GLOBAL - The Virginia Retirement System has added $425m (€330m) worth of real estate investments to its portfolio through two deals.

The fund invested approximately $225m into Carson Industrial, the larger of two investments and a joint venture with Newport Beach, California-based Carson Companies.

The venture's strategy is to invest in industrial properties in southern California and Houston. 

According to pension fund officials, the deals are likely to be a mixture of existing assets and new development projects.

The funding period for the venture is two to three years, although Virginia said it may require the full three years to find deals, as many industrial properties are purchased at $10m or less. 

The pension fund also made a $200m commitment to LaSalle Property, an open-ended commingled fund managed by LaSalle Investment Management.

This commingled fund has a core investment strategy and aims to buy a combination of existing and leased office, industrial, retail and apartments in the US.

Virginia has a real estate portfolio valued at approximately $3.1bn and total plan assets of $47.7bn, as at the end of June. 

The pension fund has a 10% limit on how much of its total plan assets can be invested in real estate.


 

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