by Shane Henson — August 23, 2013—Following an inaugural meeting in May 2013, 20 leading economic and real estate organizations from around the world have joined together to create the International Property Measurement Standards Coalition (IPMSC), the first global standard for measuring property. Coalition members include the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the Appraisal Institute (AI), the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International, CoreNet Global, the International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI), and the Open Standards Consortium for Real Estate (OSCRE), among others.
Currently, the way property assets—such as office, residential, retail and industrial—are measured can vary considerably from country to country, explains the coalition. With so many different methods in use, it can be difficult for global investors and occupiers to accurately compare space. With the implementation of a global property measurement standard, the coalition says that properties will be consistently measured, creating a more transparent marketplace, greater public trust, stronger investor confidence, and increased market stability.
CoreNet Global, a professional association for corporate occupiers of commercial properties worldwide, expects that the standard will have a significant impact on the way property is measured, leading to improvements in valuation and financial reporting consistency across international markets.
“Attaining higher levels of consistency in property asset management across multiple geographies, cultures, legal systems, currencies, metrics and other variables is mission critical for any enterprise seeking more efficient ways to integrate their portfolios on a multinational scale,” said CoreNet Global Vice President of Knowledge Services and Research Tim Venable.
“Since 1915, BOMA has been the secretariat of the ANSI-accredited standard for measuring floor space in office buildings,” remarked BOMA International Chair and Chief Executive Officer Joe Markling, managing director of Strategic Accounts with CBRE. “We are pleased to join with our colleagues from around the world to establish a consistent set of standards for the method of measuring real property no matter where that property is located. Through our work with the IPMSC, we can provide BOMA members and the commercial real estate industry at large with a true basis for cross-border comparison, and industry transparency and self-regulation.”
The IPMSC recently selected 19 property professionals from around the world to join its Standards Setting Committee to develop a global standard for measuring property. The Standards Setting Committee includes experts with first-hand knowledge in 50 countries, across five continents. It will act independently and is tasked with the job of drafting standards while consulting leading practitioners from across the corporate and commercial real estate industry’s supply chain.
Standards Setting Committee members include academics, real estate fund and asset managers, residential professionals, valuers, and specialists in development and construction.
