PREA Research
PREA 2012 Management Fees & Terms Study 
PREA 2011 Management Fees & Terms Study
PREA 2010 Management Fees & Terms Study
PREA 2009 Management Fees & Terms Study
Latest release: December 2012
These papers report the results of the PREA Management Fees & Terms Study. The objective of the study is to analyze the fee structures and fee levels of private property investment funds with the aim of creating a systematic approach to gathering and reporting information on fee structures, increasing transparency and comparability of fee structures and levels of private real estate investment funds.
Understanding the Contributions of Fund Structure in the PREA | IPD U.S. Property Fund Index
December 2012
The PREA | IPD U.S. Property Fund Index provides a breakdown of average fund returns into component parts; the contributions to fund level return of unleveraged direct real estate, plus the contributions to fund returns of various aspects of fund structure. This report discusses how the various components are calculated, in a simplified setting, to help investors and other users of the index understand and interpret the fund return breakdown.
A Primer on Commercial Real Estate Indices
October 2012
NOW UPDATED. This report provides a primer on the indices that track the performance of U.S. commercial real estate. It includes a one-page tear sheet on each index covering factual information, a point-form overview of the methodologies of each index, and a brief look at their behavior over time. For those unfamiliar with the indices it provides a quick way to become acquainted with each index and some of the issues in their use and interpretation. For users already familiar with the indices the report can serve as a useful reference guide, providing a summary of index characteristics in a single source.
PREA-ANREV-INREV Management Fees & Terms 2012 - A Comparison Study
PREA-ANREV-INREV Management Fees & Terms 2011 - A Comparison Study
PREA-INREV Management Fees & Terms 2010 - A Comparison Study
The Global Real Estate Sustainability Report - 2012
September 2012
As a sponsoring member of the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark, the Pension Real Estate Association is pleased to provide its members the 2012 GRESB Report. The report is based on sustainability data gathered from almost 450 property companies and funds around the world, providing aggregate information for 36,000 properties, representing $1,300 billion in global assets under management.
Risk Management and Diversification with Real Estate: Correlation is Not Enough
February 2012
Will the diversification benefits of real estate fail in extreme down markets, when investors most need them? Does the relationship between real estate and other asset classes change with market conditions? This report discusses an approach to examining the relationships between asset classes that is more flexible and realistic than traditional measures such as correlation. A simple application shows that real estate appears to diversify both equity and bond allocations under all market conditions including, most importantly for risk management, bear markets.
PREA 2011 Management Fees & Terms Study
PREA 2010 Management Fees & Terms Study
PREA 2009 Management Fees & Terms Study
These papers report the results of the PREA Management Fees & Terms Study. The objective of the study is to analyze the fee structures and fee levels of private property investment funds with the aim of creating a systematic approach to gathering and reporting information on fee structures, increasing transparency and comparability of fee structures and levels of private real estate investment funds.
Private real estate allocations in multi-asset investment portfolios
November 2011
This report is intended as an overview of the role of commercial real estate within the overall portfolio. First, evidence is provided on the standard arguments often given in favor of a real estate allocation. Second, after reviewing the standard portfolio theory approach to determining a real estate allocation, some of the problems with that that approach are discussed. Finally, the report reviews the results of some of the latest research meant to address the problems with standard portfolio theory in determining optimal real estate allocations. Written by PREA research staff, this report first appeared as Chapter 1 of the book Real Estate Mathematics, published by PEI.
How Many Properties Does It Take to Be Diversified? A Review of the Academic Evidence
October 2011
How many properties need to be held in a portfolio in order for it to be considered “fully diversified”? This short research report provides a brief review of some of the academic research that has looked at this question.
Liability Driven Investing: What Is It and Does Real Estate Fit?
September 2011
Liability Driven Investing (LDI) is an approach to institutional portfolio construction that is quickly gaining in importance. This PREA Research Report begins with an overview of what LDI is and how it differs from the traditional approach to asset allocation. The report then looks at whether there is still a role for real estate within a multi-asset LDI based portfolio, what that role might be, and whether adoption of LDI may change the investment strategies used within real estate.
Investment Intentions Asia Survey 2011
Investment Intentions Asia Survey 2010
Investment Intentions Asia Survey 2009
PREA / ANREV / INREV
The Investment Intentions Asia Survey is a joint research project by the Asian Association for Investors in Real Estate Vehicles (ANREV), the European Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles (INREV) and the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA). The study aims to provide a guide to the expected trends of European, US and Asian investors, fund managers and fund of funds managers active in the Asian non-listed real estate fund industry.
REITs and Real Estate: Is There Room for Both in a Portfolio?
October 2010
Institutional investors continue to debate the relative merits of REITs and private market real estate. This research report examines the performance of these two investment vehicles and their distinctive roles within a portfolio.
Does Property Size Play a Role in a Portfolio?
August 2010
Is there a benefit to diversifying a real estate portfolio by size? Do large and small properties have different risk-return characteristics? This report examines evidence on these questions and on the role of property size within portfolio strategy.
Is Beta-Risk Becoming More Important to Real Estate?
August 2010
Has the nature of risk in the commercial real estate market changed as real estate has become more integrated with the broader capital markets? This short report examines this question and finds that beta-risk (which is non-diversifiable) has experienced a long term, upward trend in importance concurrent with real estate’s increasing integration with the capital markets. Beta-risk also has a cyclical component, increasing in importance during downturns. Diversification, at least by MSA as examined here, may be less effective than it once was.
PREA Sponsored Issue of The Journal of Portfolio Management
September 2003
October 2005
September 2007
October 2009
Value Beyond Cost Savings: How to Underwrite Sustainable Properties
This book presents the key findings and conclusions regarding the valuation and underwriting of sustainable properties from three years of independent research by the Green Building Finance Consortium.
An Estimate of the Value of Commercial Real Estate Assets Held by Pension Funds Globally
December 2009
The total value of the pension fund commercial real estate holdings globally is estimated at between $701 and $750 billion USD, with approximately two-thirds held by pension funds outside the U.S.
Do REITs Have an Advantage When Credit is Tight?
December 2009
Due to their ability to access public markets, REITs may have an advantage over other real estate investors when credit is tight. This short report looks for evidence of whether the markets perceive this to be true: Do REITs perform well relative to underlying real estate markets when debt capital is scarce? The question is a timely one given today's credit constrained environment.
Active Versus Passive Management of Funds of Real Estate Securities
November 2009
An International Comparative Study of the Pension Plan Community and Real Estate Investments
January 2006
Institutional Perspectives on Real Estate Investing: The Role of Risk and Uncertainty
Ravi Dhar and William N. Goetzmann, Yale School of Management. May 2005
Private Real Estate Fund Options for Defined Contribution Plans
Joan H. Fallon – November 2004
U.S. pension funds now use REITs increasing for their real estate investments.
Members of the Pension Real Estate Association share their views. Published in Investments & Pensions Europe, September 2003.
Real Estate - The Human Capital Factor
PREA and several other organizations joined forces with Equinox Partners to conduct a survey among senior officers at leading real estate entities to track attitudes about human capital with the real estate industry. The survey was conducted in September and October 2002.
Benchmarks & Index Needs in the U.S. Private Real Estate Investment Industry: Trying to Close the Gap
This paper completed in 2001 by David Geltner and David Ling was funded by the Real Estate Research Institute for PREA. It is a policy-oriented study of the benchmark and index needs of the U.S. private real estate investment industry. The paper examines 1) What an “ideal return index would look like; 2) How the major existing indexes compare to the ideal; and 3) What are some important considerations in trying to close the gap between the ideal and the existing indexes in the U.S. today.
The Real Estate Needs of the Plan Sponsor Community
Elaine Worzala and David Gilliland, March 2001.
