Citi upbeat on Aussie REITs as land lease developers to benefit from policy easing cycle

Scentre

26/05/2025 20:47

** Citi notes improving conditions for land lease sales, driven by lower interest rates, first-home buyer incentives and recovering regional price growth

** Notes stabilization in construction costs since last year, suggesting a positive trajectory for development margins into FY26

** Brokerage chooses REIT stocks Ingenia Communities Group INA.AX, Scentre Group SCG.AX and Lifestyle Communities LIC.AX as its top picks from the sector

** Citi says the strong margin recovery potential for Ingenia could drive superior earnings growth to peers

** However, Citi says upside to Lifestyle Communities is reliant on sales recovery in Melbourne and the resolution of Victorian Tribunal complaints around its contract structure

** The Australian real estate subindex .AXRE is up 2.6%, in line with the broader benchmark index .AXJO as of last close

 (Reporting by Nikita Maria Jino in Bengaluru; Editing by Bill Berkrot)

 ((Nikita.Jino@thomsonreuters.com;))