Property management in foundations: between tradition and professionalisation

In many places, foundations’ property portfolios have grown organically over decades – and in some cases over centuries. They served as a secure investment, a means of securing long-term returns, or directly to fulfil the foundation’s purpose. In the past, property management could be limited to letting flats as they became vacant, carrying out ad hoc repairs and, in individual cases, modernisation, as well as simple management models (settling operating and heating costs). Decisions were made with sound judgement, but rarely with a strategic focus on returns, liquidity and risk against the backdrop of foundation-specific requirements.

By Ernst G. Wittmann