"[JER] is at an inflection point where it has an opportunity to accelerate its global investment," Pralle tells GlobeSt.com. "Right now it has a great platform with multiple [international] funds. It is a very exciting time for the company." Indeed, just a few examples of JER's global reach include the Marbleton Property Fund, a $321-million equity pool that will focus on investments across all property sectors in Russia and Ukraine, JER Europe Fund III, which has a total buying power of up to $5.4 billion, and growing investments in Latin America.

"We see many opportunities outside the US and want to be positioned well to take advantage of them," he says. Among these opportunities is the simple equation of less capital chasing deals and the inherent benefits of global diversification. For instance, he says, at GE he never ran up against Blackstone in Japan, "but in the US when we looked at EOP [for possible acquisition] there was Blackstone. Also, diversification is a cornerstone of any good investment policy: if one market goes down it doesn't necessarily have to bring down an entire portfolio."

Pralle points to markets such as Brazil and Mexico where--especially in the case of Mexico--there is a risk premium attached to investment sales prices that Pralle feels is not justified. He describes a hypothetical sub assembly plant outside of Monterrey occupied by a European firm that pays rents in dollars and is a good credit. A similar facility would price much higher in Texas simply because of its location in the US."It has come down in recent years but Mexico has always had a macro-economic risk premium that I didn't think was justified," he says, adding that Japan is another market with excellent investment upside. "Real estate prices are nowhere near their peaks and investors can buy an office building in Tokyo and hold it for appreciation. Many parts of Southeast Asia are attractive for similar reasons."