Specialist property trusts buck outflows trend in first half of 2016

Yield-hungry investors have been flocking to specialist property trusts this year, against a backdrop of falling demand for more generalist property funds.

The closed-ended property sector has raised £420m in the first five months of the year, accounting for nearly 50% of total trust fundraisings so far in 2016, according to Winterflood Investment Trusts. Trusts including Tritax Big Box REIT, Empiric Student Property and Target Healthcare REIT are among those that have raised additional capital through placings so far this year. However, nearly all of this year's fundraising has been in specialist areas, as more traditional commercial property funds continue to battle headwinds including next month's EU referendum and the impact of chang...