Golden Oldie
Latest Article
27th July 2021
Originally published January 2021.
Nick Sleep is one of the greatest investors I’ve ever come across. Sleep managed the Nomad Investment Partnership for over a decade, along with his partner Qais Zakaria, delivering returns of 921% versus 117% for the MSCI World Index (September 2001 to December 2013).
He has tended to keep a low profile so isn’t as well known as some of the other great investors. That said, he’s started to gain more recognition recently following the publication of the... Read More >
Recent Articles:
26th July 2021
Originally published January 2021.
Real estate distress cycles generally offer rich pickings to investors, but that’s unlikely to happen this time – and here’s why.
This article discusses the potential path for a distress cycle in US Read More >
21st July 2021
Originally published January 2021.
In 1929, when an American congressman compared England’s longest river unfavourably with the Mississippi, the MP for Battersea, John Burns, quipped: “The Mississippi is muddy water, but the Thames is Read More >
20th July 2021
Originally published winter 2019.
A player’s three-dart shooting average offers a clear metric that can be analysed to reveal the best strategic options – investment management has parallels.
Statistically, if a player’s three-dart Read More >
19th July 2021
Originally published January 2021.
The way we educate our school-leavers needs to change.
I can recall being staggered, when first working in the US, by how much personal debt individuals took on as a matter of course to attain a degree. I Read More >
14th July 2021
Originally published March 2019.
The early history of the Caribbean (and especially Barbados) is well told in the book Sugar Barons by Matthew Parker. Even by the cruel standards of the time, the descriptions of the treatment of indentured Read More >
13th July 2021
Originally published December 2017.
The Barcelona Pavilion, by Mies van der Rohe.
Over many years of working on numerous projects, I have always drawn inspiration from the work of some of the great architects from the past (borrowing Read More >
12th July 2021
Originally published July 2020.
How did the Great Fire of 1666 shape London's architectural history?
At this time of year, we are inundated with nostalgic images of a Victorian Christmas set in a Dickensian London where the real horrors Read More >
8th July 2021
Originally published August 2017. David Hill begins his series on the status of the horseracing industry.
This is the first in a series of four articles on the history of British racecourses providing a context for the existing economic Read More >
8th July 2021
Originally published May 2018.
Sport. The very fine margins. The difference between winning and losing. The moments that define a career. The moments that define a life.
There has been an awful lot of talk recently about FOBT's. About levels of Read More >
7th July 2021
Originally published August 2017.
How going online has restored the value of second-hand books.
As a book dealer, I would like to respond to an article published on the BBC website on 28 December 2018, ‘The booming trade in second-hand Read More >
5th July 2021
Originally published August 2017. This is the first in a series of four articles on the history of British racecourses providing a context for the existing economic status of the industry.
The recent legislation that all betting Read More >
1st July 2021
Originally published December 2020.
“I haven’t been to my office now for several months.” “When I go to my office it’s only for a meeting.” “My office is my dining table.” Are the offices so many of us worked in for decades Read More >
30th June 2021
Originally published August 2019.
Why we need to encourage innovation and holistic solutions to the challenges facing real estate.
“Silo busters unite!” is becoming a slogan here at the Real Estate Institute. We contest that Read More >
28th June 2021
Originally published September 2020.
Dear development financier,
Are you really, truly, aware of the risks you will be taking over the next few years with your residential loan book? You are supposed to say yes. I am supposed to say no Read More >
24th June 2021
Originally published 16 March 2021.
Being a child in the 1960s was Utterly Brilliant. It was all so exciting – because we all knew we were going to space. The theme music from “Apollo” still resonates. Late at night peering at the Moon, Read More >
22nd June 2021
Originally published January 2021.
The European real estate universe grows ever move diverse by the year, with the constant geographical expansion of previous times now replaced by a push into new sectors and, more fundamentally, new ways of Read More >
21st June 2021
Originally published February 2021.
For investors, the recent decline in retail property performance might suggest opportunity for acquiring property at distressed pricing. The challenge for such investors is to identify discounts associated Read More >
17th June 2021
Originally published 28 January 2020.
As UK agriculture faces major funding changes, one important resource should not be overlooked in developing sustainable farming systems
Those who remember farming in the decades after the second world Read More >
15th June 2021
Originally published 30 September 2020.
Matthew Piepenburg and Thomas Lott, two hedge fund managers with Ivy League pedigrees, have issued a stark warning in their latest book Rigged to Fail. Published in February 2020, the book is as timely Read More >
14th June 2021
Originally published 12 November 2020.
As I write this, we still don’t know who won the presidency. It is, however, time to declare at least one winner. After almost sixty years of fighting, it’s clear that the War on Drugs is almost over Read More >
9th June 2021
Originally published in April 2018.
Welcome to my sport column – An occasional look at various commercial sides of the sports industry which ultimately deliver the live events we enjoy.
The Premier League is the single most valuable cog in Read More >
8th June 2021
Originally published in November 2020.
While a good title is no guarantee of a good book, it can act as a guide.
Choosing a title is challenging. It is hard to find a memorable word or phrase that not only sums up a work of fiction but Read More >
7th June 2021
Originally published in April 2021.
“Daddy was a bankrobber, but he hurt nobody. He just liked to live that way, stealing all your money…”
As Greensill and Archegos roil markets and cause losses, it brings the question: Who is next? Read More >
3rd June 2021
Originally published in March 2021.
Like many readers, I took advantage of the best snow in years to go sledging with my daughters. As Daddy bombed down the hill like Bowser in Mario Kart, my mortality flashed before me and I realised I was Read More >
2nd June 2021
Originally published in April 2021.
Needless to say, covid-19 has caused significant dislocations in all aspects of our daily lives. One of these has been a major shift in working practices. Almost overnight, those of us who were primarily Read More >
1st June 2021
Originally published in April 2021.
Often in life, what you don’t see is more important than what you do.
You can look round a house as many times as you want, but you won’t get a true sense of what the neighbours are like until you Read More >
26th May 2021
Originally published in February 2021.
The pandemic has been with us for over a year, infecting more than 100 million people. Although vaccinations have begun around the world, the damage to the global economy is done. According to the Read More >
19th May 2021
This article was originally published in October 2018.
The returns on most investments are purely financial. But some investments have other rewards. Buying art, for instance, offers the chance not only to anticipate what is going to do well, Read More >
18th May 2021
This article was originally published in September 2020.
(Oliver is joint-owner of Maidstone Utd FC, Director of Brive Rugby Club in French Top 14 and recent Board Member of The National League.)
Right now there is a heated debate on Read More >
17th May 2021
This article was originally published in September 2020.
While high-tech modern racing vessels can be seductively sophisticated, a classic yacht takes charm to another level.
My absolute passion is sailing. I rather consider my Read More >
13th May 2021
This article was originally published in December 2020.
The investor’s dilemma faces all of us: if we don’t invest, the purchasing power of our money will slowly decline; if we do invest, we are exposed to the risk of loss. It results in Read More >
13th May 2021
This article was originally published in December 2020..
The spring lockdown did not stop UK M&A in its tracks, but activity slowed. Faced with the fog of economic uncertainty, some buyers put their chequebooks back in the drawer, and Read More >
12th May 2021
This article was originally published in January 2021.
Traditionally, real estate was often viewed as little more than a downside hedge for a diversified portfolio. This reflects its low correlation with equities and bonds and its perceived Read More >
6th May 2021
This article was originally published in November 2020.
Many farming and food companies are investing or plan to invest in improving the sustainability of food production. This Craigmore commentary, the first in a three-part mini-series, Read More >
6th May 2021
This article was originally published in November 2020.
Australian is sometimes referred to as the lucky country. While a generalisation, Australian commercial real estate (CRE) has enjoyed strong investment demand from both local and Read More >
6th May 2021
This article was originally published in October 2020.
Housing shortages in Europe’s cities are driving a rise in tenant protections such as rent control, but that needn’t be a bad thing for investors
Europe’s best cities are Read More >
29th April 2021
This article was originally published in June 2020.
Market volatility is at an historic extreme. From a technical perspective, post-pandemic US stock markets are behaving in a manner unseen in price history, making multi-year lows and Read More >
28th April 2021
This article was originally published in May 2020.
The words we choose are revealing. In an amusement park, small electrically powered cars with rubber fenders all round are driven in an enclosure. Some people call these cars “dodgems”, Read More >
27th April 2021
This article was originally published in June 2020.
According to the IPCC, we have about 10 years – at current emission rates – before the planet hits the CO2 budget limit consistent with giving us a fair chance of avoiding an average Read More >
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