International ReCapNet Conference on Commercial Real Estate Finance and Investment Hosted by ZEW
Conferences
On 2 and 3 November 2017, the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) hosted the ninth interdisciplinary conference of the Leibniz network on Real Estate Markets and Capital Markets (ReCapNet). Over the course of the two-day conference, 25 participants from around the world discussed the latest research on commercial real estate markets.
The main focus of the conference was on financial aspects of commercial real estate markets. Over the course of ten presentations, the speakers from the United States, Europe and Asia presented their research findings to an audience of international researchers. One of the research projects, for instance, involved determining which macroeconomic factors have a considerable impact on price changes in real estate investments in the US while distinguishing between listed and non-listed companies.
The real estate mantra “location, location, location” still holds
The keynote lecture was delivered by Professor Piet Eichholtz, a professor in finance and real estate at Maastricht University, who discussed the general belief in real estate that location is the most important factor determining a property’s value and how it will increase in value. One of the two lines of questioning in Eichholtz’s research that he discussed in greater detail was whether the distance between a commercial real estate owner and the property itself has any effect on the cost of the mortgage on the property. The other was whether the involvement of intermediaries such as real estate agents brings different benefits to both buyer and seller depending on the distance between them and the property in question.
Tenth ReCapNet conference planned for autumn 2018
As in previous years, the annual international conference of the Leibniz network “Real Estate Markets and Capital Markets” (ReCapNet) provided economists in the field of real estate and financial markets research with ample opportunity to network and exchange thoughts and ideas. Over the course of the two-day conference held at ZEW the international guest speakers were able to forge connections with researchers in the ZEW Research Department “International Finance and Financial Management”. The tenth anniversary ReCapNet conference is scheduled to be held at ZEW in the autumn of 2018.