London commercial property market 'one of most attractive'

London's commercial property market is one of the most attractive for investors, according to research.

A report by US organisation the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (AFIRE) states that the current economic downturn will lead investors to markets which have remained stable in the long term.

The body surveyed its 200 members, who collectively hold $700 billion (£350 billion) of cross-border real estate and found that London and New York are the most secure places to purchase commercial property.

Washington DC and Paris were next on the list, while areas such as Tokyo, which have been largely unaffected by inflation and the subprime crisis, are also attracting attention.

Jim Fetgatter, chief executive of AFIRE, says investors currently feel they are not getting a good return for the risks they are taking on.

"Lots of people believe that there is a compression of yields around the world in some of these emerging countries,' he comments.

"You're better off going to one of the well-established, transparent markets than some other place that has a lot of risk, where you're not being compensated for that risk."

Last month one economist predicted that the malaise in the commercial property market may be over reasonably quickly.

Martin Slowe Property Services are Commercial Property Consultants offering a full range of Commercial Property Services.