Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide new empirical evidence on the important role of market transparency in international real estate investment. Design/methodology/approach The authors apply the augmented panel regression method (or the correlated random effects approach) by using national panel data from 44 countries from 2004 to 2016. Findings Countries with better accessibility to market information and higher enforceability of regulations have less information asymmetry and attract more inward real estate investment. In contrast, the accounting quality of corporate governance is negatively correlated with investment, indicating the possibility that foreign investors enjoy high excess returns by investing in real estate in countries with poor accounting quality. Practical implications Countries lacking market transparency can increase inward investments by providing richer market information to foreign investors and by boosting enforceability of regulation to mitigate the uncertainty of returns on investment. Investors and public sectors in countries facing a saturated real estate market may expand investment by investigating less-explored markets and by seeking bilateral negotiations to secure higher predictability of return on investment in targeted countries. Originality/value The authors utilize updated multiple transparency indices instead of a conventional aggregate index to examine how the investment is attributed to different aspects of market transparency and employ the augmented panel regression method for investigation of the intra- and international determinants of the investment.

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