Listed property returns likely to beat forecasts

JSE's listed property sector has not managed to maintain its run of the past few years of beating the broader all share index.

Rebosis Property Fund continues the property sector's better than expected earnings streak.

2014 has confirmed that the listed property sector is moving from a cycle of new listings, into one of consolidation.

Black-controlled Rebosis Property Fund and Delta Property Fund have put their respective take-over bids for Ascension Properties on hold to avert a protracted bidding war for Ascension's lucrative R3.2bn portfolio of government-tenanted offices.

The drive to revamp existing malls and open new ones in SA will continue in 2014, potentially leaving listed property stocks overexposed to retail.

Listed property unit trust Sycom Property Fund said it "accepted" the JSE’s censure regarding three general issues for cash in 2010 and 2012, for which Sycom did not obtain unitholder approval, and said it did not believe it would be in the interests of unitholders to take the matter further.

Listed property may well be beating general equities in the total return stakes for the year to date, but the August reporting season reveals a widening performance gap among the JSE’s 20-odd property counters.

Property analysts are not buying the reasons why Old Mutual Property decided to scrap the eagerly awaited listing of its R12bn Triangle Real Estate Core Fund