TIAA-CREF Circles DC Market

WASHINGTON, DC-TIAA-CREF appears to be poised to make its first acquisition in here this year. The New York City-based retirement fund typically makes five acquisitions per year here, depending on the market and other economic and financial factors. Nearly six months into 2006, it has yet to announce its first transaction.

According to Trevor Michael, managing director of real estate acquisitions, this market is very significant to TIAA-CREF’s real estate portfolio. “If it is not number one, it is in the top three markets in our portfolio along with New York and southern California.”

This was not always the case, although the District has occupied some part of TIAA-CREF’s portfolio for the last 50 years. In the 1980s, like many institutional investors, TIAA-CREF was less than enchanted with the District proper at least, mainly for its political problems and high crime rate, according to Michael.Then the city began to turn around and its demographics shifted once more. “Washington, DC is a great comeback story,” Michael says. “You have more people migrating back to the District to live, more companies seeking to locate there and a stable political situation.” The crime rate has been steadily declining as well.