GE began acquiring real estate in earnest in the 1990s at the suggestion of its commercial lenders. It has acquired so much that it now derives 10% of its earnings from property. Jeffrey Immelt, GE’s chairman and chief executive, has an unexpected problem: if he does not want GE to be cast as a property company, he may need some nimble balance sheet management. Michael Pralle, GE Real Estate’s CEO, tells Peter Lee how it feels to own so much.
