Most of the property investors in Asia reckon that their domestic markets are already at or near the bottom of the property clock and expect the markets in the region to recover by Q4 2010.
Meanwhile, investors in Latin America, Canada, and Eastern and Western Europe expect recovery by the first quarter of 2011, and those in the US by the second quarter of 2011, according to a survey conducted by property firm Colliers International.
Conducted between February and March 2010, the survey compiled views from 244 major institutional and private global investors with a combined portfolio of more than US$300 billion.
Referred to as a “global property clock”, it equates the market cycle to a particular time – 12 o’clock represents the market peak and six o’clock represents the bottom. Each six-hour period symbolises rising (from 6.00 to 12.00) and declining (from 12.00 to 6.00) cycles.
Based on the findings, 41 percent of investors indicated that the market is between 5.00 and 6.00 on the global property clock, while 19 percent think that their market has already moved from the bottom and is now at 8.00.
Asia was viewed to be at the bottom of the market at 6.00.
“Investors worldwide clearly see the market re-setting in general and about to enter the next up-cycle,” said Mr. Piers Brunner, chief executive officer of Colliers for Asia.
The survey also showed two out of three respondents are considering expanding their property portfolios in the next 12 months – indicating the growing confidence of investors in the market.
However, most of them are still cautious and have expressed contentment in engaging with just domestic investment. Emerging markets like India, Brazil, Ukraine, Poland and Vietnam were also singled out as countries for possible future investments.
“The tendency to invest domestically is most likely a short-term phenomenon. Cross-border investments will take place once investors have a greater comfort level in the global economy and the global financial system,” said Mr. Brunner.
Other findings revealed that investors around the globe believe that the ease and availability of getting finance for purchases is still a major concern, and that there is a shifting preference towards high-quality and well-performing assets from properties with a “high risk” profile.