Long term strategies are at the heart
of all Internos investment decisions. 'The decisive eye'
encapsulates our working ethos and is also the title of our
quarterly strategic bulletin. The word 'eye' conveys the importance
of wide strategic vision as the framework in which decisions are
made.
Strategy and economic cycles
Early in the economic cycle, the key task is to identify regions
and sectors moving into growth. An example is: in backing Germany
in mid-2010, we predicted domestic spending to hit the highest
points for a decade and so gave preference to retail over offices.
We practice such analysis daily.
Cycle-resistance: strategy before a downturn
The importance of a strategic mindset strikes home when a
cyclical downturn hits values. Internos principals have been almost
solo voices in identifying that some classes of real estate, or
property-based businesses, can be cycle-resistant: those that take
account of long-term trends in demographics, attitudes and law.
Internos founders have successfully invested client funds in
projects such as senior living, self-storage and branded hotels at
times when conventional investments were heading for negative total
returns.
Strategic insight in evidence: the decisive
eye
2011 Award for 'Best Research' - Property
Marketing Awards
In issue 1 of our quarterly
bulletin (June 2010), Internos seemed a lone voice identifying
that a falling Euro would boost the core Eurozone and Germany above
all - a prediction soon to be confirmed. Subsequent issues
predicted bank 'unbundling' of relationships with real estate. From
issue 2 onwards, our views have been widely quoted by the real
estate and financial press as excerpts or in interviews generated
from forecasts made in the
decisive eye.
Strategy in each investment decision
A permanent member of our Investment Committee is Internos Head
of Strategy, Andrew Baum, Professor of Land
Management at the University of Reading in the UK, a leading expert
and published writer on real estate investment and economics.