New INREV standard for private property funds

INREV has launched a new reporting standard for Europe’s non-listed institutional real estate funds, the industry association announced Tuesday at the Mipim property fair in Cannes. INREV also said it is developing a model performance and valuation benchmark, possibly paving the way for a unified investment asset class in the future. The market for private real estate funds in Europe is currently worth some €400 bn.

‘We are confident due to the extensive input we have received from investors, fund managers and accountancy firms in the consultation period, that the industry will want to use these reporting guidelines,’ INREV ceo Lisette van Doorn said.

‘Together with the uniform reference we are developing for calculating the net asset value of funds, these initiatives should provide a base for consistent and transparent standards for non-listed funds and attract more capital from institutional investors into the sector,’ she added.

Non-listed real estate funds have grown dramatically in recent years as investors have poured money into property. But the rapid pace of expansion has been accompanied by a proliferation of investment structures and different standards of reporting.

‘What INREV is trying to do, in a private reporting environment, is to get everyone in the industry to agree on common best practice standards,’ said Angela Crawford-Ingle, real estate partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers in London, and co-chair of INREV’s reporting committee.