Evolution of Investments through Sale and Leaseback Investment: A Qualitative Investigation from Malaysian REITs

Abstract

Sale and leaseback is known as a voluntary investment by owners to free up their equities for other uses while maintaining the use of the facility. In Malaysia, Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) is one of the institutional investors adopting the sale and leaseback approach for the wide range of new investment technologies to enhance the value of the investment. The aim is to revolutionize the property industry by switching the design of physical asset investments from direct investments to indirect investments influenced by factors determining the property investment yield by analysing and responding to the information received. The research uses a qualitative method due to the limitation in the number of REITs involved in sale and leaseback investments in Malaysia. Using semi structured interviews, the data was recorded, transcribed and analyzed using thematic analyses for multiple interviews. Results indicated three factors that influence the yield which are location, tenants and property type. The result of the study would be a useful guide to Real Estate managers in developing countries to use sale and leaseback as one of the alternative ways to increase the revenue from the property investments.