Large Institutional Investors Positively Impacting REIT Governance, Experts Say

The latest edition of the Nareit REIT Report podcast featured Yoel Kranz, a partner in Goodwin’s REIT Capital Markets and M&A/Corporate Governance practices, and Daniel Adams, a partner in the firm’s Business Law Department, where he is co-chair of the Capital Markets group and a member of its REITs and Real Estate M&A practices.Kranz and Adams spoke on various corporate governance issues, including where the impetus for change in the REIT sector is coming from today.Kranz pointed out that there is a relatively small group of large institutional investors that have changed the way they approach governance issues. “It used to be that these were very passive investors…that has really changed,” he said. Large institutional investors have taken a very active interest in governance and are making their wishes and interests known to management teams.“We’re living in a social and political environment today where governance is front and center,” Kranz said. “There really is a focus on good governance and doing the right thing and being good stewards of shareholder capital.”