ipd conference
ABOVE Patience Luxomo and Elsie Monamate of Nedbank Corporate ABOVE RIGHT South Africa’s leading political cartoonist, Zapiro BOTTOM Resilient Property Income Fund claimed the overall Investment Property Databank (IPD) Direct Property Investment Award 2013 at the 11th annual IPD South Africa Property Investment Conference in Cape Town OPPOSITE Stan Garrun, Dries du Toit and David Williams OPPOSITE BOTTOM Tom Bate and Bruce McGlogan
The conference provides a pivotal gathering place for investors and property experts from different parts of the country to share experiences, discuss best practices and analyse lessons learnt.
The conference showcased four specific topics: l The first was “Back from the Brink”, an examination of property investment in the post-recession era. Facilitated by respected journalist and TV host David Williams, the discussion highlighted global economic events and put a spotlight on the prognosis for investment in Africa.
“Real estate – and particularly private equity real estate – investment continues to grow in sub-Saharan Africa. While it may be true there are risks associated with emergingmarket investments, core returns in sub-Saharan Africa are comparable to opportunistic returns in developed countries. And risk is a key imperative in global real estate investments.” In the southern African context, he pointed to governance, transparency and a lack of sophistication in portfolio management, along with macroeconomic considerations, inflation and exchange rate fluctuations, as general risks. l The third and fourth sessions were titled “A Time for War” and “A Time for Peace”, respectively. These topics looked at changes in the asset allocation process, the impact on property investment, and on adding value
through governance, green initiatives and public sector property initiatives. Speakers included Estienne de Klerk of listed property giant Growthpoint Properties, the popular financial analyst Dries du Toit and Anton de Goede of Coronation Fund Managers. Other speakers who brought their insight and perspectives to the conference included economist and academic Brian Kantor; political commentator Aubrey Matshiqi; senior resident representative of the International Monetary Fund Axel Schimmelpfennig; deputy CEO of Hospitality Property Fund Andrew Rogers; and Rob Wesselo, the director at International Housing Solutions. As the 2013 conference wrapped up, both SAPOA and IPD were already thinking ahead to the 2014 conference and looking forward to another successful meeting of the property investment sector.
l The second was “Real Estate in a Changing World”, which assessed postrecession risk and the scarcity paradigm in a limited growth scenario, looking towards property as a hard asset with strong and reliable cash flows. Among others, speaker Bruce McGlogan, head of private equity and real estate fund services at the Maitland Group, brought an international perspective to the discussion. “The most standout feature of South African commercial real estate investment is the return on investment,” he said. SOUTH AFRICAN PROPERTY REVIEW
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