Broadly speaking, people view real estate as an inflation hedge. It’s based on the principle that income from rent collected from commercial properties tends to track with consumer prices. But it is important to go deeper and look at the data.

It has been 14 years since the collapse of Lehman Brothers on 15 September 2008. In response, total returns posted by the NCREIF Fund Index – Open End Diversified Core Equity (ODCE) declined 10 percent in 2008 and another 29.7 percent in 2009. When will we see the next correction in the real estate markets?

With the pandemic now well into its third year, most office occupiers in Asia Pacific are displaying a clear shift towards embracing real estate strategies that recognise that COVID-19 is here to stay for the long term, according to CBRE Asia Pacific’s 2022 Spring Office Occupier Survey. The survey found most tenants are implementing — or at the very least considering — a range of related initiatives.

Fundraising activity in 2022 is off to a slow start following a record-setting fourth quarter in 2021. A total of 34 private equity real estate funds recorded final closings during the second quarter of 2022, raising an aggregate US$19.3 billion, according to the IREI.Q database.

How should investors approach portfolio construction when it comes to international and domestic real estate investing? Do the benefits of international investing outweigh the risks? And, what are some of the main benefits and challenges of adding an international strategy to an investment programme?