International Property Investment News

Global real estate investment in 2007 reaches record levels

Recent figures from real estate company Jones Lang LaSalle show that global direct real estate investment during the first half of 2007 reached an all-time high, totalling $382 billion. According to these provisional figures, investment levels for the six month period exceeded those for the same period of the previous year by 16.6%, and amounted to more than was spent during the whole of 2003.

According to Jones Lang LaSalle’s research, as interest rates in the UK continue to approach the 6% mark, investors are increasingly choosing to look to mainland Europe for real estate opportunities. Over two thirds of investment into Europe originated from the UK, Germany and France, and total investment into Europe increased by 4% to over $156 billion. An increase in selling activity in Germany during 2006 meant that German funds were a major contributor to the European market.

This is the sixteenth consecutive quarter in which global direct real estate investment has experienced growth, and for Europe, Asia Pacific and the Americas it marked another period of record investment. Economic growth in the Asian continent was seen to continue and investment levels are rising as a result. The emerging markets of Europe were also mentioned for their continuing popularity with investors. Investment in Latin America is rising in popularity, particularly among global, North American and European investors. High levels of cross border investment have been recorded, originating mainly from global, Middle East, North American, German, Irish and Australian funds.

The property markets are expected to stay strong during the rest of 2007. The CEO of Jones Lang LaSalle’s European Capital Markets Group, Tony Horrell, said “Globally we continue to see a weight of money targeting the sector – evidenced by the record real estate funds raised by private equity in recent months.”