HOUSTON-The Lionstone Group, a private real estate investment firm, has partnered with the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) to invest up to $250 million of equity in office, multifamily, retail and industrial properties.
Lionstone expects to acquire properties using as much as 50% debt, which means the venture will have the ability to buy roughly $500 million of real estate, according to the firm’s CEO Glenn Lowenstein. The firm will serve as the venture’s general partner and has full discretion to make acquisitions and to manage the portfolio. The funds will be invested over the next two to three years.
Lowenstein tells GlobeSt. that TRS’ investment is one of the largest equity stakes an institutional partner had made with Lionstone. “This is a very difficult fundraising environment, and the challenge is matching up with the right investor at the right time,” he says. “We bonded over Lionstone’s focus on finding high-quality assets that stay full and provide long-term cash flow. It sounds simple, but it’s fairly hard to do.”
While Lowenstein says that most investors would characterize these properties as “core” or “core-plus” investments, he notes that Lionstone will acquire assets that have short-term issues with leasing and occupancy as long as they can perform over the long-term.
The newly-created joint venture is not focused on any particular markets or regions. “We have our own matrix that we use to evaluate markets on how they compete not just in the U.S., but in the world,” Lowenstein explains. “We’re interested in investing in globally competitive locations.”
With an acquisition group of six people, Lionstone is actively searching for places to invest its newly-acquired equity. The firm, which was founded in 2001, works with brokers and owners, buying assets that are listed and off-market, Lowenstein says.
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