%0 Unpublished Work %D 2014 %T The performance implications of adding global listed real estate to an unlisted real estate portfolio: A case study for UK Defined Contribution funds %A Moss, Alex %A Kieran Farrelly %X

This paper seeks to provide a better understanding of the performance implications for investors who choose to combine listed real estate with an unlisted real estate allocation. Specifically, it provides a detailed investor level analysis of the impact of combining UK unlisted fund and global listed real estate fund exposures to satisfy the requirements of a real estate allocation in a UK Defined Contribution Pension fund. It is well understood that direct real estate can be a beneficial component of a multi-asset portfolio primarily due to the diversification benefits that it provides. However, one of the key challenges for both asset allocators and product developers is how to provide a direct or at least a direct-proxy real estate exposure in a mixed asset portfolio with acceptably high levels of liquidity and low levels of cost. This is a challenge for all private market asset classes. Clearly, a 100% exposure to unlisted funds or direct real estate would not be expected to meet this criteria. Key Questions : In this paper we set out to answer the following questions:* Return enhancement: What is the “raw” performance impact of adding listed real estate to an unlisted portfolio?* Risk adjusted impact: What is the impact on portfolio Volatility, Sharpe Ratio and Tracking Error?* Risk attribution: What adjustments are necessary to understand the true relative contributions to portfolio risk?* Portfolio contribution: Does this blended real estate product provide the diversification benefits of real estate in a multi-asset portfolio? Differences from other studies:Firstly, we have taken actual fund data rather than index data i.e. we are analyzing deliverable returns to investors. Similarly, by using fund data we are seeking to capture the impact of identifiable costs at all levels. Secondly, rather than use a single period, or peak to trough periods, we have broken down the study into an analysis during distinct stages of the cycle and over the full horizon (15 years). Thirdly, our dataset comprises UK unlisted funds and global real estate securities funds, whereas previous studies have looked at the performance impact of combining listed and unlisted indices of the same country. Finally, our study is seeking to provide greater understanding of the resultant impact of incorporating a real estate asset exposure for a specific investment requirement, namely the UK DC pension fund market.

%B 21st Annual European Real Estate Society Conference %S ERES: Conference %C Bucharest, Romania %G eng %U http://library.eres.org/cgi-bin/rsa98.pl?conf=ERES2014&type=session&theme=O &slot=2650 %3 RePEc:arz:wpaper:eres2014_21 %! Conference 2014 %& O: Real Estate Finance & Investment %R 10.15396/eres2014_21