The Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois has boosted its real estate separate accounts with an investment of an additional $800m (€717.8m) to new and existing fund managers, according to the pension fund’s latest board meeting minutes.
The pension fund is set to invest $500m with AEW Capital Management in a new strategy designed to invest in core assets.
Further, Illinois Teachers will grant $125m to Chicago-headquarted real investment firm Heitman and $75m to Barings, the global alternative asset management firm. Both are also set to be invested in core assets.
An additional $100m allocated to Principal Real Estate Investors has been allocated for a value-added strategy.
The decision means that the pension fund has exceeded its allocation plan for real estate separate accounts for the 2027 fiscal year. According to the minutes from the meeting, Illinois Teachers had initially planned to invest $550m – or up to $650m if needed.
Illinois Teachers said it planned to invest in both traditional and niche property over the current fiscal year.
This included investments in industrial, grocery-anchored retail assets and specialised types of senior housing, medical offices and self-storage.
No traditional office assets will be acquired by the pension fund this year, the minutes noted, as the fund looks to trim its exposure to the sector.
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