Real Assets Adviser

February 1, 2017; Vol. 4, Number 2

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From the Current Issue

Family Business: Maria Elena Lagomasino, CEO of WE Family Offices, on the four common mistakes that destroy family wealth

Between 1959 and 1962, more than 100,000 Cubans fled Castro’s Cuba and sought a new life in the United States. Among this group of industrious immigrants was 11-year-old Maria Elena Lagomasino. Unlike the majority of Cuban immigrants, however, Lagomasino’s parents did not settle in the popular Miami neighborhoods. Instead, they continued up the coast to the much colder Hartford, Conn. Surviving the trip from Havana to Hartford was nothing in comparison to surviving the winters of New England.

The Case for Private Equity Real Estate

Add this to the growing list of headaches among wealth advisers: The aversion among individual investors to allowing their money to be tied up in private equity deals, despite the promise of an illiquidity premium. Given that institutional investors have such a high proportion of real estate exposure through private investments in real estate, why is the opposite true for individual high-net-worth investors? What do institutional investors know that individual investors do not?

Shifting Ownership: Turning to the fourth asset class for some relief from the era of anorexic returns

As one economist put it: We are living in the “axis of upheaval” where social, political and economic risk collide at the same time. Volatility and risk are at record highs as investors face a paralyzing choice between high-risk equities and low-yield bonds. It is no wonder that professional investors such as Bill Gross, Mohammad El Erian, Sam Zell, Ray Dalio and other hedge fund and money managers are increasing their allocation to cash. 

A Call to Action: Broadening the market for real assets

Four years ago, the board of Institutional Real Estate, Inc. made a strategic decision to branch out to serve a broader market — the professionals advising the individual investor marketplace.

Research such as that outlined by Casey, Quirk & Associates and Merrill Lynch & Co. in their landmark study, The Brave New World: Winning Product Strategies for a Changing Global Market, built an almost irrefutably strong case for including alternatives in the portfolios of institutional and individual investors, alike. This was particularly true in the low-return, higher-risk environment that was emerging at the time, which, the report argued, was undermining the effectiveness of the long-held, traditional 60 percent equities/40 percent fixed-income allocations to which most investors and advisers had become accustomed.

How 2016 Reshaped Financial Services for Generations to Come

2016 will be etched in time as one of the most unpredictable and metamorphic years in our planet’s history. While every fragment of civilization will feel the effects of 2016, the year will leave an indelible imprint on financial services, global political landscapes and mass media for generations to come.

How to Fix Crummy U.S. Airports: Government control is putting a stranglehold on improvements

Although America’s airports serve more travelers than anywhere else in the world, many are handling far more passengers than their original designs intended.

Not a single U.S. airport was ranked in the top 25 in the world, and worse still, our largest and most important airports in cities such as New York, Chicago and Los Angeles scrape the very bottom in terms of customer satisfaction.

Big Wheels Turning: More than 80 U.S. companies commit to going 100% renewable

An increasing number of Fortune 500 companies are emerging as major customers of the U.S. clean energy industry, according to a report released from the American Wind Energy Association.

“In recent years Fortune 500 companies have led an intense search for the best ways to buy more clean energy,” says Tom Kiernan, CEO of the organization.

The EB-5 Program: Investments in U.S. businesses stand at $15 billion and counting

The U.S. Congress created the EB-5 program in 1990 to enable high-net-worth foreign investors to obtain a U.S. visa by investing in a U.S. business in a manner that will benefit the economy by creating jobs. To qualify under the EB-5 program, the foreign investor must invest $1 million in a qualified new commercial business. That amount is reduced to $500,000 if the new commercial business is located in an area with high unemployment. Each investor must also create 10 or more permanent U.S. jobs through his or her investment. 

Sunshine in the Forecast: Five trends investors should know about solar energy

The solar industry is no longer the bastion of environmental interests and pilot project developers. The industry has matured to the degree that mainstream financial institutions, ranging from institutional investors to traditional private equity infrastructure investors, have started to place substantial amounts of capital in this increasingly attractive sector. While investment in the sector remains strong, the sector is not without its complexities. For investors to better understand the solar finance landscape, here are five key trends shaping the industry.

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