Greater regulation from Europe and increasingly empowered and well informed occupiers as a result of social media are just two of the issues facing the UK property industry, the MIPIM property convention in Cannes, France, will be told.
The event run by the British Property Federation (BPF) and London consultancy RealService, will hear some of the property industry's leading figures spell out their vision for what the property industry will look like in the year 2020.
With the property industry finally picking up post recession, albeit slowly, new ways of doing business are emerging and inevitably the internet and social media will take centre stage over the coming decade.
Neil Young, chief executive officer of the Young Group, believes that occupiers will continue to become more knowledgeable and empowered as information becomes increasingly accessible and more easily shared through social media, something that the sector as a whole has been slow to adopt.
‘I'd like to think that over the next decade property professionals can not only catch up, but also lead the way with innovative use of technology to drive a better more transparent experience for customers and closer, flexible relationships with landlords and occupiers,’ he said.
‘The property industry's customers will also be more knowledgeable with information at their finger tips to help them make informed decisions about which suppliers are best and offer consistently high levels of customer service,’ said Howard Morgan, managing director of RealService.
Industry experts will also highlight that the UK property industry needs to be increasingly wary of the growing influence of EU legislation over the coming decade, which threatens to establish a stranglehold.
‘When Brussels first turned its attention to the property industry, it focused on energy and environmental matters with the odd foray into VAT. However there is a worrying trend of EU legislation catching the UK property industry in its regulatory net,’ said Liz Peace, chief executive of the British Property Federation.
‘The trouble with the legislation, such as the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive, is that it is not directed initially at the real estate industry but because we are now regarded as an integral part of the capital markets it is very difficult to persuade Brussels law makers that we should not be lumped in with the rest of the investment community,’ she explained.
‘Trying to get across to EU officials that investing in property involves more that an act of pure financial speculation and actually requires serious ‘production' and management of the assets we own is proving challenging. The penalty if we fail to do so by 2020 could be a whole raft of suffocating legislation,’ she added.
According to Martin Samworth, managing director of Financial Dynamics UK, as a consequence of regulatory control, which is set to increase in the near future, there will be a better understanding and more effective management of risk.
‘Capital sources and its deployment will therefore be influenced by investors' appetite towards risk and the regulatory framework. The latter will have a direct impact on how real estate is funded. For example, the consequences of Basel III and Solvency II will add a new dimension and focus, particularly around debt,’ he explained.
