Understanding Illiquidity Premium in Real Estate Investing

Illiquidity premium is the excess return an investor stands to earn after investing in an illiquid asset, compared to a similar investment in a liquid asset. As opposed to publicly traded investments such as treasury bonds, stocks, and bank placements, that are liquid, meaning investors can quickly buy or sell them to access capital, illiquid investments on the other hand majorly trade in the private markets commonly referred to as alternative markets. Alternative markets have consistently outpaced their liquid counterparts in the public markets in return. They include private equity, corporate debt, and real estate. Whereas illiquidity can be defined as a state in which an investment cannot readily be converted into cash at a particular period without loss of value, illiquidity premium demystifies the myth of always associating illiquidity to risk and further justifies the importance of having a portion of your portfolio in illiquid assets, and why illiquidity can be a good strategy to introduce in a portfolio.

Assets in the alternative markets often give investors access to diversified, rare, and high-quality opportunities that have no correlation to the public markets. Real estate in particular is considered as an illiquid asset since it is lengthy to execute, often expensive to transact, and sometimes complex to understand. Therefore, it largely relies on the skill, expertise, and track record of the fund manager in order to successfully afford illiquidity premium to the investor. Firstly, the fund manager must have boots on the ground to do a rigorous research on location, since real estate is about location, location, and location - The nearer one develops to a source the higher the property value. Secondly, demonstrate an appealing development concept, and lastly, the developer must ensure that he incurs the right development costs during the construction period.  

Investment is a function of two parameters, which include, amount of capital committed and the period of investment. Therefore, investors with the appetite of illiquidity premium should consider a long-term investment horizon in order to exploit this strategy. Asset-class real estate has private valuations that respond slowly to economic downturns compared to investments in the public markets. This underscores the fact that, besides illiquidity premium, real estate is also a stable appreciating asset, if professionally executed it can provide downturn protection against market volatilities. This unique characteristic can help investors balance their portfolios in an efficient and effective way, especially during a crisis period.

Further, both direct investments in real estate, such as property and indirect investments, such as real-estate backed funds can be a form of a ‘forced saving plan’ that can benefit investors with recurring revenue. This revenue comes in form of regular coupons throughout the investment period. Since investing can be emotive, and in saving, more often than not, we are our own worst enemies, real estate keeps the investor away from accessing the cash that one could have otherwise cashed-out with ease where it invested in liquid investments in the public markets. Therefore, illiquidity as a strategy can be a great concept in personal wealth management. Investors should consider this strategy. However, it is important to understand individual investment priorities before making an investment decision. Asset allocation, at its most basic level, is premised on three pillars that include; investor risk tolerance, investment horizon, and the rate of return. In the context of risk, it is worthy tolerating illiquidity as a trade-off, for a superior rate of return. This is what is referred to as, illiquidity premium.