PFA’s “Podcast on Property” with Greg Preston and Benjamin Martin-Henry

Greg Preston and Benjamin Martin-Henry talk the latest in Australian commercial property, cast an eye back at what has unfolded during 2025 and look ahead to 2026.

• How have some of their predictions from earlier this year played out across 2025?
• What is the latest data saying about Australian commercial property?
• Which sectors are showing the most promise, and how is the current recovery panning out?
• How are interest rate cuts influencing Australian commercial property?
• What are some of the challenges and opportunities facing commercial property in 2026?

PFA Property Podcast: Making sense of the current property market

Greg Preston and Benjamin Martin-Henry discuss the current state-of-play in property, at a time where the greatest certainty is change.

• What do the latest results say about the current cycle for Australian commercial real estate – have values bottomed across all asset classes?
• What impact are rate cuts having thus far?
• Does Australia's reputation as a global investment haven mitigate risks posed by geopolitical uncertainty?
• How are investors weighing forward income risk against capital market risks such as cap rates and discount rates across different real estate sectors?
• What is the latest on core asset classes including office, industrial, and retail property?
• Are current cap rate and discount rate assumptions for data centres sustainable, or could long-term valuation volatility emerge due to evolving user needs?
• Discussion of the recent Parliamentary Joint Committee decision on the wholesale investor test thresholds.

Welcome to Property Funds Association of Australia’s Podcast on Property, a discussion between property industry experts on the influential trends and stories behind the headline numbers in commercial property investment.

Our inaugural episode features Greg Preston, Managing Director of Preston Rowe Paterson, and Benjamin Martin-Henry, Head of Real Assets Research, Pacific at MSCI Real Assets, to discuss:

• How transaction volumes have fared in 2022 and what the preliminary Q4 figures reveal.
• Are any sectors behaving differently and the demarcation between REITs and property valuations.
• The forces driving changes in valuations – inflation, interest rates, cost of capital and transactions data
• The challenges facing valuations: decompression of cap rates vs rental growth; short term pressures vs long term growth normalisation for DCFs
• Weight of capital factors: domestic superannuation and international investors.
• The conundrum of working from home – a factor in the office market turbulence.
• The need for vibrant cities – have a ‘put another prawn on the barbie’ campaign?
• Alternative assets booming over the last two years.
• Property performance in times of uncertainty and downturn – a defensive sector. How is this cycle different?