The 4 Types of Commercial Real Estate Investment Strategies [Guide] (2024)

Institutional investors share the common goal of generating revenue by building a portfolio with compounding value, but different investors accomplish this in various ways. Depending on risk tolerance, fund specifications and expertise, there are several types of real estate investment, as well as real estate investment strategies, that investment managers can employ. Each strategy presents a different level of risk and, consequently, returns.

Read on to learn more about the four main commercial real estate investment strategies, as well as the risk levels and reward potential for each.

Jump to:

  • Types of Real Estate Investment
  • Real Estate Investment Strategies
    • Core
    • Core-Plus
    • Value-Added
    • Opportunistic
  • Which Real Estate Investment Strategy Is Best?

The 5 Different Types of Real Estate Investment

As the market evolves and adapts to new technologies, new ways to invest in real estate continue to emerge. These are some of the most popular types of real estate investment through which investors spanning various backgrounds can deploy capital:

  • Commercial: Commercial real estate investors acquire, sell, develop, and lend for industrial, office, retail, multifamily, hotels, and other commercial buildings
  • Raw land: Raw land investors purchase land to either develop or sell for profit, which typically requires significant capital and awareness of zoning, development and other considerations
  • REIT: Real estate investment trusts, or REITs, are publicly traded entities that invest in and own commercial real estate, enabling investors to own shares in buildings
  • Crowdfunding: Crowdfunding platforms offer non-institutional investors access to investments typically only available to institutions
  • Residential: Residential real estate investors own single-family homes and rent them to tenants, or flip them to buyers with investment strategies like fix-and-flip, live-in-flip, BRRRR and more

While there are many different types of real estate investment to choose from, commercial real estate remains one of the most profitable ways to generate returns. For the purposes of this article, we’ll focus on commercial real estate investment strategies.

Understanding The Four Main Commercial Real Estate Investment Strategies

When it comes to commercial real estate investment strategies, there are four main approaches: core, core plus, value added, and opportunistic. These investment strategies are not fundamentally different from each other–in all cases, investors buy properties with the goal of generating returns.

Furthermore, investors typically screen deals through similar data-driven analysis and due diligence processes across these investment strategies. All of these strategies can be bolstered by real estate investment software, though different strategies may call for unique workflows and considerations. For example, higher-risk investments may require additional scrutiny during due diligence.

Crucially, though, the balance between risk and return varies by strategy, which is often dictated by the type of real estate investment fund.

1. Core

Summary: The standard “buy and hold” investment strategy in which investors purchase high-quality buildings that generate stable revenue
Risk Profile: Low risk and returns
Typical IRR: Below 10%

Core investments enable investors to create value by buying and holding ideally located, high-quality buildings and portfolios. This real estate investment strategy presents relatively low risk, given that these properties retain value well. Because the risk is low, internal rates of return tend to hover below 10%. As tenants favor class A properties, there are typically minimal vacancies that detract from revenue.

Core investors generate returns namely through revenue, rather than capital appreciation. Because core investments are typically class A buildings, they generally won’t require capital injections to deliver the target revenue.Lucrative in both favorable and unfavorable market conditions, core investments are largely recession-proof.

2. Core Plus

Summary: A relatively low-risk investment strategy in which investors add value to mostly stable buildings with revenue-driving renovations
Risk Profile: Low-moderate risk and returns (slightly higher risk and returns than core investments)
Typical IRR: 10-14%

Like the core real estate investment strategy, the core-plus approach revolves around acquiring and holding assets. Core-plus buildings typically involve some risk, though, whether in the form of the building’s condition, location, age, or another factor that might impact value. Generally, though, core-plus buildings carry relatively stable value.

Core-plus investors add value by either filling significant tenant vacancies or making renovations. For example, a core-plus investor may acquire a high-quality building, then add amenities that attract tenants willing to pay higher rents. This real estate investment strategy tends to generate an internal rate of return around 10-14%.

3. Value-Add

Summary: A relatively high-risk investment strategy in which investors acquire buildings in need of capital for a 5-7 year period
Risk Profile: Moderate risk and returns
Typical IRR: 15-19%

Investors with a higher appetite for both risk and reward might pursue value-added strategies. Value-add investment strategies generally focus on assets that, for one reason or another, are in distressed situations and require capital to achieve profitability. This investment can take the form of renovations, repositioning the asset to a new asset class or tenant, or simply filling significant tenant vacancies, with the ultimate goal of creating stability.

It often takes at least five-seven years for the property to appreciate to the target internal rate of return. One advantage of value-add deals, though, is that firms can sell fully appreciated assets for well above the initial purchase price.

Value-added investments can be a more affordable way for investors to gain a foothold in major markets, without paying exorbitant prices for established, fully occupied properties. For value-added real estate investment strategies, internal rates of return are generally around 15-19%.

4. Opportunistic

Summary: The highest-risk investment strategy, in which investors acquire buildings that need significant investments to achieve profitability
Risk Profile: High risk and returns
Typical IRR: 20%+

Opportunistic real estate investment strategies cause investors to incur the highest level of risk, but with the highest potential for returns. These investments typically require a significant capital injection to address major challenges and become profitable.

In some cases, investors might buy dilapidated buildings to make thorough renovations. In others, firms might purchase low-occupancy or vacant buildings and lease more tenants until the asset reaches stability.It’s not uncommon for opportunistic investments to endure periods with minimal or no income, making them a liability.

Developments are sometimes considered opportunistic investments, as these projects require complete funding for construction. Opportunistic real estate investment strategies can deliver returns as high as over 20%, making them particularly attractive to some investors. Proptech continues to help investors uncover these lucrative opportunities in faster and easier ways.

Which Real Estate Investment Strategy Is Best?

So, which real estate investment strategy is best? While there is no one “best type of real estate to invest in”, each strategy presents unique benefits and risks. Investment managers typically raise capital for investments matching a specific risk profile, restricting managed funds to certain deals.

While some firms may have a higher appetite for opportunistic investments, most deliberately diversify their portfolios to mitigate risk. As market conditions change, it’s not uncommon for firms to reevaluate their exposure to risk, consider offloading certain assets and pivot accordingly.

Why It’s Time to Adopt Deal Management Software

Deal management software is changing how institutional investors source, manage and execute deals in real time. Real-time pipeline visibility enables investment teams to uncover the most profitable opportunities, while managing risk with data at their fingertips. In a data-first market where speed and efficiency are key, firms without deal management software risk falling behind competitors that are better equipped to act quickly and confidently.

Learn more about why it’s time for deal management software by downloading our free white paper.

The 4 Types of Commercial Real Estate Investment Strategies [Guide] (2024)

FAQs

What are the 4 types of real estate investments? ›

Real estate investments can occur in four basic forms: private equity (direct ownership), publicly traded equity (indirect ownership claim), private debt (direct mortgage lending), and publicly traded debt (securitized mortgages). Many motivations exist for investing in real estate income property.

What is the 4 3 2 1 real estate strategy? ›

The 4-3-2-1 Approach

This ratio allocates 40% of your income towards expenses, 30% towards housing, 20% towards savings and investments and 10% towards insurance.

What are the 5 categories of real estate investments? ›

There are five main categories of real estate which include residential, commercial, industrial, raw land, and special use. Investing in real estate includes purchasing a home, rental property, or land. Indirect investment in real estate can be made via REITs or through pooled real estate investment.

Which of the following is one of the four general categories of investment property? ›

Remember, there are a hundred different investment strategies available in real estate investing but only four types of real estate: residential, commercial, industrial and land. So, why are property types so important in real estate investing? The short answer is they each produce returns in different ways.

What is the core 4 in real estate investing? ›

Commercial real estate is “vast” in almost every sense. That is good for investors, as it provides numerous entry points into investments and enables investors to easily diversify growing real estate portfolios. The “Core Four” in real estate are generally viewed as office, industrial, retail, and multifamily.

What are the four most important and well known types of investments? ›

There are four main investment types, or asset classes, that you can choose from, each with distinct characteristics, risks and benefits.
  • Growth investments. ...
  • Shares. ...
  • Property. ...
  • Defensive investments. ...
  • Cash. ...
  • Fixed interest.

What are the four quadrants of real estate finance? ›

Each of the four main types of real estate exposure – private equity, private debt, public equity and public debt – has its own set of advantages. Arguably the best approach is to combine their complementary benefits.

What is the 5 and 2 real estate rule? ›

The 2-out-of-five-year rule states that you must have both owned and lived in your home for a minimum of two out of the last five years before the date of sale. However, these two years don't have to be consecutive, and you don't have to live there on the date of the sale.

What are the 3 approaches in real estate? ›

Real estate appraisers and valuation professionals generally calculate property valuations using the three different methods of value: the cost approach; the income approach; and the comparable sales/ market approach.

What are the top 5 investment classes? ›

The five most common asset classes are equities, fixed-income securities, cash, marketable commodities and real estate.

What are the 3 classes of investing? ›

There are three main types of asset classes: stocks, fixed-income investments, and cash equivalents.
  • Stocks (also called equities) Stocks have historically earned the highest returns over the long term. ...
  • Fixed-income investments (also called bonds) ...
  • Cash equivalents.

What are the 4 main categories of alternative investments? ›

Common forms of alternative investments include real estate, commodities, cryptocurrency, and collectibles.

What are the four main categories of financial assets define? ›

financial asset

a contractual claim to something of value; modern economies have four main types of financial assets: bank deposits, stocks, bonds, and loans.

Are there four primary categories of capital investments? ›

The four major types of capital include working capital, debt, equity, and trading capital.

What is Phase 4 in real estate? ›

The four phases of the real estate cycle are recovery, expansion, hyper supply, and recession.

What are the major four 4 assets of an investors portfolio? ›

The main asset classes are equities, fixed income, cash or marketable securities, and commodities.

What is a Level 4 investor? ›

Level 4: Long-term Investors

Long-term investors are those who have a long-term investment plan and are engaged in that plan to ensure it helps their financial objectives. They are generally very conservative people (i.e. no fancy cars or houses) and have well-balanced financial habits.

Which are the 4 core characteristics of impact investment? ›

Characteristics of impact investing

These four characteristics are (1) Intentionality, (2) Evidence and Impact data in Investment Design, (3) Manage Impact Performance, and (4) Contribute to the growth of the industry.

What are the four investments which is considered the safest? ›

For example, certificates of deposit (CDs), money market accounts, municipal bonds and Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) are among the safest types of investments.

What is the most important investment strategy? ›

Buy and hold

A buy-and-hold strategy is a classic that's proven itself over and over. With this strategy you do exactly what the name suggests: you buy an investment and then hold it indefinitely. Ideally, you'll never sell the investment, but you should look to own it for at least 3 to 5 years.

What are the 4 economic characteristics of real estate? ›

Real estate has seven specific characteristics related to its economic impact or physical nature. They are scarcity, improvements, location, investment permanence, uniqueness, immobility, and Indestructibility.

What are the four 4 types of risk associated with real estate? ›

Real estate investing can be lucrative, but it's important to understand the risks. Key risks include bad locations, negative cash flows, high vacancies, and problem tenants.

What is principle 4 of finance? ›

The four principles of finance are income, savings, spending, and investing. Following these core principles of personal finance can help you maintain your finances at a healthy level. In many cases, these principles can help people build wealth over time.

What is the 80% rule in real estate? ›

The 80% rule means that an insurer will only fully cover the cost of damage to a house if the owner has purchased insurance coverage equal to at least 80% of the house's total replacement value.

What is Rule 70 in real estate? ›

The 70% rule can help flippers when they're scouring real estate listings for potential investment opportunities. Basically, the rule says real estate investors should pay no more than 70% of a property's after-repair value (ARV) minus the cost of the repairs necessary to renovate the home.

What is the 7% rule in real estate? ›

The top 7% are hustlers. If they don't know something, they'll learn it. If the heat is on, they'll put in the extra hours to make it happen. You don't have to know everything, everyone, have all the money, or talent, but if you'll apply those two principles, you'll do very well in real estate.

What are the three pillars of commercial real estate? ›

Commercial real estate (CRE) sits at the confluence of three distinct markets – space, equity, and debt.

What are the three most important real estate? ›

 If you have been involved in real estate for any length of time, you've heard it said that the three most important things when it comes to real estate are “location, location, location.” I've heard nationally-recognized experts say that over and over on national media.

What are the three main valuation methods for investors in commercial real estate? ›

Real estate valuation is done through three main approaches. They are the cost-based approach, comparison approach, and income capitalization.

What is a 3 way investment strategy? ›

A 3 fund portfolio is a diversification approach whereby the investors put their money in a certain ratio in three different asset classes, i.e., domestic stocks, domestic bonds, and international stocks. It is a simple, low-cost investing approach that ensures retirement savings at a minimal risk appetite.

What are the three 3 key elements of an investment strategy? ›

There are three key factors that determine which investment strategy is right for you.
  • Risk tolerance.
  • Expected returns.
  • Effort required to implement the strategy.

What are the 2 major types of investing strategies? ›

INVESTMENT STYLES

There's much debate about the relative merits of active and passive — two common investing styles — which are based on very different views of how capital markets operate. You can find out more about active and passive investing in Beyond the benchmark: active or passive investment management?

What are the 7 types of investment? ›

Read on to know what's right for you.
  • Stocks. Stocks represent ownership or shares in a company. ...
  • Bonds. A bond is an investment where you lend money to a company, government, and other types of organization. ...
  • Mutual Funds. ...
  • Property. ...
  • Money Market Funds. ...
  • Retirement Plans. ...
  • VUL insurance plans.

What are the five investment strategies? ›

There are five different types of investment strategies:
  • Value Investing.
  • Growth Investing.
  • Income Investing.
  • Socially Responsible Investing.
  • Small-Cap Investing.

What are the 4 categories to invest in Dave Ramsey? ›

Dave divides his mutual fund investments equally between four types of funds: Growth and income, growth, aggressive growth, and international.

What are the 4 common methods used to evaluate long term investment alternatives? ›

The most commonly used methods are the following four.
  • Payback period analysis. The payback period measures the amount of time it will take to recoup, in the form of net cash inflows, the net initial investment in a project. ...
  • Accounting rate of return. ...
  • Net present value. ...
  • Internal rate of return.

How many types of investment classification are there? ›

A simple way of classifying investments is to divide them into three categories or “investment methods” which include: Debt investments (loans) Equity investments (company ownership) Hybrid investments (convertible securities, mezzanine capital, preferred shares)

What are the different types of investor categories? ›

Check out different types of investors and how each could potentially benefit your company:
  • Angel Investors. Angel investors are individuals. ...
  • Peer-to-Peer Lenders. Peer-to-peer lenders can be individuals or groups. ...
  • Personal Investors. ...
  • Banks. ...
  • Venture Capitalists.

What are the four main assets? ›

There are four main asset classes – cash, fixed income, equities, and property – and it's likely your portfolio covers all four areas even if you're not familiar with the term.

What are the 5 financial assets? ›

Cash, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and bank deposits are all are examples of financial assets.

What is the most common type of financial asset? ›

1. Cash and the Cash Equivalents. Cash and cash equivalents are highly liquid financial asset types that are quickly convertible into cash without significant risk of loss in value.

What are the 4 types of capital budgeting? ›

There are four types of capital budgeting: the payback period, the internal rate of return analysis, the net present value, and the avoidance analysis.

What are the 4 major components of capital structure? ›

Capital Structure refers to the proportion of money that is invested in a business. It has four components and it includes Equity Capital, Reserves and Surplus, Net Worth, Total Borrowings.

What are the 4 types of capital structure? ›

One may use it to finance overall business operations and investment activities. The types of capital structure are equity share capital, debt, preference share capital, and vendor finance.

What are at least 3 types of real estate investments? ›

Let's explore a few of the options available to you.
  • Residential Real Estate.
  • Commercial Real Estate.
  • Raw Land.
  • Real Estate Trust Investments (REITs)
  • Real Estate Crowdfunding.
Apr 21, 2023

What are the 3 basic types of return on real estate investment? ›

IRR, CAP Rates & Cash On Cash

Three real estate metrics or expressions of Return On Investment investors may encounter today include IRR, cap rate and cash on cash yields.

What are the 3 major types of investment styles? ›

It will be the way you divide your contributions among the three basic investment categories: stocks, bonds and stable value money market funds.

What are all the ways to invest in real estate? ›

With that in mind, here are five top ways to invest in real estate.
  • Buy your own home. You might not normally think of your first residence as an investment, but many people do. ...
  • Purchase a rental property and become a landlord. ...
  • Consider flipping houses. ...
  • Buy a REIT. ...
  • Use an online real estate platform.
Mar 28, 2023

What are the 4 types of returns? ›

Let's understand the different types of returns in mutual funds and their significance:
  • Absolute Returns: ...
  • Annualized Returns: ...
  • Total Returns: ...
  • Point to Point Returns: ...
  • Trailing Returns: ...
  • Rolling Returns:
Mar 17, 2021

What is a good ROI on commercial real estate? ›

In a nutshell, calculating ROI on commercial property is a crucial step in evaluating the profitability of your investment. A good ROI in real estate is usually at least 8% to 10%, but you should also consider other factors such as potential risks and market conditions.

What are the 3 types of return? ›

3 types of return
  • Interest. Investments like savings accounts, GICs and bonds pay interest. ...
  • Dividends. Some stocks pay dividends, which give investors a share. ...
  • Capital gains. As an investor, if you sell an investment like a stock, bond.
Sep 22, 2022

What are the 6 types of investments? ›

Here are six types of investments you might consider for long-term growth, and what you should know about each.
  • Stocks. A stock is an investment in a specific company. ...
  • Bonds. A bond is a loan you make to a company or government. ...
  • Mutual funds. ...
  • Index funds. ...
  • Exchange-traded funds. ...
  • Options.

What are four types of investments that you should always avoid? ›

13 Toxic Investments You Should Avoid
  1. Subprime Mortgages. ...
  2. Annuities. ...
  3. Penny Stocks. ...
  4. High-Yield Bonds. ...
  5. Private Placements. ...
  6. Traditional Savings Accounts at Major Banks. ...
  7. The Investment Your Neighbor Just Doubled His Money On. ...
  8. The Lottery.
Jun 1, 2023

What is the investing rule of 7? ›

Divide 72 by your average expected annual return

The answer you get is how many years it should take for your money to double. In this case, it would take you 7.2 years to double your money.

What are the 4 techniques considered in the active equity portfolio management strategies? ›

The main types of active management strategies include bottom-up, top-down, factor-based, and activist.

What is the best investing strategy? ›

Buy and hold

A buy-and-hold strategy is a classic that's proven itself over and over. With this strategy you do exactly what the name suggests: you buy an investment and then hold it indefinitely. Ideally, you'll never sell the investment, but you should look to own it for at least 3 to 5 years.

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