Ray White to enlist advisers

Following the successful capital raising for Ray White Invest’s first retail property unit trust, the fund management division of the estate agency business intends to distribute future products via financial planners.

Ray White Invest director Dan White confirmed that the Service Centre Trust has raised $9.5 million, with a further $1.5 million underwritten by the fund management division.

The company is in the process of securing more investors for the underwritten sum. “This trust was new territory for us and the first retail trust with a PDS we have undertaken,” he said.

“We have now settled five of the six regional fuel service centres and will settle the last one very shortly.”

The trust will be looking for further acquisitions, White confirmed. “We are looking at an industrial property trust but we haven’t set a timescale for when it will be launched,” he said.

The initial retail trust was sold through the manager’s existing client base and to some clients from the real estate agent’s franchised residential offices.

White says the company will be looking at distribution of retail trusts in the future and has not ruled out the residential offices playing a more active role. “We intend also to look at financial planning dealer groups for future distribution,” he said.

“We now have a five year track record as a manager and I think we have a good story to tell them about our expertise.”