The Florida State Board of Administration (SBA), on behalf of the Florida Retirement System Pension Plan (FRS), is adding a $400 million mandate to its global REIT strategy.
The SBA is responsible for investing the assets of more than 29 funds on behalf of the state of Florida, including the assets of the FRS. With total assets of nearly $163 billion, the FRS is the fifth largest public defined benefit pension plan in the United States, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence’s Money Market Directories. FRS currently has a 10% strategic allocation to REITs within its real estate investment program, and the new mandate will be in addition to its existing $1.7 billion REIT portfolio.
Nareit’s investor outreach team has been advocating for the role of REITs within Florida’s public sector plans for more than a decade through meetings with pension boards and staff. In addition, Nareit is actively involved with Florida Public Pension Trustees Association, an organization whose mission is to support the educational needs of Florida’s public pension trustees on investment and pension administrative topics.
“It’s certainly significant for our industry when a major investor, like the SBA, first, has a strategic allocation to REITs within their real estate investment program, and then, further affirms its commitment to the asset class by allocating additional capital,” said Meredith Despins, Nareit’s senior vice president of investment affairs. “It sends an important signal and message to the market about the value REITs bring to real estate portfolios.”