Listed property group Charter Hall believes the interest from Australian superannuation funds in participating in direct property and property debt transactions will continue to grow.
"I think that is a trend that is going to continue," Charter Hall head of wholesale investment funds management Andrew Glass said.
"During the global financial crisis there were pension managers who were unhappy with the way some of their managers looked after their funds.
"They felt they wanted to have more control over the disposal process, and what we are talking about here are the larger funds.
"They have the desire to own real estate directly, that is not to say that they are moving completely out of listed funds, but they have increased their allocation to direct property to get that control element."
Charter Hall head of investor relations Nick Kelly said the high correlation of real estate investment trusts (REIT) with equities during the crisis also made asset consultants more aware of the importance of having a direct property allocation.
"Ten years ago some asset consultants purely had their property allocation invested in REITs. There is no asset consultant in Australia that has that model anymore; they all allocate between listed REITs and unlisted property, but they are not pulling out of listed real estate en masse," Kelly said.
Last month, the Charter Hall Retail REIT struck a deal with Telstra Super to buy a portfolio of Woolworths anchored shopping centres worth $266 million.
Glass said many superannuation funds looked to partner on direct property deals with property specialists because of the commitment required to bring property skills in-house.
"One of the challenges is that you need scale to justify the cost of bringing in-house property resources, or the other option, which we have seen emerging, is some pension funds will choose a partner and they will co-invest in opportunities that are brought to them," he said.
In April, industry fund UniSuper committed $250 million to a commercial mortgage-backed securities issue of the REIT.
Superannuation funds have only recently been participating on the debt side of property deals, but Glass said that was a logical step for them as the superannuation system matured.
"With compulsory superannuation in Australia, the natural depositors' base has shifted from the banks to the pension area," he said.
"It is only natural that the recipients of that cash would come back to the lending market."
