Purpose: Real estate due diligence, and particularly technical due diligence as one of its sub-disciplines, is an established component of professional real estate transactions in Germany. Technical due diligence deals with the actual property risks. More generally, technical due diligence can be described as a technical property assessment. Practical experience, an empirical survey carried out in June 2017 and initial interviews with real estate experts showed that there is no general understanding of the components, depth and presentation of results of technical property assessments in property transactions. This study aims to develop a scientific understanding of the concept of technical property assessments among the different market players involved in property transactions.

Methodology: The data of this study are based on the evaluation of existing scopes of services and technical due diligence exercises, as well as on a market survey (February 2019). The market survey was carried out online among 300 experts from the real estate industry working in the fields of investment management, asset management, and real estate financing.

Key Findings: The key outcomes of the survey (see appendix for its design) are not yet available; they will be submitted as soon as possible after completion of the study, which is scheduled to last from 28 January 2019 to 18 February 2019, and analysed by 31 March 2019. The views of the various market players are presented and discussed as a function of their risk profiles for the purpose and quality evaluation of the technical property assessment as well as their examination components. The survey particularly focuses on the users’ need for information and the associated relevant components of the technical property assessment.

Impact: This study serves as a basis for conducting expert interviews to develop a uniform scope of services for technical property assessments. It opens up the potential for presenting the first available primary data for an in-depth scientific evaluation of technical property assessments within the scientific discipline of real estate economics.