Will Private Equity and Hedge Funds Replace Real Estate in Mixed-Asset Portfolios?

Abstract

The role of commercial real estate in the investment portfolios of institutional investors is now well established, and allocations towards real estate are increasing. However, fund managers are also gaining interest in alternative asset classes such as hedge funds, private equity, commodities, and infrastructure. This raises the question of whether real estate could fall out of favor with institutional investors. To investigate this issue, the authors examine historical return data from a wide range of asset classes. They find strong support for increasing allocations towards real estate and that real estate has significantly better risk-hedging characteristics than any of the other asset classes studied.