Shared 17 June, 2025
Following substantial underperformance compared to US REITs over recent years, Europe’s listed real estate (LRE) market is experiencing a remarkable turnaround, presenting compelling investment opportunities for global investors seeking alternatives to volatile US equity markets. The European LRE sector has generated double-digit returns year-to-date, with the FTSE EPRA Nareit Developed Europe Index up 20.5% as of June 9, dramatically outpacing the 2.3% return of the FTSE Nareit All Equity REITs Index in the US.
“From that perspective, if you think real estate is attractive, then REITs are doubly attractive. The REIT space has quite a bit going for it in Europe,” says Edoardo Gili, senior analyst at Green Street and Pan-European sector head of retail, industrial and net lease research. The shift comes as investors seek refuge from US market uncertainty driven by tariff announcements and policy volatility under the Trump administration, with the S&P 500 delivering just 2.7% year-to-date returns compared to 8.1% for the European equivalent Stoxx Europe 600.
Strong investor appetite is evident in capital raising activity, with European property companies raising €2.4 billion in April alone, bringing the year-to-date total to over €8.7 billion according to EPRA. The declining US dollar has provided additional tailwinds, with euro and British pound appreciation enhancing returns for dollar-denominated investors. “That’s a strong signal of market liquidity and investor willingness to support both refinancing and growth strategies,” says EPRA CEO Dominique Moerenhout. “As capital continues to seek resilient, income-generating assets, European REITs are in a good position to catch the eye of international investors looking for both performance and protection.”
The European market offers significant value opportunities, with companies trading at substantial discounts to net asset value of roughly 25%-30% versus discounts of 5%-10% among US REITs. “We are now coming out of that decline. We’re seeing a stabilization in asset values, and signs of growth in the last six to 12 months are the first that we’ve seen for some time,” says Guy Barnard, co-head of global property equities at Janus Henderson Investors. The lower valuations are driving increased M&A activity, with private equity recognizing opportunities to acquire companies at discounts to market value.
Despite challenges including higher leverage levels and the need for continued balance sheet improvements, forward-looking forecasts remain encouraging. Oxford Economics expects total returns in dollars to reach 4.5% in 2025 and 5.6% in 2026. “When you look at REITs versus private markets, you’ve got that discount with an added bonus of increased liquidity,” says Matthew Goulding, portfolio manager at CenterSquare Investment Management. “So I think that the European REIT market is in a space, hopefully, where it can grow in size now and grow relative to the globe, rather than have this situation that we experienced where there was a lot of shrinkage.”
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BuiltAPI GmbH, the company pioneering API-driven data infrastructure for real estate investment and asset management, has successfully closed its latest funding round backed by industry leaders including Second Century Ventures, TDS, and Propertymark. The investment marks a major milestone as BuiltAPI expands its services across Europe and the UK, following its graduation from the REACH UK Accelerator Program.
BuiltAPI tackles one of the real estate sector’s most persistent problems: fragmented, siloed data ecosystems. The company provides a robust API framework that enables seamless connectivity between legacy systems, modern SaaS tools, and intelligent automation platforms — with interoperability, governance, and cybersecurity at its core.
“We’re building the backbone of real estate data infrastructure,” said Olga Dentzel, Co-Founder of BuiltAPI. “This funding and the support of the REACH UK program are accelerating our ability to deliver secure, scalable integrations to clients across borders.”
BuiltAPI’s technology is already making an impact with major real estate institutions such as HIH Real Estate and its fund service platform INTREAL, through their digital unit INTREAL Solutions. These collaborations highlight a shared vision for practical and scalable digital transformation in real estate asset and investment management.
“The industry doesn’t need yet another tool — it needs a connective tissue,” added Ivan Nokhrin, Co-Founder of BuiltAPI. “Our mission is to empower real estate professionals to access, share, and act on their data securely and without barriers.”
Graduation from the REACH UK Accelerator — the scale-up program backed by Second Century Ventures – marks BuiltAPI’s official entry into the UK market. The program has played a key role in unlocking investors support and refining BuildAPI’s growth trajectory.
BuiltAPI GmbH, the company pioneering API-driven data infrastructure for real estate investment and asset management, has successfully closed its latest funding round backed by industry leaders including Second Century Ventures, TDS, and Propertymark. The investment marks a major milestone as BuiltAPI expands its services across Europe and the UK, following its graduation from the REACH UK Accelerator Program.
BuiltAPI tackles one of the real estate sector’s most persistent problems: fragmented, siloed data ecosystems. The company provides a robust API framework that enables seamless connectivity between legacy systems, modern SaaS tools, and intelligent automation platforms — with interoperability, governance, and cybersecurity at its core.
“We’re building the backbone of real estate data infrastructure,” said Olga Dentzel, Co-Founder of BuiltAPI. “This funding and the support of the REACH UK program are accelerating our ability to deliver secure, scalable integrations to clients across borders.”
BuiltAPI’s technology is already making an impact with major real estate institutions such as HIH Real Estate and its fund service platform INTREAL, through their digital unit INTREAL Solutions. These collaborations highlight a shared vision for practical and scalable digital transformation in real estate asset and investment management.
“The industry doesn’t need yet another tool — it needs a connective tissue,” added Ivan Nokhrin, Co-Founder of BuiltAPI. “Our mission is to empower real estate professionals to access, share, and act on their data securely and without barriers.”
Graduation from the REACH UK Accelerator — the scale-up program backed by Second Century Ventures – marks BuiltAPI’s official entry into the UK market. The program has played a key role in unlocking investors support and refining BuildAPI’s growth trajectory.
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