Real Assets
Last updated 17 July 2026
Real assets are physical assets with intrinsic value: real estate, infrastructure, farmland, timberland, and commodities. Unlike a share or a bond, which is a claim on someone else's cash flows, a real asset is a tangible thing that can often produce income, can be used or occupied, and tends to hold value when prices rise across the economy.
Families hold real assets for three main reasons: income (rent, crop sales, tolls or usage fees), protection against inflation, and diversification away from financial markets. Many families also hold substantial legacy real estate, properties acquired by earlier generations or connected to the family business, which carry emotional as well as financial weight.
Why it matters for family offices
Real assets sit outside the banking system, and that shapes everything about how they are managed. There is no custodian producing a monthly statement, no daily price, and often no consolidated view unless someone builds one. A commercial building might be revalued by an appraiser every year or two; farmland even less often. Ownership usually runs through holding companies or special purpose vehicles rather than personal names, and the assets bring operating responsibilities that securities never do: insurance, maintenance, tenants, property managers, and local filings.
For a family office, this makes real assets the classic example of holdings that are invisible to any data feed. If the office wants a complete picture of family wealth, these positions must be recorded and valued deliberately, following a valuation policy the family sets.
How it shows up in practice
Consider a family whose wealth began in agriculture. Alongside a securities portfolio, it holds farmland through one company, three commercial buildings through another, and a share of a logistics facility with two other families. Rent and crop income arrive into different entity bank accounts, valuations come from periodic appraisals, and one building carries a mortgage. None of this appears on any custodial statement. When the family asks a simple question, what is our total property exposure and what income does it produce, the answer has to be assembled from leases, appraisals, and entity accounts. Offices that maintain these records in one consolidated system can answer in minutes; those relying on scattered files rebuild the picture from scratch each time.
Related terms
Illiquid Assets
Assets that cannot be quickly sold at fair value, including private equity stakes, real estate, direct holdings in companies, and collectibles. Illiquid assets often make up the majority of UHNW wealth and carry return premiums precisely because capital is locked up. They also lack daily pricing and standard statements, which is why tracking them accurately is a defining challenge of family office reporting.
Bankable vs. Non-Bankable Assets
Bankable assets are securities and cash held with financial institutions and visible on custodial statements, while non-bankable assets include private equity, real estate, art, yachts, and operating businesses held outside the banking system. Non-bankable assets often represent well over half of UHNW wealth. Capturing both in one consolidated view is a defining requirement of family office reporting.
Alternative Investments
Asset classes outside traditional listed equities, bonds, and cash, including private equity, venture capital, private credit, hedge funds, real estate, infrastructure, and collectibles. Family offices allocate heavily to alternatives, drawn by return potential and their long-term investment horizon. Because alternatives lack daily pricing and standard statements, they demand specialised tracking and reporting.
Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
A legal entity created for a single, defined purpose, such as holding one property, making one direct investment, or pooling family capital in a specific deal. SPVs ring-fence risk and clarify ownership among participating family members or co-investors. Active families may hold dozens of SPVs, making entity-level tracking a core reporting requirement.
Collectibles
Tangible assets of passion and value, such as art, classic cars, fine wine, watches, and jewellery, held for enjoyment as well as potential appreciation. Collectibles are a meaningful slice of UHNW wealth but are illiquid, costly to insure and store, and hard to value. Including them in the family's consolidated net worth, with documentation and current valuations, is a mark of disciplined wealth administration.
Further reading
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