Pramerica Real Estate Investor's global Investment Research Team consists of experienced analysts with a broad range of training in areas of finance, real estate, economics and quantitative methods, and access to the best available resources. Team members are located on four continents, providing clients with an international perspective. This depth of knowledge and diversity of experience enables Pramerica's Investment Research department to support client needs from many perspectives including the US and non-US, public and private, and equity and debt market segments.

The Investment Research department's reports cover a wide range of topics of interest to institutional real estate investors, practitioners and investment professionals. Most reports are available online in *.pdf format in the research archive on our U.S. site. To join our distribution list, please contact the Investment Research department via e-mail at research.reports@pramericarei.com.

Recent reports from Pramerica Real Estate Investors:

• Waiting for Distress (July 2008). Coming on the heels of several years of lower cap rates that pushed prices steeply upwards, the U.S. real estate market appears poised for a correction. The only question is how much. The correction could be steep if cap rates revert to historical norms. However, if one takes a range of other factors into consideration -- such as relative value to Treasury yields and the emergence of the real estate capital markets -- the more likely scenario is a modest drop in prices.
  
• Housing and Rental Demand (June 2008). The housing market faces challenges over the short term due to the crisis in the credit markets, but the outlook for the medium and long term is positive due to favorable demographics. The number of individuals entering prime rental age will grow far in excess of the projected new apartment supply. Plus, the percentage of homeowners is dropping closer to historical levels. As a result, opportunities for development will be available for investors that can arrange financing.
  
• Investor-Friendly Trends in Seniors Housing (June 2008). The aging of the baby boom generation combined with the slow pace of new product makes the seniors housing market an attractive investment in the near future. The number of individuals reaching age 75 each year will rise six-fold by 2018, while the number of new seniors housing units is growing at about 1% per year. Decisions about housing are based on many factors -- including health, family resources and the single-family housing market -- but demand for housing that caters specifically to seniors is likely to be strong.
  
• Property and Policy: Hand-in-Hand (June 2008). As real estate investors turn to emerging markets in search of superior growth prospects and higher returns, it is important to recognize not only the connections that exist within countries between their political leadership and market performance, but also the interconnectedness between countries and markets.
• Turkey: Two Steps Forward (May 2008). The report notes that foreign direct real estate investment in Turkey has increased dramatically in recent years. While investors should not underestimate the risks that still exist in Turkey, the country's young, expanding and largely pro-Western population, dynamic economy and market-based reforms make a compelling case for real estate investment over the next decade.
• To Be Green or Not to Be Green? Why That Is Not the Question (November 2007). The green building movement has serious implications for real estate investors and developers, especially in the office sector. As more businesses conclude that sustainable practices address many competitive, organizational and regulatory challenges, increasing demand for green space will create new risks and opportunities for owners and builders.
• Diverging Strategies: NCREIF Index Insights (December 2006). Many plan sponsors and advisers use the NCREIF Property Index as a real estate performance benchmark. With the creation of the NCREIF Fund Index – Open End Diversified Core Equity (NFI-ODCE) they have a choice. The two have had very similar total returns, but recent statistics suggest that important differences have emerged in their underlying universes. Proper benchmark choice now requires an understanding of the differences between them.
• Homeownership and Commercial Real Estate: Similar but Different (December 2006). Intuitively, homeownership and commercial real estate would appear to have significant similarities. But they are marked more by disparities than by similarities in terms of current return, total return, demand drivers and supply cycles. The modest correlation between them, plus their different attributes, suggests that they are not substitutes for each other and can be attractive complements in a diversified portfolio.
• Russia: A Challenging but Improving Investment Environment (November 2006). Moscow is Europe’s most dynamic real estate market, with construction and take-up activity exceeding levels in all other markets. The construction boom under way is generating rapid growth in the volume of investment-grade real estate. Foreign investment remains focused on development opportunities, but demand for standing investments is growing. The barriers to entry for foreign investors are high, and market opacity necessitates prolonged and extensive due diligence.
• Brazil – Trying to Realize Potential (November 2006). In Brazil, most office properties are developed speculatively; pre-leases are rare. Industrial real estate has begun to emerge as an investment class only recently. A few shopping mall groups operate nationally, backed by a growing number of foreign capital sources, such as U.S. or European REITs, pension funds or property firms. Brazil’s institutional residential market consists only of for-sale units.
• China – Many Opportunities, Unique Risks (August 2006). Foreign investors have been investing mainly in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. These cities and others will provide attractive opportunities, especially in retail and residential, as urbanization occurs, incomes rise and the middle class expands. But investors face risks from a deficient legal system, underdeveloped contract law and government corruption. Foreign currency control, a government monopoly on land supply and frequent rule changes are also hurdles.
• The U.S. Office Market: Flirting with Equilibrium (August 2006). The current pace of modest vacancy rate declines and modest rental rate increases is likely to persist over the next two years. Rising real rents locally may signal opportunities for an extended episode of attractive investment returns, as a large rent-cost gap limits new construction. Growth markets in the Sunbelt and tech-oriented areas may see more rapid vacancy rate declines. Office markets in the Northeast appear near equilibrium and will experience stable vacancy rates.
• The Evolving German Residential Sector (August 2006). Germany’s residential sector looks like a defensive play in an environment of rapid asset price appreciation and excess liquidity in the global financial system. The diversification benefits, favorable demographics and low vacancy in some regions, plus the stability of the tenant base and the predictability of income streams, appear to offer substantial downside risk protection.
• India - Completing the Investment Universe (July 2006). Outsourcing and offshoring are spurring India’s office demand growth. Rising income, population growth, decreasing household size, a housing shortage and a decline in mortgage rates will lead to extensive residential construction activity in India. However, low market transparency, a lack of liquidity, a scarcity of suitable investment products and regulatory concerns are some of the risks investors need to consider.
• Taking Advantage of Long-Term Trends (June 2006). Real estate has historically been a good source of stable, uncorrelated returns with a generous cash yield and capital growth at about the rate of inflation. The wide range of new real estate investment opportunities that take advantage of the long-term trends in the economy and society should provide a continuing source of attractive absolute and risk-adjusted returns.
• Asian REITs: A New Dimension for Investors (April 2006). This report examines the growth and development of the Asian REIT market, the economic and demographic forces that should create demand throughout Asia, not only for real estate but also for yield-oriented investment products like REITs, and the potential implications of the new vehicles in the context of a global real estate securities portfolio.
• The Retail-Office Performance Rotation: Implication for Investors (January 2006). The office and retail sectors exhibit a distinct pattern of rotating performance relative to the overall NPI. Retail has significantly outperformed the office sector in recent years, but the U.S. real estate market has reached a turning point. As office vacancies decline, office rents rise, and retail sales slow, the office sector should outperform retail for several years.
• A Move Toward European Retail (January 2006). The performance of European office markets is becoming increasingly more synchronized, and much of the pricing inefficiencies across markets have been exploited. Concurrently, improved asset and fund management infrastructure has made retail assets more accessible to investors. Not only has retail tended to outperform offices over fairly long time horizons, but it will likely continue to enhance risk-adjusted returns.