Unit-linked commercial property funds may prove best investment

No boom lasts forever, yet property watchers say there is still room for growth in Dublin's commercial market. For those with money in unit-linked property funds, this is good news.

Such funds, which enable investors to pool resources in a portfolio of commercial buildings, have made strong gains on the back of the boom.

According to MoneyMate, which monitors funds, the nine best performing products since early 1996 have recorded gains in excess of 145 per cent.

The strongest performer was the Hibernian Life & Pensions Property No 2 fund, which recorded 171.72 per cent growth in the five years to January 15th.

Of course, this does not mean gains are guaranteed. Nor is property fund growth always going to be stronger than that recorded by unit-linked equity funds. That depends on the performance of fund managers - and on conditions in both markets.

For example, MoneyMate figures for the half year to January 15th indicate that unit-linked equity funds made stronger gains than those in the property market. The fastest growing fund in that period was a New Ireland Irish Equity Fund 1, which grew by 12.76 per cent. The fastest growing property fund, managed by Hibernian Life & Pensions, grew by 10.55 per cent.

The Irish Brokers Association rates property funds as a "medium risk" investment, according to its president Mr Ciaran Sheridan. He said: "It's a very interesting and very worthwhile investment. For people interested in property per se, it's a good value way of doing it."

Fund performance depends on the quality of the properties and the dates of rent reviews. If a review was pending, this would most likely increase rental income, Mr Sheridan said.

He added that property funds are less volatile than equity-based plans, but less liquid.

This view is shared by Mr Douglas Farrell, a director at Dublin firm National Deposit Brokers.

Any investment decision boils down to one's attitude to risk, he said. Equity markets may have greater potential for more fluid growth when stock markets rise, but there may be less risk in property because funds are invested in bricks and mortar.

Said Mr Farrell: "There's not a huge difference in the performance of the top players. It's really down to which funds are operating at a particular time."

Because such funds have a finite portfolio of property, they close when the sum invested meets the size of the portfolio.

Property does not come cheap, of course. So the distinct advantage of the unit-linked fund is that those unable to buy buildings outright can purchase a share in a portfolio. For example, a property might cost £500,000, but the minimum unit-linked fund investment is usually in the £5,000-£12,000 range.

Another factor is that investment in residential property has been less attractive since the introduction of Government measures, recommended by Dr Peter Bacon, which aimed to arrest fast-rising home prices.

FEE structures vary. These include entry and management charges - calculated as a percentage of the sum invested - and rental charges - calculated as a percentage of rental income. The general recommendation is to view the funds as a medium-term play for a minimum of five years - early encashment fees may apply if investment is withdrawn before then.

Friends First, Hibernian, Canada Life and Irish Life have funds open to investors at the moment, said Mr Liam Ferguson, principal at brokerage Ferguson & Associates. He favours a Friends First fund for two reasons. Firstly, its products have performed strongly in the past. Secondly, the charges are "relatively low".

Analysts say there may be greater potential for growth in the London market than in the Republic, but with the punt trading almost 20 percentage points weaker than sterling, the currency cost will eat into any gains made.

Of the domestic market few, if any, experts are willing to forecast performance beyond 18-24 months. They say further growth is likely in the commercial market in that timeframe because demand is still stronger than supply.

Mr Arthur McEntegart, marketing manager in the investments division at Irish Life, predicted percentage growth in the "early to mid-teens certainly for the next two years".

That company launched a fund last week and predicted a "positive outlook" in a market where it had invested in retail, office and industrial buildings.

Demand for property would be boosted by the strength of the domestic economy, high employment, strong consumer spending and "the sheer amount of wealth" in the economy, it said.

Independent financial advice should always be sought when investing.