MORRISTOWN, NJ- Locally-based Hampshire Real Estate Cos., British real estate manager Hermes Real Estate Investment Management Ltd. and Singapore bank UOB Global Capital (UOBGC) have launched the US Real Estate Income Fund (HUH), a new closed-end commercial real estate income fund that will invest in inefficiently priced, well-located and well-leased properties typically located outside of the major city central business districts (CBD) in the US, with a primary focus on the eastern half of America.

The fund will be available to international institutional investors and pension funds. Hermes will provide up to $150 million in capital, with the other partners each committing $25 million. The partnership, according to an announcement, will combine Hampshire’s local real estate market expertise, UOB’s origination and distribution platform, and Hermes’ risk strategic risk oversight and corporate governance expertise.

“Hampshire will focus on market inefficiencies by avoiding the major US markets, which, today, have tremendous competition of capital for product,” says Jon F. Hanson, Hampshire chairman, in the announcement. Hanson declined to comment to GlobeSt.com beyond a prepared statement for this article. “Up to now, these markets have been a primary focus of foreign investors,” he says. “However, we wanted to create an opportunity to avoid these pricey markets, and to take advantage of smaller but still dynamic markets that provide a greater distributable cash flow potential. The 90-year-old Hampshire is a privately held fully integrated real estate investment firm, focusing on acquiring, developing, leasing, repositioning, managing, financing and disposing of real estate throughout the United States. Its assets are valued at over $2 billion.”