real estate overview
WHILE LONDON, MOSCOW AND SOME SELECTED CITIES IN THE USA SEEMED TO BE THE ‘HOT SPOTS’ FOR THE PROFIT-ORIENTED INVESTOR OF THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, THE RECENT CRISES OF THE FINANCIAL MARKETS, BASED ON INCORRECT MORTGAGE EVALUATION IN THE USA, HAVE PROMPTED THE MAJORITY OF RICH FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS TO BEGIN TO RESTRUCTURE THEIR REAL ESTATE PORTFOLIOS. A HIGH YIELD WAS, UNTIL A SHORT TIME AGO, THE MOTIVATION FOR A REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT IN AGGRESSIVE GROWING MARKETS; TODAY THE DESIRE FOR STABILITY AND THE LONG-TERM MAINTENANCE OF VALUE HAS DRIVEN INVESTORS INTO CALMER WATERS. Ivan Kaufmann
Having seen the markets hit hard in the Baltics and Central Asia, we now notice that places like Copenhagen, Zurich, Geneva and some German cities seem to have gained sympathy for investors in Europe. In Asia, Shanghai and Singapore are still the rising stars, but we are not sure whether the real estate prices, especially in Singapore, will soon reach their zenith. Most of our clients left the North American real estate market in anticipation of a looming economic crisis in the USA.
The market is in a consolidation phase and the ‘new money’ seems to have learned that a yield of 4% on a real estate investment in a strong currency has its benefits: the investor sleeps better at night. Another development that we noticed is the fact that real estate investors are discovering more and more new ways to invest, such as Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT). However, an in-depth analysis of the product and its hidden costs is highly recommended when investing indirectly through investment products.
All in all, we feel that when it comes to real estate the investors have changed their focus from high yield to maintenance of value, and become more conservative in their investments.
Ivan Kaufmann is the Managing Director of Naiman Trust Solutions Ltd in Zurich, Switzerland. The company mainly provides family office services and consultancy for both companies and individuals when it comes to asset protection, offshore structuring, tax consulting and relocation to Switzerland. Most of the clients of Naiman Trust come from the former CIS and Eastern Europe. The company’s headquarters are in Zurich but it keeps correspondence offices in Cyprus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Panama and Austria. Contact: European Headquarters: Naiman Group SBFTC House Rämistrasse 31 8001 Zurich Switzerland Phone:
+ 41 (0)44 804 44 00
Phone 2: + 41 (0)79 420 96 13
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Fax:
+ 41 (0)44 804 44 01
Email:
ink@naiman-group.com
URL:
www.naiman-group.com