PERIODIC REFURBISHMENT AND RENTAL VALUE GROWTH

The market value of any property investment will tend to deteriorate over time when compared to similar modern properties if monies are not periodically expended to mitigate the effects of obsolescence. This paper examines the relationship between the initial yield of a property at purchase and the rate of future rental value growth necessary to achieve a criterion rate of return on the investment. Traditionally in calculations of the future rental growth rate required to justify an initial investment yield (when compared, say, to the rental shown by gilt‐edged stocks) the simplistic view is taken that following purchase no further expenditure is anticipated. However, if a property is to maintain its original market appeal (or adapt to evolving circumstances), capital must from time‐to‐time be injected for the purposes of refurbishment. Thus, any analytical model which ignores this inevitable expenditure, but nevertheless assumes a constant rate of long‐term future rental growth, is quite unrealistic. A Refurbishment‐Rental Growth Model is derived which allows the introduction of regular future capital expenditure both in terms of magnitude and frequency. Various examples are illustrated of the effect which such expenditure may have in necessarily increasing the required future rental growth for a property investment in order to achieve an anticipated level of return.