LONDON, May 8 (Reuters) - Investors withdrew a net 270.3 million pounds ($407 million) from unlisted UK property funds in the first three months of 2009, 44 percent less than the same period a year ago, data from the funds showed on Friday. The funds raised 185.6 million pounds of new money in the first quarter, but this was outweighed by the 455.9 million pounds that investors redeemed, the Association of Real Estate Funds (AREF) said, citing data from 67 members.
Total returns from the funds fell by 11.1 percent quarter on quarter, bringing their total returns over 12 months to minus 36.4 percent, compared with the 62.2 percent decline in real estate stocks, AREF said.
Some UK property funds have imposed restrictions on redemptions since last year, citing dramatically falling prices that made it difficult to sell assets. ($1=.6645 Pound) (Reporting by Daryl Loo; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter) (See www.reutersrealestate.com for the global service for real estate professionals from Reuters)