EDITOR'S LETTER: Tarrytown traffic

Tarrytown in Westchester County, some 26 miles north of midtown Manhattan, might seem an unlikely place to gain inspiration. And normally it would be, granted. Still, the Investor Council meeting that PERE organized there a few weeks ago was the perfect backdrop to prepare for the November issue, which has ‘global investors’ as a theme. Some 20 fund managers and 20 investors gathered to talk privately about the issues of the day that affect the deployment of capital, and many of those issues inform these pages.

Indeed, we have dedicated a whole supplement, the 2014 Macquarie Capital-sponsored Global Investor 30, to the subject of investors. The centerpiece is undeniably the list of the biggest institutions in the world by cash in real estate, as composed by our in-house research team. It is always fascinating reading, and I commend it to you and my thanks to Macquarie.

Turning to the main issue itself, you will find various interviews and special reports with an investor flavor, and you should certainly check out page 40 for analysis of a report by Hodes Weill & Associates and Cornell University’s Baker Program in Real Estate on trends in the industry.

Other than that, we bring you the inside track on developments at what used to be Asia’s largest fund. Beginning on page 8, see Jonathan Brasse’s report on the MGPA Asia Fund III.

Meanwhile, for a deep dive into the biggest market of them all, both by investor capital and investment size, turn to page 43 for our US Roundtable. Investors are putting operating partners near the top of the heap nowadays, and you will get perspective on that trend from six real estate experts.

Last, but certainly not least, a coup for PERE: an on-the-record chat with Cerberus Real Estate. Investors really like the New York-based firm that goes where the opportunity is, so discover what they have to say about where they see opportunities today, starting on page 32.

The Capital Watch section, which is a regular feature of the monthly magazine, also will bring you bang up-to-speed with all the current fundraising progress out there. So turn to page 51 at the back of the book to see which region is attracting the most dollars and, just as importantly, which firms are raising them.

Enjoy the issue and good luck,