Reiss cites such examples as tax reform and fund legislation enacted last year in Germany that has spurred a huge wave of capital into US, UK and other markets in the last nine months. She notes that the creation in France of an optional tax regime allowing the conversion of publicly owned real estate investment companies into tax-transparent vehicles known as F-REITs has the potential to create a significant inflow of capital into French real estate, much of it from US investors. However, she cautions that the French finance ministry has yet to publish detailed guidance on this regime.

Similar REIT-style legislation is forthcoming in markets such as Argentina and Singapore – increasing transparency and prompting increased interest among foreign investors. Even in the United Kingdom, the only G-7 country without a tax-transparent REIT-style investment vehicle, the signs are that the Treasury may be more receptive to instituting such a regime. The move would put the UK investment market on a par with the US, Australia and Japan.

Ernst & Young LLP has just published an updated and expanded 2003 edition of Real Estate: The Local Global Economy – The Ernst & Young Guide to Selected Real Estate Markets Around the World. The 2003 guide includes background to real estate investment, tax, accounting and leasing information for 39 countries around the world including the US.