European Investors More Bullish on Real Estate

Research specialist Preqin noted in its just released Investor Outlook: Alternative Assets H2 2014, that European-based investors are marginally more likely to invest in the real estate sector in the next 12 months than investors based in North America and Asia, with 38% planning to make new commitments, compared to 32% and 37% respectively. A larger proportion of Europe-based investors are also considering making new commitments than institutions based in other regions.

Private real estate investor appetite for core investments has seen a surge in the last six months, increasing from 43% of institutions targeting the strategy in December 2013 to 60% in August 2014, according to Preqin.

One of the notable such deals is Melia Hotels International, one of the world's largest resort hotel chains, which announced its first property in the U.S.

Under the ownership of the private-equity, alternative investment manager CGI Merchant Group, Melia Hotels will take over the current location of Casa Moderna Hotel at 1100 Biscayne Blvd. in downtown Miami. The same area will host London architect Zaha Hadid's first skyscraper designed for the Western Hemisphere, the 706-foot Museum condo tower at 1000 Biscayne Blvd.

"The opening of ME Miami represents a significant undertaking for CGI, one that spanned two years and comprised a substantial financial commitment, a tremendous amount of resources, as well as exhaustive due diligence to find a partner befitting of such a significant project for downtown Miami," said Raoul Thomas, CEO of CGI Merchant Group.

According to Preqin, appetite for value added funds has also increased over the first half of the year, from 49% to 60% respectively, demonstrating that investors are targeting a wide range of strategies across the risk spectrum.

In this category, Nassau, The Bahamas-based Sterling Financial Group launched its New Providence Opportunity Fund, a closed-end equity investment fund consisting of high net worth and institutional investors, which targets diverse real estate investment and development opportunities in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean.

Meanwhile, Brazil’d anticipated housing bubble is expected to lose pressure as prices even out in the country, according to a Bloomberg report. 

Home prices are soaring again by “one-third as fast” as the rate in 2011, as developers start to sell homes ready for turn-over this year for lower prices, the report said using data from FIPE and Zap Imoveis. 

As a result, short term investors have started to leave the market as they look elsewhere for “other opportunities” with larger gains.

“We’re seeing an excess of new home deliveries, so the market is adjusting,” Rossi Chief Executive Officer Leonardo Diniz told Bloomberg.

In the meantime, as real estate investors looking for high-value and high-return investments await Brazil’s property market rebound, these investors can turn to markets like that of the United States where foreigners are snapping up properties in a frenzy. One technology that American real estate agents can use to lure these investors in are virtual tours.

Realbiz Media Group, Inc. RBIZ develops proprietary video marketing software that agents and their brokers can use to promote their virtual tour listings online. The company offers a Virtual Tour Program that allows real estate sellers to create virtual tours and presentations that are optimized for mobile viewing and could be syndicated through social media for only $29.95 a month.

The program is equipped with a video search engine optimization (VSEO) tool that automatically generate meta tags and descriptions for virtual tours and listings agents have uploaded to the platform so that they would be found easily by consumers online.

The program also has tools for creating QR codes, e-flyers, and seller reports as bonus features.

To learn more about Realbiz Media and its products, contact sales@realbizmediagroup.com or call 1.888.REAL.BIZ (888.732.5249).