Property Investment at a Glance

Most investors have an investment in property through the ownership of their own residential home and this generally comprises the highest proportion of their total property investment. However, despite this, a large percentage of property investment actually lies outside the completed residential asset class and is contained in commercial property. This includes land subdivisions, development and the general commercial property sectors of the Australian and international property markets. General commercial property comes in various classes including:

• Retail - which is typically shopping centres, bulky goods centres, retail shopping strips and other shopping-related real estate
• Industrial - which is typically warehouses, factories and industrial parks
• Office - office accommodation of white collar workers in large to medium scale office buildings and parks, generally in and around major cities
• Hotel/Leisure - properties generally providing accommodation for overnight stays in major cities or leisure assets such as theme parks
• Specialist use property - these investments include child and aged care, hospitals, private medical centres, and storage facilities
• Development assets - this includes development of new properties in asset classes mentioned above including the provision of land for commercial and residential sub division.

Individual investors have a number of choices to access the commercial property investment markets:

• Buy directly, however the cost of commercial assets can often be out of reach of individual
• Invest in unlisted property trusts and property syndicates
• Invest in unlisted and listed property securities funds
• Buy shares in listed property trusts (LPTs), which are listed on the ASX
• Buy shares listed on the ASX in companies in the property sector