The formation of a representative organisation for the real estate sector, Real Estate: UK, or RE:UK, has been backed via an overwhelming vote across all three member organisations.
The vote has seen 100% of Association of Real Estate Funds members, 99.5% of British Property Federation members and 92% of Investment Property Forum members vote in support.
The bodies said RE:UK will be a "unified convenor and voice for the whole of the real estate sector". Its activities will be based around six pillars: advocacy; research and data; thought leadership and innovation; networking and events; upskilling and training; and standards and guidance.
The chairs of the three organisations will now work together to appoint a chair who will lead the first RE:UK Board and a chief executive for RE:UK.
RE:UK will launch on 1 January. Initially members will have dual membership and 2026 will be a transitional year as the organisations are integrated.
Anne Breen, chair AREF, said in a statement: “The response from the memberships of AREF, BPF and IPF has been overwhelmingly positive and a strong endorsement of our vision for a single, amplified voice for the real estate sector.”
Simon Carter, President BPF, said: “I am delighted that BPF members have expressed their overwhelming support for the creation of RE:UK. I look forward to working with AREF and IPF over the next few months to turn our shared vision for a new powerful body for the sector into reality.”
Clare Thomas, chair IPF, said: “On behalf of the IPF board, I would like to thank IPF members for taking the time to consider the proposal and then giving the merger their strong support. This is the culmination of significant work across all three organisations, and we look forward to the launch of RE:UK in 2026 as an important step forward for the real estate industry.”