How do I get a pointer to a property in Delphi?

I'd like a pointer to TEdit.Text, but no matter how I express it Delphi insists that E2036 Variable required.

There is no such thing as a pointer to a property. Especially a property like TEdit.Text, which uses getter/setter methods instead of being backed by a physical variable.

If you need to access a property dynamically, use RTTI for that purpose.

Using RTTI from the older System.TypInfo unit, you can use GetPropInfo() to get a PPropInfo pointer for the TEdit.Text property, and then use the GetStrProp() and SetStrProp() functions to read/write its value.

uses
  ..., TypInfo;

var
  TextProp: PPropInfo;
  S: string;

TextProp := GetPropInfo(Edit1.ClassType, 'Text');
...
S := GetStrProp(Edit1, TextProp);
SetStrProp(Edit1, TextProp, S + ' hello');

Alternatively, using enhanced RTTI from the newer System.Rtti unit, you can use TRttiContext.GetType() to get a TRttiType for TEdit, and then use TRttiType.GetProperty() to get a TRttiProperty for its Text property, and then use TRttiProperty.GetValue() and TRttiProperty.SetValue() to read/write its value.

uses
  ..., System.Rtti;

var
  Ctx: TRttiContext;
  TextProp: TRttiProperty;
  S: string;

TextProp := Ctx.GetType(Edit1.ClassType).GetProperty('Text');
...
S := TextProp.GetValue(Edit1);
TextProp.SetValue(Edit1, S + ' hello');