Key Takeaways
- • Private real estate fundraising rose year-over-year in 2025 for the first time since 2021, signaling recovery momentum despite macro headwinds, elevated interest rates, and geopolitical uncertainty.
- • Ten emerging real estate managers launched or are launching in 2026 across equity and debt strategies, with geographic concentration in London (4 firms), New York (3 firms), and single offices in Brussels, Los Angeles, and Dallas.
- • Emerging managers are targeting diverse real estate sectors including purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA), hotels, residential, and selective office repositioning, with European markets (Iberia and Germany) attracting particular capital focus due to repricing opportunities.
- • Strategy mix reflects market bifurcation: six managers focus exclusively on equity, three combine equity and debt capabilities, and one specializes in debt, indicating LP appetite for both traditional and hybrid real estate structures.
- • Dry Capital (Brussels-based) exemplifies the emerging manager positioning, actively deploying across equity recap and debt strategies while capitalizing on pan-European valuation dislocations amid macroeconomic pressure.
Summary
Real estate fundraising is rebounding after a four-year downturn. Private real estate fundraising rose year-over-year in 2025 for the first time since 2021, according to With Intelligence analysis, despite persistent macro pressure, high interest rates, and geopolitical headwinds. This recovery creates a competitive environment where emerging managers are positioning themselves as nimble alternatives to incumbents, particularly as infrastructure capital commands outsized attention from limited partners.
Ten emerging real estate managers launched or are in launch phase for 2026, representing a concentrated wave of new GP formations across both equity and debt strategies. The roster includes: Allegro Real Estate (Ian Fairweather, Joseph Russell MRICS; London; equity), Arselle Investments (Kevork Zoryan, Aaron Greeno; Los Angeles; equity), Dominium Real estate (Tom Newman; London; equity), Donohue Douglas Investment (Douglas McNeely, Donohue Peebles Jr.; New York; equity), Dry Capital (Sheelam Chadha; Brussels; equity and debt), Everview Partners L.P. (William Rahm; New York; equity and debt), Formida Capital (Wade Hundley; Dallas; debt), Strada Real Estate Partners (Charles Baigler; London; equity), XYSTON Capital Management LP (Karim Moolani; New York; equity and debt), and Zenzic Capital (Nadine Buckland, Thomas Lloyd-Jones; London; debt).
Geographic and strategic concentration reveals emerging manager clustering in major financial hubs. London hosts four managers, New York hosts three, while Brussels, Los Angeles, and Dallas each host one. The strategy split shows six managers focused on equity alone, three combining equity and debt capabilities, and one debt specialist—reflecting LP demand for both traditional equity strategies and hybrid structures that address the dual-asset-class nature of modern real estate capital stacks.
Asset class focus reflects near-term market dislocation opportunities. Emerging managers are actively targeting purpose-built student accommodation, hotels, and residential segments, with selective office repositioning emerging as tactical opportunities. Dry Capital's commentary illustrates the strategic positioning: European values are repricing across the board, creating "genuinely interesting deals throughout Europe" despite macro uncertainty. Iberia and Germany are identified as key focus markets, suggesting emerging managers are deploying into regions with structural dislocations and valuation compression from prior cycles.
Ten emerging real estate managers launched or are in launch phase for 2026, representing a concentrated wave of new GP formations across both equity and debt strategies. The roster includes: Allegro Real Estate (Ian Fairweather, Joseph Russell MRICS; London; equity), Arselle Investments (Kevork Zoryan, Aaron Greeno; Los Angeles; equity), Dominium Real estate (Tom Newman; London; equity), Donohue Douglas Investment (Douglas McNeely, Donohue Peebles Jr.; New York; equity), Dry Capital (Sheelam Chadha; Brussels; equity and debt), Everview Partners L.P. (William Rahm; New York; equity and debt), Formida Capital (Wade Hundley; Dallas; debt), Strada Real Estate Partners (Charles Baigler; London; equity), XYSTON Capital Management LP (Karim Moolani; New York; equity and debt), and Zenzic Capital (Nadine Buckland, Thomas Lloyd-Jones; London; debt).
Geographic and strategic concentration reveals emerging manager clustering in major financial hubs. London hosts four managers, New York hosts three, while Brussels, Los Angeles, and Dallas each host one. The strategy split shows six managers focused on equity alone, three combining equity and debt capabilities, and one debt specialist—reflecting LP demand for both traditional equity strategies and hybrid structures that address the dual-asset-class nature of modern real estate capital stacks.
Asset class focus reflects near-term market dislocation opportunities. Emerging managers are actively targeting purpose-built student accommodation, hotels, and residential segments, with selective office repositioning emerging as tactical opportunities. Dry Capital's commentary illustrates the strategic positioning: European values are repricing across the board, creating "genuinely interesting deals throughout Europe" despite macro uncertainty. Iberia and Germany are identified as key focus markets, suggesting emerging managers are deploying into regions with structural dislocations and valuation compression from prior cycles.
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