How do you think about % IRR from operations vs residual?

I’d be curious about how this is thought about from investors across property types and strategies. I work at a brokerage shop and we usually don’t think about this and the fact is our values are usually heavily weighted to residual even on stabilized core deals. For a stabilized core MF deal, what % of the IRR should come from residual / operations? Honestly any verbiage would be appreciated thanks!

4 Comments
 

Based on the most helpful WSO content, the split between IRR from operations versus residual value can vary significantly depending on the property type, strategy, and deal structure. However, here are some key insights:

  1. Stabilized Core Multifamily (MF) Deals:

    • For stabilized core deals, a significant portion of the IRR is typically derived from the residual value (sale or refinance proceeds) rather than ongoing operations. This is because these deals often have lower cash-on-cash yields due to their stabilized nature and lower risk profile.
    • Investors in these deals are often focused on long-term capital appreciation, which means the residual value plays a larger role in achieving the target IRR.
  2. Value-Add or Opportunistic Strategies:

    • In value-add or opportunistic deals, the IRR is more balanced between operations and residual value. During the hold period, cash flows may be limited due to renovation or repositioning efforts, but the residual value is expected to increase significantly upon stabilization or sale.
    • For these strategies, the back-end IRR (residual value) is often the major driver, especially if the property undergoes significant improvements or market repositioning.
  3. Investor Preferences:

    • Some investors, particularly LPs, may prioritize cash-on-cash returns (operations) for yield-focused investments, while others may be more comfortable with a higher reliance on residual value for growth-oriented strategies.
    • For example, in multifamily value-add deals, LPs might accept lower yields during the rehab period if the residual value and overall IRR justify the investment.
  4. General Observations:

    • The weighting of IRR from operations versus residual value is also influenced by market conditions, leverage, and the specific underwriting assumptions (e.g., cap rate compression, rent growth, etc.).
    • In some cases, brokers or investors may overemphasize residual value by assuming aggressive exit cap rates or growth projections, which can skew the IRR heavily towards the back-end.

If you're working in brokerage, it might be helpful to analyze past deals to see how the IRR components break down across different property types and strategies. This can provide a clearer picture of what investors in your market are targeting.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 
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Realistically, as much as possible should be from CF than exit value - easy to see why, you have a lot better insight into cashflows especially if they're from contracted leases vs. cap rates that might blow out substantially as they have L5Y. For core deals it should be 50/50 from both, as you slide up the risk scale it can stretch closer to 85/15 exit/CF at the opportunistic level. Now obviously for core deals like the MF deal like you're describing, the IRR you arrive at to hit that 50/50 really only works for actual core buyers with low cost of capital, we're talking a 9%-11% on reasonable underwriting.

I would also say that the 50/50 applies across property types because it's a result of risk and how much work you're putting into the property. You'll obviously take more risk and need more return to do a half-empty office deal than fully-let industrial, and more of that return will come from the work you put in leasing the rest of the office and flipping it than collecting coupons from the industrial.

 

kylejackson

Realistically, as much as possible should be from CF than exit value - easy to see why, you have a lot better insight into cashflows especially if they're from contracted leases vs. cap rates that might blow out substantially as they have L5Y. For core deals it should be 50/50 from both, as you slide up the risk scale it can stretch closer to 85/15 exit/CF at the opportunistic level. Now obviously for core deals like the MF deal like you're describing, the IRR you arrive at to hit that 50/50 really only works for actual core buyers with low cost of capital, we're talking a 9%-11% on reasonable underwriting.

I would also say that the 50/50 applies across property types because it's a result of risk and how much work you're putting into the property. You'll obviously take more risk and need more return to do a half-empty office deal than fully-let industrial, and more of that return will come from the work you put in leasing the rest of the office and flipping it than collecting coupons from the industrial.

What also needs to be considered is hold period - a 10 year hold of a core asset with 50% of profit coming from cash flow pretty much means it’s an average 5% cash on cash. That’s pretty weak sauce. 

 

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