Maryland State Retirement and Pension System has generated a 7.19% 12-month return from its real estate investments.

The pension fund told IPE Real Estate that it outperformed its real estate benchmark by 30bps during the 12 months ending 30 June 2017.

Maryland SRPS uses a blended benchmark, weighted 85% to the NCREIF ODCE Index and 15% to the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Index.

The real estate porfolio was valued at $3.9bn (€3.29bn) at the end of June, representing around 8% of its $49.1bn in total assets.

The pension fund has a 10% target allocation, meaning it has the capacity to invest close to $1bn more in the asset class.

Maryland SRPS tends to invest in private real estate funds and listed real estate investment trusts.

Real estate investments form part of its real assets porfolio, alongside infrastructure and natural resources.