Our mission
Provide access to alternative real estate investments, building wealth in strong currencies with consistent long-term returns.
Building Wealth with Real Estate Assets Abroad.
We select, structure, and co-invest with our clients in real estate developments in the United States and Europe.
Who We Are?
Aciona Real Estate is an investment advisory and co-investment firm focused on Residential Real Estate Private Equity in the United States and Europe. We serve institutional investors and family offices seeking to diversify part of their assets outside Brazil through real assets.
How we operate
Our differentiators
We co-invest alongside our clients, originate projects with experienced local developers, and independently monitor every stage of the investment cycle with transparency and technical rigor.
Our principles
Rigorous project selection grounded in residential-sector expertise, disciplined risk management, and alignment of interests through investment alongside our clients.
Our History
Our History
Aciona's vision grew out of our founder's experience in the U.S. real estate market and his conviction that Brazilian investors should have direct access to one of the world's largest and most developed economies. Before founding Aciona, he served as a director at GID Investment Advisors, one of the largest owners of multifamily rental assets in the United States. Upon returning to Brazil in 2009, he was responsible for allocating US$15 million of GID capital and building a portfolio of real estate development projects in the country.
Daily exposure to these two realities made the difference clear: a stable economy supports long-term planning, whereas in a less predictable economy, correctly timing the economic cycle can matter more than strong execution. At the same time, the depreciation of the Brazilian real against the U.S. dollar reduced Brazilians' wealth in global terms.
In 2015, our founder began studying investment opportunities in the United States as a strategy for diversification and wealth preservation outside Brazil, committing his own capital to a resilient, institutional real asset class: residential real estate.
With the trust of a São Paulo family, Aciona Real Estate Partners LLC was established as a U.S.-based investment manager designed to extend that access to other families and wealth managers. Aciona gives Brazilian investors exposure to alternative real estate investments—an asset class used by leading global investment funds to generate income, preserve wealth, and support sustainable long-term growth.
Investment Thesis
We specialize in residential real estate in the United States and Europe—mature markets that remain relatively inaccessible to Brazilian investors. We seek projects that combine wealth protection in strong currencies, income generation, and capital appreciation.
Our thesis is to build disciplined international exposure, targeting consistent net returns starting at 12% p.a. in USD/EUR for investors, through real assets, experienced developers, and close oversight of every project.
Explore the foundations of our thesis
The cost of keeping all your wealth in Brazil
A portfolio can post solid nominal returns in reais — such as during periods when fixed income yields 13% to 15% p.a. — and still lose global purchasing power. Exchange rates and inflation must be analyzed together.
The real has lost more than 80% of its value against the dollar over time.
International exposure reduces dependence on a single currency and economy.
Since 2000, cumulative inflation in Brazil has approached 400%, versus just over 100% in the United States.
Nominal returns must be analyzed in light of inflation and the purchasing power of each currency.
Real estate appreciation in Brazil vs. other countries
Data from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), known as the “central bank for central banks,” shows that over the past 15 years, real residential property prices fell 3% in Brazil, while rising 56% in the United States and 93% in Portugal.
Buying property in Brazil is not, by itself, a guarantee of protection against inflation. Preserving value depends on the market, the income produced, the asset's operation, and the price paid — not simply on owning brick and mortar.
Brazil
−3%
Approximate real change over 15 years.
United States
+56%
Approximate real change over 15 years.
Portugal
+93%
Approximate real change over 15 years.
Quarterly real residential price series from the BIS, made available via FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Approximate changes between early 2010 and the reference date shown. The data represents each national market and not the performance of any specific project.
Asset classes we invest in
In Portugal, we invest in traditional real estate development: building apartments and commercial spaces for sale, in a model similar to that practiced in Brazil.
In the United States, we invest primarily in the multifamily asset class: residential buildings with dozens or hundreds of apartments for rent, managed as a single professional operation. Just as a shopping center brings together multiple stores and tenants under one development, a multifamily property brings together multiple apartments and tenants under a single professional management. Revenue comes from rent, and the building's value depends on the income generated by its operation.
Multifamily value creation cycle
- 01Land selection or acquisition
- 02Construction or renovation of the building
- 03Leasing of the apartments
- 04Stabilized asset generating income
- 05 Sale of the completed building to a real estate fund or investor seeking recurring income
Comparison by real estate market
Investments in real estate developments — such as new construction — can offer target returns above 18% p.a. in Brazil and abroad. In the United States and Europe, however, this return represents a proportionally larger premium over local fixed income, in addition to exposure to strong currencies and mature markets. This combination can contribute to a more favorable risk-return relationship, provided that each project's specific risks are carefully analyzed.
Brazil
BRL
1.75×
of local fixed income
- Target return
- 25.0% p.a.
- Fixed income
- 14.25% · Selic
- Spread
- CDI + 10.75 p.p.
United States
USD
5.22×
of local fixed income
- Target return
- 18.0% p.a.
- Fixed income
- 3.45% · SOFR
- Spread
- SOFR + 14.55 p.p.
Europe
EUR
7.14×
of local fixed income
- Target return
- 20.0% p.a.
- Fixed income
- 2.80% · Euribor 12M
- Spread
- Euribor + 17.20 p.p.
Indicative comparison, based on the reference rates considered in this scenario.
Investment Strategies
New Construction
Participation in the development of new traditional buildings in Europe and multifamily assets in the United States, alongside experienced local developers.
Retrofit/Value-Add
Acquisition of rental (multifamily) buildings in the United States, with the potential to increase rent, occupancy, and value through renovations and operational improvements.
Investment Process
01Planning+
Objectives, investment horizon, risk profile, and allocation strategy.
02Selection+
Origination and analysis of projects, markets, and developers.
03Due Diligence+
Legal, financial, and operational analysis of the developer, the project, and the proposed structure.
04Structuring+
Definition of the investment vehicle and implementation of the legal and tax structures.
05Monitoring+
Monitoring of execution, operations, distributions, and completion of the investment.
Portfolio
Under construction
Residential for rent (Multifamily)
California, USA
92 apartments
View project
Under construction
Residential for rent (Multifamily)
Arizona, USA
560 apartments
View project
Under construction
Residential for rent (Multifamily)
Wisconsin, USA
332 apartments
View project
Under construction
Residential + retail for sale
Greater Lisbon, Portugal
19 apartments + 3 retail units
View projectIndicative target, subject to each project's assumptions and risks. Does not constitute a promise or guarantee of returns.
Leadership
Founder and CEO
Leandro Abreu
Master's in Real Estate Development from Columbia University and former director at GID Investment Advisors, one of the five largest real estate investment firms in the United States.
LinkedIn
Investments
Tiago Cavalcanti
Civil Engineer from the Polytechnic School of USP and Multidisciplinary Engineer from Centrale Lille, France. Prior experience in the Real Estate division of Kinea Investimentos.
LinkedIn
Investment Committee
Paulo Gomes, CFA
Master's in Real Estate Development from MIT and former senior portfolio manager at Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund (ADIA), where he was responsible for a portfolio exceeding US$2 billion in Latin America.
LinkedInBuilding wealth in strong currency through real assets, with alignment, discipline, and a long-term vision.
Offices: São Paulo — Av. Cidade Jardim, 377 · United States · Portugal