Commercial property: a good contrarian bet?

Whilst some are claiming the shaky UK property sector is a good contrarian play, you can find better value abroad, says Eoin Gleeson.

"Canny investors often make a killing by going against the herd," says Paul Farrow in The Daily Telegraph, "so could this mean that there is a buying opportunity for contrarian investors in the crumbling British commercial property sector?"

In a word, no. And no again. This is most definitely not the time to be betting on UK commercial property. According to Jones Lang LaSalle, the world's second-largest commercial real-estate broker, transactions in the UK slumped 60% in the final quarter of 2007. Appraisal values are falling at a record rate as commercial real-estate outfits slash the value of the offices, shopping centres and warehouses that they can't shift.

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/mw70aro6gl1676370748.jpg

Sign up to Money Morning

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Sign up

Eoin came to MoneyWeek in 2006 having graduated with a MLitt in economics from Trinity College, Dublin. He taught economic history for two years at Trinity, while researching a thesis on how herd behaviour destroys financial markets.