Ilse French, Real Estate Leader.
GLOBAL megatrends, such as rapid urbanisation and demographic changes, will drive growth opportunities in the real estate industry across the African continent over the next five years. “The pace of change in the world is accelerating, with a series of transitions, known as global megatrends, transforming the way in which business and society operate,” says Ilse French, Real Estate Leader for PwC Africa.
“More and more, investors around the world are seeing the growth potential of Africa, in particular its substantial demographic edge. Economic growth, improving political stability and ongoing investments in infrastructure are opening up previously inaccessible markets.” adds French.
Two publications recently released by PwC consider the drivers for real estate growth in Africa and highlight existing and emerging trends in African real estate that are shaping the ‘African opportunity’ for investors.
PwC’s inaugural publication entitled Real Estate: Building the future of Africa considers the impact of global megatrends on the African continent. The aim of the report is to provide an assessment of the current state of the real estate industry across Africa and demonstrate how the megatrends will drive growth opportunities in key African markets.
The report also considers the real estate market in ten selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). These country profiles provide insight into the local, regional and global influences on the real estate markets of individual countries, providing an illustration of the effects of the trends being felt at a national level.
The report shows that the opportunities across the African continent are significant and span every sector. In almost all markets the demand for high-quality retail, office and industrial space continues to outstrip supply as international and local occupiers respond to new economic opportunities. Huge shortfalls in residential property across the continent will give rise to private investment on a grand scale.
Furthermore, a lack of local funding for infrastructure projects provides a platform for new private partnerships with the public sector. Shifting demographic trends and changes in consumer behaviour are also likely to create a huge demand for new and different real estate by 2020 and beyond. According to the report, we will also see the entry of more specialist investors into the market. Projected forecasts of 20% net annual returns from investing in shopping malls, office blocks or industrial complexes in countries across the continent continue to draw in new investors.
When considering these drivers of growth it is also important to note that there are specific risk factors underlying the development of Africa. These include the impact of political instability and changing government policy; complex legal regimes; the volatility of local currencies; and the timeframe of investments and restrictions on possible exit strategies. Despite these risks, real estate investors and developers continue to see the African market as a huge opportunity.
French says: “It would be easy to underestimate the impact of global megatrends on Africa. After all, Africa’s real estate markets have traditionally lagged behind developed and many developing economies. Levels of investment in real estate in Africa are low by a global standard, while significant challenges exist in exploiting potential opportunities.
“However, our research suggests the impact of global megatrends on Africa will be huge. This will create a diverse range of opportunities for the real estate industry Africa – opportunities that often differ from those available in more developed markets.”
The global impact of these trends are supported by the findings of a second report, Global Emerging Trends in Real Estate® 2015, which is an annual forecast of global real estate investor sentiment published jointly by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PwC.
The report, based on the views of senior global property investors, identifies several ‘megatrends’ affecting markets around the world, each of which has implications for development and investment: increasing urbanisation (the majority of the world’s population now lives in urban areas); demographic and social changes (including a significant rise in the number of older and elderly people); technology advancements; the rise of economic power in emerging markets (due largely to an expanding middle class); and climate change.
PwC Global Real Estate Leader, Kees Hage, says: “There is a wall of capital targeting real estate opportunities in many markets across the globe. The search for better yields has taken some investors into development and secondary markets, moving them up the risk curve. But investors must strike a balance between the need to deploy capital and the ability to achieve good returns, at a time when there is such a difference in the economic conditions across the globe.
“Real estate investors have a wide range of issues to consider when making investment decisions. What is clear is that they may have to approach those decisions in a completely different way in the future. Capital allocations may need to be made to a wider range of asset types than ever before, ranging from retirement and student housing to data centres and self-storage.”
Also for the first time Africa is included in the report. The report provides insight into of the current African real estate sector by focusing on the key markets through a series of interviews with leading players in the industry who provide their views and outlooks on the investment climate.