{"id":15231,"date":"2016-05-16T10:47:03","date_gmt":"2016-05-16T10:47:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.propertysurveying.co.uk\/newsletter\/?page_id=15231"},"modified":"2018-10-31T10:20:40","modified_gmt":"2018-10-31T09:20:40","slug":"valuers-perspective-corporate-property-investment","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.propertysurveying.co.uk\/newsletter\/?page_id=15231","title":{"rendered":"A valuer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s perspective on corporate property investment"},"content":{"rendered":"

There comes a time in every successful business when a decision has to be made \u00e2\u20ac\u201c\u00c2\u00a0 do we re-invest this year\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s profits? Do we leave them in the bank account, or do we invest elsewhere?<\/p>\n

As is the case with any investment, a business must achieve a desirable balance between capital growth, yearly return and risk-management. A number of options exist, but many \u00e2\u20ac\u201c including dabbling in the stock market \u00e2\u20ac\u201c might sensibly be considered too risky.<\/p>\n

The alternative? Property.
\nIt is an industry that offers a diverse range of potential opportunities, with differentiated characteristics and return profiles.<\/p>\n

Direct Purchase<\/strong>
\nThe primary benefit of direct property purchase is the ease with which a credible company can procure finance to supplement their own.
\nIn this way, the investor can leverage their own capital to procure top-up finance and purchase an asset of greater value than they would otherwise have been able to afford. It also means that a single capital sum can be split and invested across multiple properties \u00e2\u20ac\u201c minimising risk via diversification.<\/p>\n

The downside?<\/em>
\nProperty is an unusually non-liquid asset. Conveyancing can take weeks, months or even longer if the asset is no longer desired by the market \u00e2\u20ac\u201c perhaps due to a change in tastes, physical deterioration or an over-valued initial purchase. It is therefore very difficult to recover the investment capital quickly, in the event of an emergency.
\nA quick sale isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t impossible and investment companies offering cash purchase within weeks exist for just such a situation, though you are likely to forego 10% of the property\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s value.<\/p>\n

CrowdFunding<\/strong>
\nVery much a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbuzzword\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 of the last few years, CrowdFunding is fast growing into a major player in the investment markets; be it for a start-up company, a new film, a charity project or, in this case, a property investment.
\nVarious companies have emerged to provide a platform through which small investors with limited funds can still reap the benefits of property investment. Organisations like the House Crowd now operate in this market \u00e2\u20ac\u201c offering investors the opportunity to purchase shares in a special purpose vehicle (SPV), which purchases a given property on their behalf.
\nThe success of these new investment providers can be narrowed down to a few key advantages:<\/p>\n