Measuring the performance and efficiency of property portfolio management

Property portfolio management strategies and practices are under constant evaluation. The need for evaluating the efficiency of the selected management strategy is increasing. The need is being emphasised by the increasing number of management options and investment alternatives available for property investors. Objective information on the costs and efficiency of different management functions is needed, for example, in making the decision whether to maintain certain management functions in-house or to outsource them to service providers. However, objective and comparable information on the actual costs of different management functions is relatively difficult to obtain because of differences in management and accounting practices between portfolios. In this paper, the processes and functions of property portfolio management are identified. These consist of three core processes Ò those of portfolio management, asset management and property management. Identification of the processes and functions forms a framework for measuring the costs of different management activities. Differences between management practices in UK and Finnish portfolios are discussed. Two different investor types are identified: property companies and institutional investors. The actual level of property portfolio management costs is examined by calculating some indicators of management costs in relation to certain measures of the portfolio. Empirical evidence is gathered from annual reports of listed property companies in the UK and in Finland. Management cost information is also gathered from nine Finnish institutional investors. Possibilities for and difficulties related to the measurement and comparison of management costs are discussed.