Poppy Sketchley
NewsSwiss pension funds buy Schroders lease
SWITZERLAND/UK – AFIAA, the Swiss real estate investment adviser for state pension funds, has purchased the long leasehold on Schroders’ London headquarters for £70m (€76.5m).
NewsPension funds pursue Gatwick purchase
UK – Major Canadian and British funds are understood to be one step closer in their rivalry to purchase London’s Gatwick airport after the Competition Commission ordered the British Airports Authority (BAA) to sell three of its airports within the next two years.
NewsAbbey buys its London HQ
UK – British Land has sold Abbey’s London headquarters to the banking giant for £115m (€126.4m).
NewsIPD claims German buoyancy may attract investors
GERMANY – The IPD Germany Annual Property Index showed Germany’s property returns proved more resilient during the downturn than most European real estate markets – a situation which the body argues is likely to draw more institutional investors into the market.
NewsSWFs still stand strong in real estate market
GLOBAL – Sovereign wealth funds’ (SWFs) collective assets have continued to grow to a staggering $3.22trn (€2.4trn) despite the economic downturn and are still major investors in real estate, according to the 2009 Preqin sovereign wealth fund review.
NewsKesko sign sale-and-leaseback deal with pension fund
FINLAND – The Kesko Pension Fund has bought four retail properties for €50m from the Finnish trading company Kesko Group.
NewsCPPIB seeks new route along infrastructure
CANADA – The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has offered to pay C$1.16bn (€697m) to buy Macquarie Communications Infrastructure Group (MCG).
NewsTownsend taps Europe through UK office
US/UK – Townsend Group, the North American institutional real estate adviser, has opened its first European office in London this week and appointed Adam Calman as head of Europe.
NewsTEGoVA seeks to shed light on valuations
EUROPE – The European Group of Valuers Association (TEGoVA) has launched a valuation standards document to help professionals and clients deal with the valuation challenges brought about by the economic recession.
NewsPensions investors enticed by Catalyst opportunities
EUROPE – Catalyst Capital LLP, a European investment and asset management firm, has secured the support of major institutional investors for its €228.5m pan-European property fund.
NewsOMERS tracks long-term gains with railway top-up
CANADA – Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) has increased its stake in a rail infrastructure project in Detroit, to become the majority owner.
NewsCPP to invest in real estate through bonds issuance
CANADA - The Canada Pension Plan Investment (CPPIB) Board is planning to issue up to C$5bn (€3bn) in fixed income paper over the next two years to help the pension fund invest in real estate and infrastructure.
NewsDallas Police & Fire strengthen infrastructure
US –The Dallas Police and Fire Pension System has invested in a $4bn (€3.01bn) state of the art highway infrastructure system in Dallas, bolstering domestic investments.
NewsReal estate position to double for Jacksonville PF
US – The Jacksonville Police and Fire pension fund plans to double its real estate allocation once it gets the all-clear from the state legislator.
NewsNew York PF hedges its bets on real estate
US – The New York State Common Retirement Fund (CRF) announced on Friday it closed $238.2m (€178.8m) of real estate hedge fund transactions last month.
NewsAsia more willing to embrace sustainability - study
ASIA PACIFIC – Corporate real estate professionals in Asia Pacific are more eager to continue investing in sustainability than their global peers, according to a survey by Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) and CoreNet Global.
NewsHypo RE falls under state control
GERMANY – The German government has taken an 8.7% stake in Hypo Real Estate in its first step to taking full control and bringing stability to the Group.
NewsWest Midlands makes supermarket sweep
UK – The West Midlands Pension Fund has purchased a £36.5m (€39.6m) supermarket property in Birmingham from Land Securities, to strengthen its position for the future.
NewsOhio Teachers searches for new consultant
US – Ohio’s State Teachers’ Retirement System (STRS) is searching for a new investment consultant after Russell Investment Group announced it did not plan to extend its contract beyond June 2009.
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NewsReita claims residential Reits are a good buy
EUROPE - Institutional investors should consider investing in residential property as an asset class and push for residential Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), according to Reita’s panel of property investment experts.
