International direct real estate investment: A review of the literature

This paper provides a critical review of research on international direct real estate investment issues. To date, no review article has explored the various findings of studies completed on the benefits of international real estate diversification. In the past 10 years, the quantity and variety of work have increased dramatically. The paper is organised by how investing in a real estate asset is analysed: in a mixed-asset portfolio context or a real-estate-only portfolio context. A fourth section focuses on research that has explored currency risk, one of the prevailing risks associated with international investing. The last section provides conclusions about the research and offers ideas for future research in this growing area of real estate investment.