The Evolution of the American Real Estate Society

The American Real Estate Society (ARES) started with the need for real estate academics to increase their applied research and teaching skills and grew rapidly as research practitioners realized the benefits of working with academics in their field. From its humble beginnings, ARES has grown to be the largest organization of real estate researchers in the world and has spawned a number of new real estate societies on a number of continents. The history of the ARES approach to being innovative and inclusive to all real estate thought leaders is chronicled in this article by two authors who met at one of the early pre-ARES meetings and have been both real estate academics and practitioners in their careers.

Texas Business Review, July 1977

College Enrollment Shifts Anticipate Current Job Market; San Antonio: A Military, Trade and Service Center; The High Price of HousingBureau of Business Researc

Texas Business Review, January 1977

How Oil Supports Prosperity in Texas; El Paso Economic Profile; Construction Activity and the Tax Reform Act of 1976Bureau of Business Researc

The Impact of Inflation and Vacancy on Real Estate Returns

The impact of inflation on the value of assets is considered one of the primary financial concerns of long-term investors. While actual and expected inflation have slowed considerably since the early 1980s, concern over future increases is still a consideration for long-term investors.Ibbotson and Fall, Ibbotson and Siegel, Brueggeman, et al., Fogler, hartzell, et al., and Rubens, et al., conclude that real estate compensates the investor for inflation risk. When real estate is added to a mixed-asset portfolio, the inflation risk of the expanded portfolio is substantially below that of the original portfolio (ex-real estate).The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the performance of commercial real estate and inflation. Unlike previous studies, this study examines real estate performance during both high and low inflation periods. The results show that real estate does provide an inflation hedge. Second, real estate returns are broken down by two major property type categories (office and industrial) to determine if any property type differences exist. A major difference is found between the inflation hedging effectiveness of office and industrial properties. Third, the differences are further analyzed in relation to vacancy rates in the two property types. A structural imbalance in the office market is evidenced by high vacancy rates. Therefore, the relative impact of vacancy rates upon office and industrial property performance is examined and found to be a significant factor in explaining returns, thus affecting inflation hedging characteristics.

The Financial Performance of Real Estate Investment Trusts

The intent of this article is to update the performance evaluation of Real Estate Investment Trusts. This update is important for three reasons. First, REITs today are one type of vehicle that permits the analysis of real estate assets in a modern portfolio context. Second, the performance of REITs was considered exceptionally good in recent years on a risk-adjusted basis. This would suffice as a market imperfection in the pricing of REIT shares which is difficult to support in light of the efficient market hypothesis. Third, recent studies o the performance of REITs have only covered time periods from 1963 to 1979 and an update to include the most recent six-year time period would offer valuable insight into REIT performance.

Texas Business Review, October 1977

Recent Income and Employment Trends in Texas; Energy Policy and the Price System; Air Travel Patterns and Regional Orientation; Texas Building Permit Fluctuations in the SeventiesBureau of Business Researc

Texas Business Review, December 1976

The Question of Economic Growth, 1976-1977; Building Construction Activity: Prospects for 1977; Texas Regional Interaction PatternsBureau of Business Researc

An Investment Analysis and Decision Making Framework for Real Estate Development

Recent research analyzing real estate investment decisionmaking has concentrated upon existing income properties. Projects planned for future development have been analyzed as though they were completed and generating rental income. Such analysis has not considered the impact of development period decisions upon operating cash flow and hence project value. This paper proposes a framework for investment analysis which accurately reflects the interrelatedness of the development and operating periods of the real estate development process. A stochastic Markov process is used to develop a model which treats the development and operating periods as an integrated system. The resulting model allows project investment decisions to be made on the basis of a minimum expected profitability index distribution and/or terminal value. Copyright American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association.

Texas Business Review, September 1976

Employment Growth and Unemployment Rates: An Apparent Paradox; Building Permit Data: Aid to Decision Making; The Contribution of Texas Foundries to Texas Manufacturing GrowthBureau of Business Researc