CHICAGO-Inland American Real Estate Trust Inc., which has ownership interests in 964 commercial real estate properties totaling about $11.2 billion, has reported that the SEC is conducting a private investigation of the trust. Inland American is one of five REITs that are, or have been, sponsored by affiliates of the locally based Inland Real Estate Group of Cos. Inc.

The probe will “determine whether there have been violations of certain provisions of the federal securities laws regarding the business manager fees, property management fees, transactions with affiliates, timing and amount of distributions paid to investors, determination of property impairments and any decision regarding whether the company might become a self-administered REIT.” Inland American, a non-traded trust, reported the investigation in an SEC filing last week.

Thomas McGuinness, president of Inland American Business Manager & Advisor Inc., tells GlobeSt.com that Inland American has been fully cooperating with the SEC and has not been accused of any wrongdoing. “Inland American does not believe it has done anything improper and it continues to execute its business plan and strategy,” he says. “However, the SEC investigation is confidential and we cannot make any further comment on it at this time.”