Leading Alternatives Publisher Opalesque Adds Free Daily Real Estate Publication

New York, September 29, 2008 -- Opalesque(Hedge Fund News), the world's largest subscription-based publisher on alternative investments, has launched a free, daily publication covering the global real estate markets.  The new “Opalesque Real Estate Briefings” follow the popular Opalesque “Briefing” format and offer a quick and complete oversight on real estate, important news related to that sector as well as commentaries and research in 28 detailed categories. The service can be subscribed as daily email newsletter or by RSS feed at Real Estate Briefing

Sovereign Wealth Funds Pick Up The Pieces, Pension Funds Increase Property Allocation
In the U.S., sales of commercial property in the office sector have fallen by more than 70% since last year.  Bank lending has dried up and the securitized market for commercial mortgages is completely frozen. In a recent survey, most real estate experts polled did not expect the market for commercial mortgage-backed securities to return until at least 2011. Meanwhile, prices have fallen over 10%, compared with a 40% fall during the S&L crisis.

On the residential property side, figures from Las Vegas, the poster child of the current real estate woes, reveal an interesting counter-trend. While condo prices were sinking 35%, sales are up 35% from a year earlier, continuing an upswing that has (so far) lasted eight months. According to the Chicago Tribune, local real estate experts attribute this trend to the huge numbers of foreclosures on the market; two-thirds of all sales are bank owned and tend to be cheaper.

The current banking crisis, combined with the problems facing US investors, offer international investors powerful opportunities.  Particularly for sovereign wealth funds which have started to pick up the pieces.  A survey from law firm DLA Piper suggested that nearly one in five real estate professionals had been involved in deals which included sovereign wealth funds.

Free Daily Updates In 28 Detailed News Categories

In the light of these trends and opportunities, investors, asset managers, bankers, developers, lawyers, agents, property consultants, government & state officials, and other realty service providers have found a new favorite daily read: the new Opalesque Real Estate Briefing.

Compiled by the Opalesque team, the Real Estate Briefings offer daily insights on:

l    Commercial and Residential Property Watch
l    Diverse and in-depth regional focus on: Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa
l    Construction, Green Construction, Developers
l    Emerging Trends, Market Moves
l    Fund Profiles, REITs, ETFs, IPOs/Stock Market, Private Equity, Performance
l    Mortgage
l    Legal, Regulatory, M&A
l    People
l    Research Updates, Analysis and Commentaries

Already 1800 Articles Archived

Almost 1800 real estate related articles and research in 28 detailed news categories can be already retrieved from the Opalesque Real Estate Briefing website:
http://www.opalesque.com/Realestate_Briefing/

Opalesque's experienced staff monitors the news and global markets carefully to present this essential daily update in the popular Opalesque “Briefing” format.  The service can be subscribed as daily email newsletter or by RSS feed.

The Opalesque Real Estate Briefing publication is overseen by Laxman Pai, who is part of Opalesque's Asia team. Laxman has over ten years of professional experience in financial and international journalism and the media industry. He was Executive Editor for India Wealth News and India Investment News and also contributed to global industry publications like Investment & Pensions Asia, The Wealth Net, Financier Worldwide magazine, Global Investing, Asia Risk, International Pension News, Global Pensions etc.  His academic credentials include a Bachelor in Science in Physics, Master of Arts in English Literature, Post Graduate Diploma in Journalism and an Honorary Doctorate in Journalism from the Cosmopolitan University, Missouri, USA.

About Opalesque:

In 2003, with the publication of its daily Alternative Market Briefing, Opalesque successfully launched an information revolution in the hedge fund media space: "Opalesque changed the world by bringing transparency where there was opacity and by delivering an accurate professional reporting service." - Nigel Blanchard, Culross. This hybrid financial news service, which combines proprietary industry news stories and filtered third party reports, has been credited by many industry insiders with delivering precise, accurate, and vital information to a notoriously guarded audience.

Each week, Opalesque publications are read by more than 500,000 industry professionals in over 100 countries.  Opalesque is the only daily hedge fund publisher which is actually read by the elite managers themselves (http://www.opalesque.com/op_testimonials.html).

About Opalesque Publications:

Alternative Market Briefing is a daily newsletter on the global hedge fund industry, highly praised for its completeness and timely delivery of the most important daily news for professionals dealing with hedge funds. Alternative Market Briefing offers both a quick overview and in-depth coverage. Subscribers can also access the industry’s largest news archive (29,000+ articles) on hedge funds and related topics.

A SQUARE is the first web publication, globally, that is dedicated exclusively to alternative investments. A SQUARE's weekly selections feature unique investment opportunities that bear virtually no correlation to the main stream hedge fund strategies and/or distinguish themselves by virtue of their "alternative" motive – for instance, social or behavioral strategies or those focused on natural resources or sustainable/environment-related investing.

With its "research that reveals" approach, fast facts and investment oriented analysis, A SQUARE offers diversification and complementary ideas for private, high net-worth and institutional investors, pension funds and endowments, portfolio and hedge fund managers.

Technical Research Briefing delivers three times a week a global perspective/overview on all major markets, including equity indices, fixed Income, currencies, and commodities. Opalesque Technical Research is unique compared to most available research which is fundamental in nature and not technically (chart) oriented.

Commodities Briefing is a free, daily publication covering the global commodities markets.  The Opalesque Commodities Briefings follow the popular Opalesque “Briefing” format and offer a quick and complete oversight on commodities and commodity-related news and research in 26 detailed categories.

Opalesque Roundtable Series: In an Opalesque Roundtable, some of the leading hedge fund managers (single and multi strategy managers) as well as representatives of the local investor base (institutions, fund of funds, advisers) are united to gain unique insights into the specific idiosyncrasies and developments, as well as the issues and advantages of specific global hedge fund centers.

Through the series, hedge fund investors looking for new talent, a hedge fund interested in diversifying its investor base service providers looking for new clients will all get to know some of the leaders in each hedge fund center and will find invaluable information and intelligence without any travel involved.

For more information, please go to http://www.opalesque.com