Fund-vs-fund · Listed Property
Mercer Global Listed Real Estate Fund vs NZ Funds New Zealand Property and Retirement Villages
Both are Listed Property funds available to NZ retail investors. Numbers below are sourced from the FMA Disclose register via Sorted Smart Investor and reflect the latest published quarterly fund updates.
Why these two differ
The most material structural difference between these two funds is their asset allocation. The Mercer Global Listed Real Estate Fund holds 98.31% in growth assets, making it an almost entirely growth-oriented portfolio, while NZ Funds New Zealand Property and Retirement Villages sits at 53.15% growth assets — a materially more balanced split that likely accounts for its lower risk indicator of 5 versus Mercer's 6. Both sit in the Listed Property category, but their geographic and sector exposures differ sharply: Mercer's top holdings are all global names (Equinix, Welltower, Prologis), while NZ Funds concentrates on domestic property and retirement village operators (Goodman, Precinct, Ryman, Summerset) — a meaningful distinction for investors with existing New Zealand market exposure.
On fees, Mercer discloses an annual fund charge of 1.33%, compared with 2.52% for NZ Funds — a difference of 1.19 percentage points that compounds materially over time. Mercer reports a five-year return of 0.87% per annum; NZ Funds' five-year return figure is not available in this snapshot, so a like-for-like performance comparison cannot be made. Fund size also differs: Mercer at NZD 66.2 million versus NZ Funds at NZD 43.7 million. Neither fund is a KiwiSaver scheme account product based on the data provided, though investors should confirm this directly.
Always verify current fees, returns, and fund details against each fund's product disclosure statement and latest quarterly fund update on FMA Disclose before relying on any of this information.
Comparison generated 2026-07-05 from each fund's FMA Disclose QFU facts as at that date. If the underlying facts change, this narrative is withheld until it is regenerated — the tables on this page always reflect the current data.
What's different at a glance
- Mercer Global Listed Real Estate Fund charges 1.19% lower in annual fund charges (1.33% vs 2.52%).
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 15 listed property funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
Mercer
1.33%
Highest 23% of cohort
NZ Funds
2.52%
Highest 7% of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Mercer
0.87%
Bottom 13% over 5 years
NZ Funds
—
—
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Mercer
NZ$66m
Upper half by size
NZ Funds
NZ$44m
Upper half by size
| Metric | Mercer | NZ Funds | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 1.33% | 2.52% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 6 | 5 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 0.87% | — | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$66m | NZ$44m | Larger = more stable, lower close-risk |
| Growth / income split | 98% / 2% | 53% / 47% | More growth = higher long-run return + volatility |
| NZ tax structure | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE = simpler. FIF = annual return. |
| Currency hedging | — | — | Hedged smooths NZD/foreign FX moves at a small cost. |
| Responsible investment screening | No | No | Specific exclusions live in each fund's SIPO. |
| Available via | Direct | Direct | Platforms accepting retail subscriptions. |
Portfolio overlap
How many top-10 positions both funds hold, and at what weight. Computed from each fund's most recently disclosed top-10 holdings — exact-name matched (Microsoft Corp. = Microsoft Corporation), with a Cash / Cash & Equivalents collapse rule.
What each fund says it does
Mercer
Mercer Global Listed Real Estate Fund
The fund invests in a global portfolio of property securities listed on stock exchanges around the world. It aims to generate medium to high returns over the long term by investing in a broad range of property regions, sectors and securities through a single fund. Environmental, Social and Governance characteristics are integrated into the investment process. The fund aims provide a Gross Return above the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Total Return Index with net dividends reinvested (100% hedged to the NZD on an after-tax basis) on a rolling three-year basis.Full Mercer Mercer Global Listed Real Estate Fund profile →
NZ Funds
NZ Funds New Zealand Property and Retirement Villages
The objective of the New Zealand Property and Retirement Villages fund is to mitigate the impact of inflation on your investment over the medium and/or long term with active management. The fund is anticipated to mainly own and trade New Zealand property and retirement village company shares. The fund may also hold Australian shares and other actively managed authorised asset classes.Full NZ Funds NZ Funds New Zealand Property and Retirement Villages profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
NZ Funds
Common questions
What's the difference between the Mercer Global Listed Real Estate Fund and the NZ Funds New Zealand Property and Retirement Villages?
Which fund has lower fees, Mercer Global Listed Real Estate Fund or NZ Funds New Zealand Property and Retirement Villages?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
