Dry powder and the afterlife

In this week's edition of?Open House, I share my thoughts on REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts). To read the full editions in your inbox every Wednesday,?subscribe for free?on my website (https://ashwinderrsingh.com/).

Another week of geopolitics-driven volatility in the market has almost ensured that key real estate stories were missed by most. Here are my top five reads from last week:

• Residential price rise: Despite a slowdown in the global residential price growth to 1.7% year-on-year in Q2 2023, Indian cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Delhi saw higher growth rates of 6%, 5.3%, and 4.5% respectively, due to high demand. The sustained demand in India is attributed to strong economic fundamentals and consumer confidence. (Read more)
• Domestic capital: A report noted that the Indian real estate sector has around $41 billion of unused domestic institutional capital. This capital comes from local institutions like mutual funds and insurance companies and is anticipated to spur growth in the sector. With foreign funds becoming cautious, this domestic capital is seen as a fresh avenue to fuel the sector's expansion. (Read more)
• Japanese company invests: Sumitomo Realty & Development is investing $3.34 billion in a Mumbai project, constructing offices, a hotel, and commercial facilities on an 80,000-square-metre site. This move is part of a broader shift by Japanese real estate firms towards emerging markets like India, propelled by its growing economy and business-friendly reforms. (Read more)
• Nature’s missing law: Scientists proposed a new law extending Darwin's evolution theory to atoms, stars, and more. This law, "the law of increasing functional information," suggests all systems, living or non-living, evolve towards more complexity and diversity. The proposal offers a new way to understand and potentially predict cosmic evolution. (Read more)
• Afterlife communication: In Ancient Egypt, false doors in elite tombs were portals for offerings to the deceased. They showcased a feast, representing sustenance in the afterlife. Common folk made clay models called soul houses, filled with food offerings, and placed them on graves. These practices highlighted the bond between the living and the departed, rooted in Egyptian beliefs. (Read more)