Pension funds are often under pressure to get money out to their investment managers in order to meet their target allocations to real estate. But for some investments, it takes years for the managers to call all the capital and put that money to work. This situation is not new, but it has become more evident in the past six months due to the slowdown in transaction activity and general uncertainty about the economy. The result is a bit of “hurry up and wait,” as many institutional investors and managers play a waiting game.

Michael Humphrey, managing principal with Courtland Partners, says, “On the value-add and opportunistic sides, managers are being more patient, and you want them to be.” He says there may be some frustration from investors because their money is on the sidelines, but he hasn’t seen much of it. “I would say most of our clients are being patient. People are being patient because the market is fluid and is still working itself out. The bigger con