When Everyone’s Fearful, Institutions Go Shopping | Why Smart Investors Buy Property When Others Wait

There’s a lot of fear circulating in the UK property market right now - headlines warning of falling prices, rising interest rates, and a “slowdown” in demand.
For many private investors, this kind of noise can be paralysing. But for institutions and seasoned players, it’s a signal - not a stop sign.

Fear Creates Value

While most investors retreat to the sidelines, large institutions and private equity funds are quietly buying aggressively. Why? Because professional investors understand one truth: fear creates inefficiency.

When sentiment dips, the market becomes distorted.

• Sellers panic.

• Developers need liquidity.

• Smaller investors delay action.

That’s when opportunities surface - and when the most strategic capital moves in.

History Repeats Itself

This isn’t a new phenomenon. It’s the pattern of every major property cycle:

2008–2010: After the financial crisis, institutions acquired prime assets at record discounts. Within five years, many of those portfolios doubled in value.

2020 Pandemic: While retail investors hesitated, funds quietly purchased entire residential blocks and watched valuations climb by over 25% in two years.

2025: Once again, fear dominates the headlines - and the same accumulation phase is underway.

Conviction Over Emotion

The difference between those who win and those who wait isn’t access; it’s conviction backed by data.
Institutions don’t buy based on emotion. They buy when yield spreads widen and capital markets soften - because they know real value is created at the point of acquisition, not at the point of sale.

This is the phase where strategic investors position themselves for outsized returns when confidence inevitably returns to the market.

What Private Investors Can Learn

For private investors, the message is clear:
If you wait for the media to sound positive again, you’ll likely be buying at the top, not the bottom.

Periods of uncertainty offer the greatest potential for growth - but only to those with the clarity and confidence to act.
The property market doesn’t reward hesitation; it rewards informed, strategic decision-making.

How We Help at O Johnston & Co

At O Johnston & Co, we specialise in identifying those asymmetric opportunities the headlines overlook - assets with solid fundamentals, resilient cashflow, and the potential for accelerated returns once sentiment shifts.

While others focus on the noise, we focus on the numbers.
Because while most investors are waiting for confidence to return...
The smart money is already deploying.