When asked what — if anything — they wanted to gain from the 2023 meeting of the Editorial Advisory Board of Institutional Real Estate Europe, one member offered a candid and rather telling response. “I expect to remain confused by the end of this gathering,” he said. “But at a higher level.”

The comment summed up the feeling among the board’s members. An undercurrent of anxiety and mild bewilderment is feeding into investor-manager meetings, research work and internal investment committee sessions. Unable to make sense of the best course of action in a world of economic uncertainty, elevated interest rates and increasing regulation, capital allocators continue to hesitate on the sidelines. Investors, said one manager, are questioning “everything that is illiquid” and displaying a reluctance to deploy capital that has not been seen for many years — if ever.

“A lot of our clients are saying that as long as the market stays as it is today, then we h