ABP Investments, the asset management arm of the pension fund for Dutch civil servants and educators, is one of the most powerful European LPs in private real estate funds. The pension fund began investing in indirect real estate in 1998 and has approximately €17 billion ($19 billion) invested, which is organized under the alternative investments division. It is an investor in a range of managers including Aberdeen Property Investors, Apollo Real Estate, The Carlyle Group, Heitman, ProLogis, Tishman Speyer, Neinver and Vesteda Groep. Here, Patrick Kanters, managing director of real estate, Europe and Asia-Pacific, explains why operators will outperform allocators, his firm's moves into Asia and why fund managers should stick to what they know best.
4 min read · 22 January 2013
The captive real estate development and acquisition arm of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, Cadillac Fairview had a portfolio valued at approximately C$14.5 billion ($12.8 billion; €9.5 billion) at the end of 2006. Though 80 percent of its property investments are in Canada, the group recently has ventured further afield. In 2006, it acquired a 46 percent stake in Rio De Janeiro-based Multiplan Empreendimentos Imobiliários, the largest regional mall operator in Brazil. The pension fund investor has also been moving into Asia, primarily via investments in private equity real estate funds. Here, Andrea Stephen, the executive vice president for investments, talks about the problems with super-sized funds, what she likes about Brazil, and her interest in South Africa.
3 min read · 22 January 2013
Allstate Investments manages more than $125 billion (€96 billion) of assets for its parent company, approximately $18 billion of which is invested in real estate. Edgar Alvarado, a 14-year veteran at Allstate, oversees the group's $1.5 billion private equity real estate portfolio, which has generated a net return of almost 20 percent since its inception in the early 1990s. Today, Alvarado, who recently committed to funds managed by Beacon Capital Partners and The Blackstone Group, is looking to grow Allstate's commitments to the asset class to $1 billion per year. Here, he gives us his take on Blackstone's IPO filing, the market for real estate talent, and the lack of communication in the LP community.
4 min read · 22 January 2013
GPs may grab all the headlines—and make all the dollars—but LPs remain the industry's lifeblood. Here, three leading institutional investors give us their take on the most pressing issues facing their community.
4 min read · 22 January 2013
With rents once again on the rise, Warsaw is witnessing a flood of foreign direct investment in the office sector. Private equity real estate firms are looking to the capital city and beyond. By Robin Marriott.
9 min read · 22 January 2013
With consumer spending on the rise across Poland, private equity firms are shunning the shiny shopping centers in Warsaw in favor of niche assets and mixed-use developments throughout the country. By Robin Marriott
8 min read · 22 January 2013
Poland, a country of almost 40 million people, may still be coming to grips with its recent past, but private equity real estate firms appear nothing but bullish on its promising future.
3 min read · 22 January 2013
Over the past 20 years, Thor Equities founder Joseph Sitt has moved from urban real estate investing to the retail business and back again. Here, he speaks with PERE about his days hawking goods at flea markets, his fascination with Wal-Mart and why he took all the mini-bars out of the Palmer House Hilton. By Aaron Lovell
10 min read · 22 January 2013
Morgan Stanley makes its first investment in Brazil via the acquisition of a minority stake in Abyara, a Sao Paolo-based real estate company.
2 min read · 22 January 2013
As the nascent Asian real estate market takes off, fund of funds are getting in on the game. Is exposure to the region worth the extra level of fees? By Aaron Lovell
5 min read · 22 January 2013
