investors plan to access commercial real estate investment opportunities over the next 12 months. Despite the overwhelming majority (79%) of respondents selecting property funds (49%) and REITs (30%), one in five (19%) plan to do so through a direct investment platform.
Emmanuel continues: “BrickVest is a truly pan-European platform that offers unique levels of liquidity to a traditionally illiquid asset class. We have attracted institutional sponsors and the trust of thousands of investors and family offices that see BrickVest as a Solution platform. In particular, strong interest has convinced the board to accelerate the development of our product range with the launch of dedicated products for larger ticket investors, coupled with an automated liquidity platform and risk rating analytics. This additional funding will enable us to continue investing in our in-house technology and scaling our innovative platform in line with soaring levels of demand for accessible real estate investment.”
Eighteen months after its successful launch, BrickVest remains the only pan-European online crowd investing platform that allows its community of investors to invest directly and actively manage their investment in institutional grade commercial real estate investment opportunities.
The firm announced its first successful exit alongside CORESTATE Capital Group, the residential portfolio and commercial real estate markets investment firm, featuring a sizeable national German retail portfolio of 23 assets. European investors who invested in the BrickVest Fund Harvest 1 LLP have achieved returns of 31%. In comparison, the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Europe Index generated return of 18% over the same period.
BrickVest’s founding team has an extensive experience in real estate, investment services and technology. BrickVest is shifting the model of how to invest in real estate across the globe by combining the best practices of institutional quality investing in real estate with cutting edge technology, first-class governance and regulatory framework that puts the investor first.
The firm has also continued to demonstrate its commitment to democratise best in class governance and risk management standard, becoming the only European online real estate platform to gain a Full-scope AIFM license, the highest regulatory fund management standard in Europe, in an industry known for its opacity and lack of governance. These vetted investment opportunities with strong risk management framework were previously only accessible to large institutions such as pension funds and insurance companies.
Investors interested in signing up and viewing BrickVest’s pan-European real estate investment offering can do so at https://brickvest.com/en/ .
1 Research carried out online with 99 property focussed institutional investors in August 2017
About BrickVest
The BrickVest electronic investment platform (“BrickVest”) (www.BrickVest.com) allows investors to invest in institutional grade investment opportunities (“Product”) and actively manage their investment portfolio.
BrickVest is operated by BrickVest Markets Ltd, an Appointed Representative of BrickVest IM Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, registration number 737644. BrickVest Markets Ltd and BrickVest IM Ltd are 100% owned subsidiary of BrickVest Ltd, a limited company registered in England and Wales (No. 09294583), with its registered office at 81 Rivington Street, EC2A 3AY London.