Close to one fifth of self-managed superannuation funds have borrowed to invest in real property, a study of the sector by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission suggests.The ASIC study found that 18 per cent of SMSFs borrowed money to invest.ASIC said the median amount borrowed by these SMSFs was A$350,000, the highest amount borrowed was $870,000, and the lowest amount borrowed was $22,803.In 98 per cent of cases, the funds were for investing in real property.ASIC said that, in late 2012, it conducted a surveillance operation that involved looking at 18 entities that provided a financial service involving the establishment of an SMSF. The purpose of our surveillance activity, ASIC said, was to develop a high-level picture of the types of investors seeking SMSF advice over a six-month period in 2011 and to test the quality of SMSF advice provided to investors.This found that SMSFs with more than $200,000 in assets were likely to have investments in domestic property.