Things are going south for Prudential Real Estate Investors, down to where the weather and investments are hot.

More specifically, the company is expanding its Latin American presence and is focusing its monetary and human capital on Brazil and Mexico, the two largest economies in the region. PREI, which already has almost 90 people committed to Latin America research and investment activities — 75 in Mexico and the rest in Brazil and Miami — has recently hired four senior portfolio managers to manage its investments in Mexico, and one for Brazil. Yet another hire is in the offing.

PREI’s growing Latin American contingent is currently managing about $4.5 billion in regional assets, and will be on the hunt for more. Brazil and Mexico are of special concentration for the most obvious reason: scale. Alfonso Munk, the company’s head for Latin America, points