PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Susan Hudson-Wilson TI - Why Real Estate? AID - 10.3905/jpm.2001.319820 DP - 2001 Oct 31 TA - The Journal of Portfolio Management PG - 20--32 VI - 28 IP - 1 4099 - https://pm-research.com/content/28/1/20.short 4100 - https://pm-research.com/content/28/1/20.full AB - Institutional investors have traditionally viewed real estate as a risk–reducer, diversifying portfolios in line with the fiduciary responsibilities imposed by ERISA. This is not the only role that the asset class can fill. Real estate can obviously help make a portfolio market–neutral and more reflective of the overall investment universe. Can it also reduce the overall risk of a portfolio, provide high absolute returns, act as an inflation hedge, and offer strong cash flows? Recently, the equity market has faltered, and the specters of inflation and recession now haunt the collective psyche of the investor. Why real estate? Is the answer more compelling now than in the late 1990s? The author takes a detailed look.