PEI Group launches the PERE Core 100, revealing $223bn raised for private real estate’s two lowest risk-return profiles
LONDON, 2 September 2026 — PEI Group, the primary source of vital intelligence for private markets, has today launched the PERE Core 100, the first ranking of its kind across the private real estate asset class. The launch comes at a widely anticipated inflection point for the sector’s capital markets.
The PERE Core 100 offers a measure of dedicated gross equity capital raised by the world’s leading private real estate managers through open-end, commingled, private real estate funds for core and core-plus strategies between 1 January 2021 and 31 December 2025.
The ranking’s 100 constituent managers raised $223.24 billion over the five-year period for this vehicle type, split $149.8 billion for core strategies and $73.4 billion for core-plus.
The ranking provides a first dedicated benchmark of institutional engagement with commercial real estate’s lowest risk-return profiles. Its launch comes at a pivotal moment for the asset class, as PEI’s corresponding analysis demonstrates. There is renewed institutional appetite for core and core-plus strategies driven by a widening investor belief stabilised commercial real estate can once again provide reliable income, inflation protection and long-term portfolio resilience.
CBRE Investment Management tops the inaugural PERE Core 100, having raised $18.9 billion for core and core-plus strategies over the five-year period, ahead of Clarion Partners ($13.0 billion), Morgan Stanley Investment Management ($8.5 billion), Harrison Street Asset Management ($7.9 billion) and PGIM Real Estate ($7.8 billion).
The ranking also highlights the regional concentration of core capital: more than three-quarters of the $223.24 billion raised is managed by North America-headquartered firms, and almost two-thirds is earmarked for North American strategies.
Another key area is a focus on specific sectors, with just 11 percent of all capital raised for sector-agnostic funds. This is another clear indication that managers are increasingly obliging investors’ preference to curate their own sector exposures.
Residential and industrial, at 31 percent and 26 percent respectively of the aggregate fundraising, are the best represented sectors. Notably, data centres account for 1.6 percent and there is an expectation this current low proportion will grow in future iterations of the ranking as more assets are developed to completion and acquired by managers of core and core-plus funds.
The report comes at a particularly prolific time for PERE, which today is a comprehensive private real estate capital markets intelligence hub showcasing news, analysis, data and a network covering equity and credit strategies as well as deployment.
Jonathan Brasse, Editor-in-Chief, Real Estate at PERE’s parent PEI Group, said: “This first PERE Core 100 manager ranking is the outcome of more than a year’s work, from conceptualisation to execution. But it was warranted since there is no other ranking offering this global picture of capital formation for the sector’s lowest risk and return profiles.”
“We expect the opening reading of $223.24 billion to represent a cyclical low point for fundraising for the two profiles and, with evidence of increased transaction volumes and, critically, better corresponding performance, that future iterations will aggregate at higher levels in the years to come.”
Philip Borel, Editor-in-Chief, PEI Group, said: “The PERE Core 100 sees PEI Group deliver another much needed and highly actionable first of its kind report, which combines proprietary data with customary editorial context and forward-looking commentary.”
“It provides vital intelligence for institutional investors, managers and advisers considering when and how to reengage more meaningfully with a private real estate market caught out by soaring inflation and spiking interest rates more than four years ago.”
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Notes for Editors
The PERE Core 100 is published in the September 2026 edition of PERE Core, a new report from PEI Group examining the resurgence of core and core-plus investing as the sector enters a new market cycle.
The report includes exclusive market analysis, investor survey data and interviews with senior executives at LaSalle Investment Management, Dexus, Kayne Anderson and other leading core managers.
The ranking showcases the amount of dedicated gross capital raised for core and core-plus private real estate funds between 1 January 2021 and 31 December 2025.
For the ranking, we only count equity capital raised for open-end, commingled funds during the five-year period. We count capital raised for which the manager has full discretion over the investment process, from asset selection to management and exit.
Manager equity commitments can be included too, if these are made for alignment purposes only. Capital committed by affiliated entities as well as fund leverage is not eligible. We also do not count SMAs, JVs, funds of funds, private REITs (traded and non-traded) as well as recycled or rolled-over capital. We do not accept deal-by-deal fundraises, either.
About PEI Group
PEI Group is a leading provider of business intelligence, data, analytics, and events for the global private markets industry, with over 500 people operating from six offices.
Combining more than 25 years of proprietary data, deep editorial expertise, and a trusted journalistic heritage, PEI delivers vital intelligence to sharpen the decision-making of more than 30,000 investors, asset managers, and service providers worldwide.
With two decades of strong growth, PEI operates across private equity, private credit, private real estate, private infrastructure, and other specialist asset classes through its portfolio of premium information brands, research platforms, membership networks, and global events.
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