US real estate investor Heitman has closed its fourth value-added property fund targeting Central and Eastern European commercial and residential property.

US real estate investor Heitman has closed its fourth value-added property fund targeting Central and Eastern European commercial and residential property.

The Chicago-based fund manager has raised $750 mln (EUR 506 mln) of equity for Heitman European Property Partners IV, which held a first close last September with roughly EUR 380 mln of commitments from a range of American and European institutions.

Major investors in the vehicle include the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) with an equity injection of EUR 75 mln as well as Danish property company ATP Real Estate with a further EUR 75 mln. Heitman will plough EUR 15.5 mln into the fund.

The vehicle, which has a three-year investment period, will have the firepower to acquire up to EUR 1.3 bn of property with leverage. It was set up to develop, reconstruct, acquire, own and manage real estate in CEE as well as Russia and Ukraine.

'Today's challenging property market conditions throughout the world make this an attractive climate for investment,' said Heitman's managing director Gordon Black. 'We believe such opportunities exist across Central and Eastern Europe and we are pleased to have been able to raise this level of capital commitments to take advantage of this historic opportunity.'

Heitman is a real estate investment manager active in the US, Europe and Asia with $19.6 bn in assets under management.