Purpose Artificial intelligence (AI) is having a significant effect on the property industry at many levels. This paper identifies strategies for property academics and professional bodies to build into their property programmes to future-proof property graduates in their careers. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses the author’s over 50 years of property education and property research experience to reflect on recent developments with AI to identify effective strategies to future-proof property graduates’ careers. Findings Effective strategies are identified for changes in the current property programmes. These strategies involve a stronger focus on interpretation and decision-making skills and a deeper knowledge and experience of the property markets. A range of strategies are identified to incorporate into more resilient property programmes going forward. Practical implications Strategies are identified for property programmes to enable property students to develop skills that will see them as more resilient to the impact of AI in their property careers, particularly in the early stages of their career as they build up their property industry experience. Higher quality property graduates will be the industry outcome. Originality/value This insight draws together a wide range of issues relating to changes in property programmes needed for building up the resilience of property students to the impact of AI on their careers. Effective strategies are identified for future-proofing students to the impact of AI in their property careers.
Purpose Institutional investment in residential real estate is nascent but growing in both Australia and the United Kingdom (UK). This paper brings to light the reasons underpinning the growth of the build-to-rent (BtR) sector in both countries, situating industry knowledge in global and local contexts. By exploring investment decision-making and industry views on risks and returns, it identifies key drivers of and impediments to continued market growth. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was taken, interviewing 33 individual industry experts across Australia and the UK – consultants, planners, policy makers, BtR investors, developers and operators – to assemble diverse perspectives on the creation, growth and prospects of the institutional BtR market. The research focussed on Glasgow and Manchester in the UK, and Sydney and Melbourne in Australia, reflecting diverse stages of urban market development. Findings Institutional investment in BtR in both countries is seen by industry actors as responding to parallel domestic trends of reduced rates of owner occupation and a growth in private renting, against structural shifts in office and retail markets. International capital plays a pivotal role, and a vertically integrated development model prevails that reflects the heightened importance of operations within BtR as compared to commercial sectors. Practical implications Institutional investment in residential property is expected to grow in both Australia and the UK. This research sets out to advance market knowledge by bringing together prevalent investment rationales in two BtR markets at varied, incipient, but fast-growing stages of market development. It provides insight from varied market stakeholders and lessons on the potential for both enabling further BtR development and overcoming perceived market impediments. A cross-border analysis also helps knowledge transfer and contributes to better practice internationally. Originality/value The paper offers insights from industry stakeholders on BtR investment in markets where the private rented sector for housing has lain dormant but is now rapidly growing. Implications for investment decision-making are drawn out to address the present lacuna of investment-focussed research on BtR.
Purpose This paper highlights Bryan MacGregor's contribution to the literature on the definition of real estate submarkets in the context of hedonic house price analysis and commercial property investment diversification. Design/methodology/approach This paper provides a summary and discussion of Bryan's work on real estate submarkets, focusing on three of Bryan's published research papers. Findings Bryan's publications include an application of principal components analysis and cluster analysis to the definition of housing submarkets for hedonic modelling purposes. They also include studies of the usefulness of cluster analysis for commercial property investment diversification. Although Bryan is best known for his work on commercial property markets, his most-cited work is the paper on housing submarkets. Originality/value This paper calls attention to Bryan's contribution to research on real estate submarkets, particularly the analysis of housing submarkets.
Purpose Institutional investors play a critical role in adapting the built environment to the unavoidable impacts of climate change. However, little is known about their decision-making behaviours and the factors driving climate adaptation (CA) investments. Drawing on institutional theory, this study aims to examine how organisational and institutional contexts influence CA decision-making. Design/methodology/approach This study employs a qualitative approach, drawing on nine semi-structured interviews with senior managers at different management levels in Dutch real estate investment organisations. Findings Although coercive, normative and mimetic pressures drive CA, their capacity to generate action remains limited by low legitimacy perceptions for taking CA actions, lack of prioritisation of CA goals, partial enforcement of regulatory or policy frameworks, divergent views on climate uncertainty and low environmental interconnectedness. These limitations point to a prevailing institutional pattern of sustainable finance 2.0 that positions CA as a risk management tool rather than a systemic response. Practical implications This study highlights structural institutional constraints that can limit stronger CA adaptation approaches and provides insights for policymakers and industry practitioners seeking to promote or engage in more coordinated, collective and systemic adaptation responses in real estate investment. Originality/value The study contributes to a limited but growing body of knowledge on CA in institutional real estate investment by empirically enquiring about the drivers and institutional factors shaping CA decision-making. Grounded in theory, it contributes to the sustainable finance debate by providing new explanatory insights into why growing awareness does not consistently translate into CA actions, pointing to a structural lock-in that constrains CA.
Purpose This study aims to investigate public and private sector participation in public-private partnership (PPP) infrastructure investment decisions and identifies key strategies to enhance engagement. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative methodological approach, utilising semi-structured interviews with 13 PPP professionals from New Zealand and Malaysia. Guided by an interpretivist philosophical stance, this study explores and interprets the lived experiences and perspectives of these professionals to gain deeper insights into their decision-making processes. Findings Risk transfer and allocation, political and institutional settings, the nature of PPP contracts and projects and market conditions emerged as critical in shaping the decision of both public and private sectors to participate in PPP projects. This study identifies six essential strategies to foster greater participation: (1) strong institutional and political frameworks, (2) improved PPP guidelines, (3) training and capacity building, (4) effective communication and engagement, (5) a supportive environment and (6) enhanced transparency. Practical implications This study offers deeper insights into how policy frameworks, market conditions and organisational objectives interact to shape PPP adoption, enhancing both theoretical understanding and practical approaches to effective partnership implementation and governance in infrastructure delivery. Originality/value This study provides a deeper understanding of the decision-making processes underlying participation in PPPs, offering valuable insights for both public and private sectors. These findings can be leveraged to design more effective PPP frameworks for promoting sustainable participation.
Purpose The aim of this education briefing is to look at the role of professional standards (PS) in the valuation process markets. Whilst concentrating upon the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Valuation Standards, the briefing will comment upon the importance of all equivalent standards in a global context. Design/methodology/approach This education briefing discusses the history of PS and the increased importance of the same in the business world which is beset by more and more regulations and financial oversight. Findings This education briefing is an explanation of why standards are important for ensuring a consistency of rigour and expertise in the valuation process and how, in so doing, they maintain and enhance the standard of professional valuers. Practical implications All student and young professionals need to understand the importance of following the requirements of the RICS Red Book and other international standards. Originality/value This is a review of existing standards.
Purpose This study examines how personality influences disruption-driven property investment decisions. Despite extensive research on property investment decision-making, the explicit consideration of investor personality and its impact on the decision-making process in a disrupted market remains underexplored. Design/methodology/approach By focusing on the unique personalities, perceptions and experiences of decision-makers, this study leveraged the five-factor theory of personality and a qualitative strategy involving the phenomenological evaluation of property fund managers (PFMs). Experienced PFMs across major Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) in New Zealand were engaged in semi-structured interviews, where they provided reflective, in-depth accounts of how they made disruption-driven investment decisions in their respective organisations. Findings The research findings indicate that PFMs' personality traits shape their risk perception, opportunity recognition and strategic responses to market disruptions. Specific traits were reported to influence how managers adapt investment strategies, collaborate and make decisions amidst market uncertainties. Practical implications Understanding the influence of personality traits on disruption-driven property investment decision-making could enable REITs to align fund management and investment roles with decision-makers' dispositional strengths, enhance decision-making efficiency and promote targeted training to support employee and organisational development. Originality/value The study advances the property investment decision-making literature by providing original empirical evidence that links personality to disruption-driven investment behaviour. The research findings also offer practical insights that could enhance the decision-making process by highlighting the need for property investment decision-makers to understand their peculiar personality traits and associated tendencies.
Purpose Monte Carlo simulation has been available to property valuers for over fifty years but remains largely unadopted. This paper examines whether the probability distributions used in existing implementations have contributed to that resistance. The normal and triangular distributions used as defaults in academic literature do not match how valuers assess market variables. Beta distributions offer a better fit for these variables. They are confined to the valuer's specified range, shaped by market judgement, and available through native Excel functions. Design/methodology/approach The paper traces distributional assumptions across the Monte Carlo valuation literature, from Pyhrr (1973) through to post-2005 applications that shifted predominantly toward development appraisal, identifies the theoretical limitations of normal, triangular, and log-normal distributions, and develops the case for beta distributions through the intermediate step of the PERT distribution. A comparative illustration replicates the four-variable DCF model of French and Gabrielli (2005a) under four distributional assumptions (normal, triangular, PERT, and general beta) using 10,000 iterations with correlated inputs implemented through Cholesky decomposition. Findings Distributional choice affects all output statistics relevant to uncertainty reporting. The triangular distribution produces a 90% certainty range that is 55% wider than the beta distribution with valuer-specified parameters. The beta distribution allows the valuer to express directional market views that shift the output mean by approximately 7% of capital value, a capability unavailable with the triangular or PERT distributions. Practical implications The beta distribution requires no software beyond Excel's built-in BETA.INV function. It takes four inputs (minimum, maximum, a, ss), where the minimum and maximum are the same bounds valuers already specify for triangular distributions. The PERT distribution serves as a transitional step, deriving a and ss automatically from the familiar three-point estimate. The Monte Carlo model used in this paper, including correlated inputs, four-distribution comparison, convergence testing, and sensitivity analysis, was adapted from an existing workbook in a single working session using a generative AI add-in for Excel. Originality/value The beta distribution has appeared in the property Monte Carlo literature since Pyhrr (1973) but has never been examined in detail. Gimpelevich (2011) noted its potential superiority without developing the point. This paper addresses that gap and shows that distributional choice has material consequences for every output statistic a valuer reports to a client.
Purpose Research has investigated the effects of a range of behavioural issues in property valuation, with recent studies focusing on various approaches to enhancing the quality of valuation decisions. This study explores valuers' opinions on how a collaborative approach enhances property valuation practice. Design/methodology/approach This study adopts a qualitative research design. Data for the study were collected using semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 17 property valuers that carryout commercial property valuations in Auckland, New Zealand. The interview data were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings The study identified five major themes related to valuers' perception of how valuation practice could be enhanced through collaborative valuations. These themes revolve around benefits related either to valuers (i.e. increasing efficiency and managing personal bias), the valuation process (i.e. broadening sources of market evidence and enabling more robust property inspections) or the outcome of the valuation (i.e. improving the overall quality of valuation outcomes). Findings from the study further suggest that expert-novice collaboration provides complementary competencies that enable valuers to reason out their instincts within the valuation decision-making process. Practical implications These findings call for policy reforms in valuation firms and professional institutions to foster collaborative learning environments that strengthen the credibility and integrity of valuation practice. Originality/value This study contributes to the limited literature on collaborative valuation by providing empirical evidence on how collaborative practices can influence valuation quality.
Purpose-This study aims to stimulate debate on the long overdue strategic reform of property taxes. Design/methodology/approach-This study adopts an approach combining a systematic literature review with economic analysis. Findings-Property tax reform is highly desirable and practical. Strategically thought-out reform could align incentives in a both economically and socially efficient way. There are powerful implications for the form and mechanisms of property taxes. There are also implications for policy and environmental efficiency and equity. Originality/value-This study draws on existing literature but provides a novel analysis and solutions.
Purpose Worth analysis estimates a holding-period return by combining an entry price, forecast cash flows and an exit price derived from an assumed exit yield. The paper sets out a structured method for adjusting exit yield assumptions so that entry and exit pricing are treated consistently, ensuring that the resulting return is not distorted by mismatched assumptions. Design/methodology/approach A yield curve was created using simulations of stylised pseudo-assets across a range of Unexpired Lease Terms (ULTs). For each pseudo-asset, simulated cash flows were discounted at a target return adjusted for the corresponding volatility of returns, which varies by ULT, to derive equivalent yields and form a yield curve by ULT. Findings The yield curve reproduces the expected relationship between ULT, volatility and target return in the simulation. Research limitations/implications The framework does not incorporate potential changes in investor risk preferences through the cycle. The volatility estimates used in the yield curve, therefore capture only the distribution of cash flow outcomes, not the additional variability that would arise if shifting risk preferences were to alter the shape of the yield curve. This means that the results should be interpreted as a central-case calibration under stable pricing behaviour rather than a full representation of market-driven return variability. Practical implications The yield curve can be implemented within standard financial modelling environments used for investment worth appraisal by applying exit yields from the yield curve, according to the ULT and any assumed movement in market pricing. This improves transparency, auditability and comparability across assets. Originality/value The paper embeds finance-theory consistency within industry-standard Worth analysis by reformulating equivalent yield as a risk-aware curve tied to income security. It enables users to interpret market pricing through a structured yield curve, allowing exit yields to vary systematically with differences in income security.
Purpose-Purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) has recently become an important real estate sub-sector for real estate investment managers (REIMs) and institutional investors. The purpose of this practice briefing is to assess the significance and increasing importance of PBSA in global REIMs' fund portfolios between 2020 and 2024. Design/methodology/approach-Using the IPE annual surveys of the top 150 REIMs' real estate portfolios, the level of PBSA assets in these real estate fund portfolios is assessed over 2020-2024. This is supported by details from the REIMs' websites highlighting the importance and benefits of PBSA in institutional investor portfolios. Using documentary analysis, this practice briefing sees a deep understanding of REIMs setting up PBSA funds, and the institutional investor strategies concerning the role of PBSA in their portfolios. Findings-A significant increase in the level of PBSA was evident in REIM portfolios over 2020-2024, in terms of the number of PBSA funds and the level of PBSA assets under management (AUM). In 2024, this saw 36 REIMs engaged in the PBSA sub-sector and $63.3 B in PBSA AUM in portfolios of the top 150 REIMs; significantly more than 2020 levels. A range of strategies was employed for this PBSA exposure for REIMs and institutional investors. Geographic diversification was evident in many PBSA portfolios, reflecting PBSA growth; driven by increasing levels of international students in many countries .Practical implications-Student accommodation, part of the living sector, is an important real estate sub-sector that has become increasingly institutionalised in recent years. This is particularly important, as many institutional investors (e.g.: pension funds, sovereign wealth funds) now see PBSA as an important real estate sub-sector in their overall real estate portfolios. This practice briefing gives institutional investors a deeper understanding of the investment opportunities available to access high-quality PBSA assets via these REIMs' global PBSA portfolios, as well as enhancing the level of understanding of PBSA by real estate professionals. Originality/value-This research enables more informed and practical real estate investment decision-making regarding the increasing opportunities available with REIMs for PBSA as a real estate sub-sector in a real estate portfolio for institutional investors. This will contribute to satisfying the increasing appetite for PBSA assets by institutional investors going forward.
Purpose - To challenge existing practice recommendations. Design/methodology/approach - Review recent literature with some theoretical advances. Findings - The larger advisory companies, supported by their economists and research departments, should certainly have the capacity to form an informed view about fair market pricing for the bigger, more transparent and liquid markets. But surely it is asking too much of valuers to jump into this area of responsibility across all real estate markets without much more public discussion of the issues we raise in this paper. Practical implications - More public discussion of the issues we raise in this paper is called for. Originality/value - This is a review with some original challenges.
Purpose Grand challenges have been identified in a growing number of professions, institutions, governments, and industries to focus attention on significant problems and opportunities. In real estate, grand challenges have received limited attention. This paper explores grand challenges and whether real estate may benefit from identifying, framing, and pursuing solutions to grand challenges. Design/methodology/approach The research involves identifying and exploring how grand challenges have been pursued in other fields and disciplines and the related outcomes. These findings are then considered within the context of real estate. Suggestions are developed for possible frameworks to facilitate the value of grand challenges in real estate. Findings Grand challenges in engineering and management have produced results in education and research. Other research has defined four categories of grand challenges with real estate fitting into three of the four categories. The only scholarly real estate-related article on the topic considers how real estate aligns with each of the seventeen UN Sustainable Development Goals. It then outlines the skills necessary for real estate to effectively address grand challenges and finds these skills to be in short supply. Additional findings include how identifying and framing grand challenges contributes to their solution and how the civic wealth creation framework may expand real estate's conception of how it contributes to value and wealth creation. Research limitations/implications Grand challenges merit additional research into their potential value in real estate. The relationship of development, equity investment, operation, and redevelopment and grand challenges may be fruitful. Limitations include a dearth of real estate research on grand challenges and a willingness to initiate such research. Practical implications Real estate often faces resistance in the form of "NIMBY" and "BANANA" attitudes. Grand challenge research may provide an approach to developing a "do good" mindset to replace the "do no harm" mindset. Shared goals among all stakeholders generated by grand challenges may facilitate more trust within the entire real estate ecosystem. Social implications Real estate and the built environment are crucial elements of society and its functioning. Grand challenges can focus research on the underlying mechanisms that may move real estate from seeking to minimise harm to seeking to increase civic wealth. Originality/value Grand challenges and real estate's role in addressing them have received scant attention. This paper explores how to initiate thinking about real estate and its responsibility to society.
PurposeThis study aims to investigate barriers to adopting valuation technology (VTech) in the property valuation profession and its implications for property investment and financial market stability. Despite advances in automation, data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI), the sector has been slow to digitise. The research examines how institutional, cultural and technical factors shape resistance, with consequences for asset pricing, collateral risk modelling and investor confidence. Design/methodology/approachA qualitative design was employed using semi-structured interviews with valuers, firm leaders and regulators in New Zealand. Thematic analysis was guided by Rogers' diffusion of innovations and institutional theory, synthesised into an institutionally mediated diffusion of innovations (IDOI) framework to explain how professional logics mediate perceptions of innovation. FindingsBarriers to adoption arise primarily from institutional conservatism, outdated regulation and weak data governance rather than technical shortcomings. The Valuers Act (1948), fragmented infrastructure and sovereignty concerns limit innovation. Generational divides, protectionist attitudes and fears of automation reinforce digital resistance, while practitioners stress that human judgement remains indispensable, positioning technology as an aid rather than a replacement. Practical implicationsRegulatory modernisation, secure national data infrastructure and targeted digital training are essential to enable sustainable innovation in valuation practice. For lenders and investors, wider VTech adoption can enhance valuation accuracy, portfolio transparency and collateral risk assessment, strengthening confidence in property markets and capital allocation. Originality/valueThe study reframes VTech adoption as legitimacy-seeking rather than efficiency-driven. The IDOI framework provides a transferable model for understanding digital transformation in regulated, high-trust professions and highlights the market-level risks of institutional inertia in property valuation.
Purpose Post-earthquake functional recovery is an emerging concept in the built environment, often examined through engineering parameters, with limited attention given to building users. While structural integrity is critical, a building's functionality following a disaster is not solely determined by its physical stability. This study investigates the perspectives of office tenants across three major New Zealand cities. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative research strategy was employed, drawing on interpretative phenomenological and grounded theory methods. A systems thinking approach, underpinned by a micro-level building-system functionality framework, was used to illustrate the dynamic relationship between users and their buildings. Findings This study reveals that a building's functionality is intrinsically linked to how well it supports an organisation's specific needs, as the physical workspace directly embodies corporate culture and values. For commercial property investors, a compelling strategy must therefore converge social and technical perspectives, recognising that the ability to align the physical asset with profound socio-cultural shifts is critical to determine long-term asset value and resilience. Practical implications The findings highlight that tenant perceptions and behaviours are profoundly shaped by situation, context and time. The widespread adoption of work-from-home (WFH) arrangements has become a core component of business continuity plans (BCP). Immediate return to an office following a major disaster is generally reserved for critical business functions with essential services such as power/standby generator. Originality/value This study advances understanding of post-disaster recovery by applying a micro-level building-system functionality framework, demonstrating that functionality is both technically and socially driven.
Purpose To examine the concept of equilibrium in the context of real estate markets and the insights that the concept brings to the modelling of adjustment processes. Design/methodology/approach The paper proceeds by introspection. Findings Even if real estate markets' normal state is disequilibrium, an underlying model of market processes that seek to restore those markets to balance provides invaluable insights into the way property markets respond to shocks. This is not to deny the path dependency of market outcomes. Research limitations/implications In the context of market economies, discarding equilibrium principles risks misunderstanding market dynamics, for all the noise that behavioural anomalies bring. Practical implications Appreciation of the adjustment processes can help market participants avoid over-reaction to short-run and noisy signals. Markets operate in aggregate and adjustment processes may be long-term but those processes drive market dynamics. Social implications Society would be better if markets avoided over-reacting to noisy short-run signals. Originality/value This is for others to judge.
