Property deals are back, driven by expectations of impending interest rate cuts, a desire by private equity investors to deploy capital, and a lower Australian dollar, says Tim Church, Morgan Stanley Australia’s chairman of investment banking.

Mr Church said the year would be marked as the “big thaw” for investment banking activity in real estate – comparing it to last year’s “big chill”. To make the point, Mr Church walked onto the stage at The Australian Financial Review Property Summit accompanied by the 1983 Katrina and the Waves hit Walking on Sunshine.