MORNING NEWS: LGBTQ+ survey results and the work still to be done

Good morning. Here’s your daily round-up of the latest news and views from EG and a collection of real estate-relevant headlines from the national papers. Today we publish the results of this year’s LGBTQ+ in Real Estate survey, carried out in association with Freehold. There are many reasons for optimism based on the record number of responses, with 81.5% of respondents, most of whom identify as LGBTQ+, saying they would recommend the real estate industry to other members of the LGBTQ+ community, up from 73% last year. But it is also clear the experiences of LGBTQ+ people working in real estate continue to vary wildly. Only 36% of respondents believe enough is being done within the real estate industry to promote inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community, while 29% of LGBTQ+ respondents report having experienced or witnessed discrimination or microaggressions at work in the past year.  In this week’s leader column, legal and professional editor Jess Harrold reflects on presenting the findings to Freehold’s annual AGM and the “genuine happiness among those in attendance at how the situation is improving for the LGBTQ+ community working in real estate”. “But that is qualified by the acknowledgment of all present that there is so much still to be done – as evidenced by the many anonymous comments from those whose experiences tell a different story,” Harrold adds. “They might be those working in transactions, or with Middle Eastern clients, or in other sectors and firms that are not committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and they have used this survey to share their voices.” And here’s LandsecU+I creative director Martyn Evans on how storytelling can help to change attitudes and approaches in our workplaces. “By sharing our stories, and explaining how day-to-day life in the workplace is experienced very differently by each of us, we can gradually learn how to check the unconscious, knee-jerk behaviour that can be so alienating,” Evans writes. “It’s also good for business – how can we design the diverse and inclusive places demanded of us by the richly diverse population for whom we build if we cannot look in the mirror and see a truly diverse industry, happy with itself and each other?” All of the news from EG, plus a selection of headlines from the nationals: EG’s LGBTQ+ in Real Estate survey: the resultsWith privilege comes great responsibilityHow the power of storytelling can deliver changeNewRiver says retail in ‘best position for several years’Home REIT sells another 133 propertiesStory of Christmas gathers for summer soireeURW plans 520-bed PBSA on Westfield Stratford car parkBPF warns 84% of commercial properties fail to meet EPC targetsSavills raises £400m from H1 auctionsBerkeley gets go-ahead to redevelop Bromley-by-Bow GasworksCushman urges European government ‘restraint’ on housing regulationRLAM sells White Stuff warehouse and buys Oxfordshire schemeDP World completes £34m warehouse schemeKadans seeks director to put UK portfolio ‘on the map’AI-focused start-up cohort secures $7.5mAerfin lands at St Modwen Park NewportInsurance broker tops up 8 Bishopsgate lettingsColliers’ Allen brings energy to KineticDocklands data centre set for green lightClarion extends UK footprint with £51m buyBank of England keeps rates at 16-year high before UK electionStarmer’s Labour eyes UK planning reform blitz within weeks (£)Rachel Reeves rolls out red carpet for business (£)Rating agencies give high marks to bonds financing defaulted properties (£)