Despite persistent headwinds from rising interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty, the world's largest real estate investment managers continue to grow. The firms featured in Institutional Real Estate, Inc.’s “2026 IRE.IQ Real Estate Managers Guide” collectively oversee more than $5.8 trillion in real estate assets under management — with the top 50 firms alone accounting for more than $4.8 trillion, up from $4.4 trillion the prior year. Blackstone once again leads the ranking with $618 billion in real estate AUM, more than the next two largest firms combined, while among comparable year-over-year respondents, AUM grew by 9 percent. North America remains the dominant region, representing 64 percent of geographically identified assets, with EMEA and Asia Pacific also posting meaningful gains.
On the risk front, investment managers are increasingly watchful. Interest rates remain the top concern, flagged by 85 percent of respondents, while geopolitical risk surged to
