Allocation Strategy

The largest US pension plan has approved a $1 billion increase to its annual dollar hard cap for new real estate investments.

The latest investment study by Union Investment reveals that investors are still seeking a safe home for their capital, but some are accepting greater risks such as shorter leases.

The $18.77 billion state endowment has pulled one commitment, made $120 million in new commitments and disclosed plans to invest $330 million in real estate through mid-2015.

The Chicago-based pension plan expects to make its first commitments to non-US funds this year, allocating $150 million for European and Asian real estate investments.

The Investor Intention surveys published by INREV, ANREV and PREA this week celebrated increased allocations to private real estate across the board, but the numbers were worth a closer reading.

Interest in Asia’s non-listed commingled funds far outstrips that in joint ventures or clubs going into 2014, a report by ANREV shows.

The Oklahoma Teachers’ Retirement System has issued RFPs for value-added and opportunistic real estate fund managers.

The world’s largest real estate investment manager is planning to undertake €6 billion of transactions in Europe this year, two-thirds of which should be acquisitions.

The Austin-based pension plan expects to commit up to $600 million in the coming year to core, value-added and opportunistic real estate investments.

The property services firm has predicted that 2014 investment volumes will surpass $1trn for the first time since 2007, with the Americas leading in terms of growth and Asia leading in terms of volume.