Do Real Estate Investments Yield the Highest Returns in Pakistan?

Abstract

The investment choices of economic agents are critical in determining the value of capital stock in different sectors of the economy. These choices depend upon the available investment options in society and the expected rate of returns. In the case of Pakistan, it is commonly perceived that real estate investment in the form of buying a piece of land or buying a house comparatively yields the highest returns. This study aims to devolve on this presumption and estimate returns from different available investment avenues. Our findings, contrary to common perception, suggest investment in stocks yields the highest real returns while real estate returns stand second. However, the associated risk with stock investment is higher than in the real estate sector. Therefore, one can argue that real estate investment offers better returns comparatively. Surprisingly, we also find that the real returns from treasury bills, national savings accounts, and silver are negative. We also delve into the potential determinants of real estate returns and their impact on investment outcomes. The estimation results reveal that GDP growth, interest rate, and inflation pandemic are significantly affecting the rate of returns from real estate, while the Covid pandemic has negatively affected the returns from housing.