Today we publish the first Estates Gazette Power List, the definitive ranking of who and what will dictate the fortunes of the property industry in 2011. Needle-movers, as our expert judging panel labelled them.
First, let’s deal with who’s not there. There are no developers in the top 10. And no agents in the top 20. Indeed, only two firms of agents are in the ranking. One is to be expected, so globally acquisitive has his firm been. The other is less obvious but, as you’ll see, merits a place on our list.
There are no receivers or administrators. They have profile yes, and currency in these tough times, but their influence is over the fate of a business or a creditor so is not industry-wide.
And there’s but one lawyer – a judge – whose inclusion reflects our panel’s expectation that a test case on valuation could be in the offing.
Download a PDF of the Esates Gazette Power List 2011 >>
And so, who is included? Politicians, of course, but again not necessarily those you might expect.
The likely Irish finance minister makes our top three and is placed ahead of our own chancellor: as one judge said: “If Michael Noonan were to spin off Nama and list it as a REIT, that would change the industry overnight.”
Eric Pickles is conspicuous by his absence. Another CLG minister, Greg Clark, is there instead. Cerebral, likeable and inclusive, Clark is seen as the most influential of his peers, though in many senses he represents a ministerial team.
But it is financiers who dominate. Sovereign wealth funds make an expected appearance; institutions are out in force, too. But bankers lead the pack – and not because of their appetite for lending. “No lending bank has the capacity to move the needle,” said one judge.
It’s how they deal with their legacy loan portfolios that mark them out as the players who will dominate the year. Our judges did not opt for the obvious players. At Lloyds, the likes of Richard Dakin might have been expected to feature. For our judges, though, it is the men at the top who will be calling the shots.
That’s why RBS’s Stephen Hester and Lloyds’ new chief executive António Horta-Osório vie for the top spot. “Others will be implementing their decisions,” said our judges.
Another interesting upshot is how many pairs appear on the list – no fewer than nine. A reflection perhaps that there a fewer mavericks, fewer personalities working in the industry today. It’s much more a team game now.
That’s the “whos”; what about the “whats”?
The industry has finally found a Trojan horse to persuade property to embrace technology. More pertinently, internet shopping is ranked above any pure-play retail developer.
There were some ground rules. No mere commentators, for instance. And while two of our judges are themselves on the list, they of course played no part in their own selection or ranking. We wanted the people who really know who matters to help select those who matter.
We believe this list will shape our immediate future. Let us know your thoughts.
Estates Gazette will be at MIPIM in force this year. You will already have seen our digital preview edition, published this week. We will be bringing you breaking news throughout the event online and through our digital daily editions, published on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
On Thursday, we’ll be staging a live web seminar, sponsored by GVA. For the first time, you’ll be able to ask questions from the comfort of your own desk, directed at our panel in Cannes, including the lord mayor of the City of London.
All this and more is available through estatesgazette.com.
