Woei Chyuan Wong

Can Bank Lines of Credit Protect Reits Against a Credit Crisis

In a tight credit market, the primary concern of most real estate investment trusts (REITs) is the ability to access capital and maintain adequate liquidity. Bank lines of credit or loan commitments, which are legally binding contracts arranged to provide debt at the call of the borrowers under prespecified terms, have been theorized to provide insurance protection against a credit crisis. This article examines whether bank lines of credit can indeed provide some insurance for REITs and allow them to access credit during bad times. Covering three credit crunch events, both the origination and utilization patterns of commitment loans by 275 REITs publicly traded between 1992 and 2007 are analyzed. We find that bank lines of credit insulated REITs from credit rationing at both the broad market level as well as at the firm level. However, the insurance value is qualified in the case of smaller and risky firms which may not get to extend their credit limit or draw down on their existing credit lines in a credit crisis.

Asian REITS: Growing into Maturity

The Asian REIT markets have grown substantially over the past decade, partly due to a boom in the number of REIT IPOs and partly due to the newly listed REITs expanding aggressively by acquiring many properties within a short time period, often funded by cheap debt. Investors’ appetite is boosted by the positive risk-adjusted returns registered in the four major REIT markets in Asia, namely Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

Apartment foreclosure discount in Kuala Lumpur

With the exception of anecdotal information which suggests that auctioned or foreclosed properties in Malaysia tend to be sold at a deep discount, no study has thus far attempted to quantify this foreclosure discount. This notion is explored by comparing the listing price of auctioned apartments with comparable non-auctioned apartments located within the same building blocks in Kuala Lumpur during the period 2009–2014. The property auction market is predominately relied upon to dispose of foreclosed properties in Malaysia. It is found that foreclosed apartments are listed at a discount of 33.4% as compared to apartments advertised in the private negotiated market. This discount is attributed to “stigma effect” associated with auctioned properties and the imperfections of the Malaysian auction market such as auctioned properties may not carry a clean title, potential buyers cannot view the properties prior to auction and may not obtain vacant possession of the properties. The “proxy effect” was minimal since the matching strategy adopted would have netted out the differentials in locational and neighbourhood characteristics between auctioned and non-auctioned properties.

Announcement effects of dividend tax cuts and corporate policies: evidence from Malaysia REITs

Abstract This study examines the effect of dividend tax changes on the share prices and corporate policies of Malaysian REITs. Event study results show that dividend tax cut announcements provide positive abnormal returns. Based on cross-sectional regression, the abnormal returns are found to be larger for REITs with a higher retail ownership. The implementation of dividend tax cuts also increases dividend payout and reduce investment activities. These results partly support the traditional view of dividend taxation which posits that tax reform could affect economic efficiency and resource allocation in an economy.

Implications of dividend tax reforms on M-REITs performance

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the performance of 19 Malaysian Real Estate Investment Trusts (M-REITs) over the period 1999 to 2014, following the implementation of dividend tax reforms announced in the 2007, 2009 and 2012 budgets. Design/methodology/approach Sharpe index, Treynor index and Jensen α are utilized to compare the performance of M-REITs against a newly developed tax-adjusted value-weighted M-REITs index, equity market, property sector and three month Malaysia Treasury Bills (T-Bills). The calculation of M-REITs returns has been adjusted to take into account the dividend tax reforms which have never been considered in previous studies. Findings Most M-REITs outperform the tax-adjusted value-weighted REITs index, equity market, property sector and three month T-Bills. Property sector performs worst during those periods. Some of the M-REITs have a higher standard deviation than the equity market and the tax-adjusted value-weighted M-REITs index. Most M-REITs have a lower total risk than the property sector. Further analysis shows that before (after) the tax reforms, most M-REITs underperform (outperform) the other sectors. The introduction of the tax reforms benefits both REITs and investors. A significant positive Jensen α for some M-REITs indicates that fund managers are able to time the market or to select undervalued assets. Practical implications Findings of the study would enable investors to evaluate the performance of all REITs in comparison to other financial assets during the period of study for better investment decision making. A more accurate assessment on REITs performance that take into account the tax reforms, is available for investors and fund managers to decide on the investment mix to be included in their portfolio. Moreover, fund managers’ performance can be assessed whether they perform better or worse than the equity market, property sector and three month T-Bills. Originality/value This study contributes to the scant literature on dividend tax reforms and their implication toward REITs performance. It is the first study to thoroughly assess the returns of REITs by taking into account the changes on dividend tax rates announced in the 2007, 2009 and 2012 budgets.