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Manipulation in U.S. REIT Investment Performance Evaluation: Empirical Evidence

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  • Jamie Alcock
  • John Glascock
  • Eva Steiner

Abstract

We investigate whether Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) managers actively manipulate performance measures in spite of the strict regulation under the REIT regime. We provide empirical evidence that is consistent with this hypothesis. Specifically, manipulation strategies may rely on the opportunistic use of leverage. However, manipulation does not appear to be uniform across REIT sectors and seems to become more common as the level of competition in the underlying property sector increases. We employ a set of commonly used traditional performance measures and a recently developed manipulation-proof measure (MPPM, Goetzmann et al., Rev Finan Stud 20(5):1503–1546, 2007 ) to evaluate the performance of 147 REITs from seven different property sectors over the period 1991–2009. Our findings suggest that the existing REIT regulation may fail to mitigate a substantial agency conflict and that investors can benefit from evaluating return information carefully in order to avoid potentially manipulative funds. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2013

Suggested Citation

  • Jamie Alcock & John Glascock & Eva Steiner, 2013. "Manipulation in U.S. REIT Investment Performance Evaluation: Empirical Evidence," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 434-465, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jrefec:v:47:y:2013:i:3:p:434-465
    DOI: 10.1007/s11146-012-9378-8
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    Cited by:

    1. Ying Zhang & J. Andrew Hansz, 2022. "Industry Concentration and U.S. REIT Returns," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 50(1), pages 247-267, March.
    2. Jamie Alcock & Eva Steiner & Kelvin Tan, 2014. "Joint Leverage and Maturity Choices in Real Estate Firms: The Role of the REIT Status," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 48(1), pages 57-78, January.
    3. Jamie Alcock & Eva Steiner, 2017. "Unexpected Inflation, Capital Structure, and Real Risk-adjusted Firm Performance," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 53(2), pages 273-298, June.
    4. Masatomo Suzuki & Seow Eng Ong & Yasushi Asami & Chihiro Shimizu, 2023. "Long-Run Renewal of REIT Property Portfolio Through Strategic Divestment," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 66(1), pages 1-40, January.
    5. Jamie Alcock & Petra Andrlikova, 2018. "Asymmetric Dependence in Real Estate Investment Trusts: An Asset-Pricing Analysis," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 56(2), pages 183-216, February.
    6. Jamie Alcock & Eva Steiner, 2018. "Fundamental Drivers of Dependence in REIT Returns," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 57(1), pages 4-42, July.
    7. Ying Zhang & J. Andrew Hansz & Wikrom Prombutr, 2022. "Economic Policy Uncertainty and Real Estate Market: Evidence from U.S. REITs," International Real Estate Review, Global Social Science Institute, vol. 25(1), pages 55-87.
    8. Bao, Helen X.H. & Gong, Cynthia Miao, 2017. "Reference-dependent analysis of capital structure and REIT performance," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 38-49.
    9. Daoju Peng & Jianfu Shen & Simon Yu Kit Fung & Eddie C. M. Hui & Kwokyuen Fan, 2024. "The Valuation Effect and Consequences of Clawback Adoption in Real Estate Investment Trusts," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 68(2), pages 274-317, February.
    10. Rafiq Bhuyan & James Kuhle & Talla Mohammed Al-Deehani & Munir Mahmood, 2015. "Portfolio Diversification Benefits Using Real Estate Investment Trusts An Experiment with US Common Stocks, Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts, and Mortgage Real Estate Investment Trusts," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 5(4), pages 922-928.

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