Abstract
Executive Summary. In this report, we examine the joint ownership of properties held by public real estate investment trusts (REITs). We used a detailed property database of real estate firms maintained by SNL Securities, which included more than 18,600 properties owned or partly owned by 171 firms. The findings indicate that rather than reducing the use of joint-venture partners, REITs have increased their use at the property level in recent years. The portion of properties held under joint-venture structures has grown from 11.7% at yearend 1998 to 13.7% at year-end 2002, representing a 30% increase in the number of properties held jointly.