CBRE closes latest $2.1bn RE fund

CB Richard Ellis Strategic Partners US 5 gives the Los Angeles-based global investment firm $6.4bn in buying power as it targets value-add and opportunistic real estate investments in the US with a focus on distressed assets.

Richard Ellis has closed its latest real estate fund, CBRE Strategic Partners US 5, with total equity commitments of $2.1 billion (€1.4 billion). The vehicles, which comprise two limited partnerships Strategic Partners US Value 5 and Strategic Partners US Opportunity 5, will have a purchasing power of $6.4 billion. Investors were from the US, Europe and the Middle East.

Strategic Partners US Value 5 will target value-added investments, including the repositioning of assets and stabilizing vacancy rates, as well as investing in “controlled risk” development. Strategic Partners US Opportunity 5 will focus on repositioning distressed assets with high levels of vacancy. It will also invest in “early stage” development, acquire and reposition portfolios and invest in operating companies. The two vehicles will invest in the office, multifamily, industrial and retail sectors in major metropolitan areas in the US.

Strategic Partners US 5 continues the firm’s strategy in the US, now “adapted to capitalize on the current investment environment,” according to CBRE Investors chief executive Vance Maddocks. The vehicle, he said, would give the investment team a broader mandate.

The Strategic Partners US program is part of a global closed-end private equity real estate fund series which has closed 14 funds/investment programs since 2000 with $7.5 billion in committed equity. As at end of March 2008, CBRE Investors had approximately $42.2 billion in assets under management.