Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa July 2014 | Page 41

COMMERCIAL
by Growthpoint, which was chosen for it solar façade
laboratory, with photovoltaic cells integrated in the
glassing of the building’s façade, which hugely improve
the building’s performance.

Industry issues
The 11th annual Investment Property Databank (IPD)
Property Investment Conference this month (18 - 19
July) in Cape Town, will also highlight some interesting
issues as property investors from across Africa gather to
assess the sector’s prospects.
Four key themes will be explored. The first theme
is “Back from the Brink”, sets the stage for property
investment in the post-recession era, considering
global economic events and delivering a prognosis
for investment in Africa. The theme “Real Estate in
a changing world” will focus on assessing the postrecession risk and scarcity paradigm in a limited
growth scenario. “A time for war and A time for
peace” will spotlight changes in the asset allocation
process, the impact on property investment, and on
adding value through governance, green initiatives
and public sector property initiatives.
The final theme, Property on the Red Carpet, ties all
the sessions together by asking if property has what it
takes to perform in a new financial order. According
to IPD SA managing director Stan Garrun, this
theme is a reference to the sector’s recovery in the postrecession economy, to the qualities and resilience of
property, especially when compared to other more risky
assets. The conference will also ask whether there is a
structural move towards real estate globally.
The event follows hot on the heels of the release of
the latest IPD South Africa Annual Property Index
which showed that the South African investment
proper t y sector delivered a stable 15.3% tota l
return in 2013. The total ungeared return for 2012
was 15