Peter Fass, partner at Proskauer Rose LLP, joined REIT.com for a video interview at REITWise 2017: NAREIT’s Law, Accounting & Finance Conference in La Quinta, California.
Fass was on a REITWise panel that looked at new fee models and other changes to the public non-listed REIT (PNLR) market.
Fass noted that criticism of the PNLR industry has focused on the high front-end load and significant broker commissions. Commissions and fees are now coming down, and sponsors are experimenting with various share classes, according to Fass.
“Hopefully these changes will reinvigorate the industry,” Fass said.
Fass also discussed the Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule, which is currently open for comments. He said he hopes a “more sustainable” rule will emerge once all comments have been considered.
Meanwhile, the entry of private equity firm Blackstone into the PNLR market has produced “good press” for the sector, Fass said.
“If Blackstone is going into the retail space, there has to be a reason, and I think people are discovering that retail investors are loyal investors. They stay for a long time,” he noted.