The Blackstone Group, a global investment and advisory firm, has reportedly purchased over $50 billion in real estate assets in 2015. Many real estate investors have been watching Blackstone since it began its buying spree of single family homes in 2011, turning thousands of foreclosures into rental properties. So what other property types were added to Blackstone’s portfolio this year?

- 36 apartment properties consisting of 11,000 total units in various states throughout the U.S.

- 2.8 million square feet of office space, and the tallest office building in Chicago - Willis Tower

- A shopping center REIT with a portfolio of 38 properties

And these are purchase contracts with hefty sales prices too. For example the 36 apartment properties were purchased for $1.7 billion, Willis Tower was purchased for $1.3 billion, and the shopping center REIT was purchased for a whopping $2 billion!!

And it's not just real estate assets that Blackstone has been busy acquiring. Blackstone also acquired a majority stake in a non-bank mortgage lending company this year called Stearns Holdings. It also purchased a stake in PMI Group, a provider of private mortgage insurance to the credit union industry.

Posted by Corey Dutton, Private Money Lender