How bad is the commercial real estate market right now? Well, after a Godsend of a run prior to the financial crisis, reality has set in. For Blackstone, the travails have led to clawbacks.

"Some of its managers returned $3 million in carried interest to investors in Blackstone Real Estate Partners International LP during the second quarter, a person with knowledge of the payments told Bloomberg. "They may pay back an estimated $15.7 million this quarter to another fund, Blackstone Real Estate Partners IV."

These clawbacks likely affected more than 100 employees. From 2004 to 2007, performance fees fattened the wallets of private equity managers. But the slump has pushed some funds to an inflection point of sorts.

The value of what remains in some real estate portfolios has fallen to the point that managers have to pay back a share of profit to prevent their collective share of profits from exceeding 20 percent, the cut paid as a performance fee.

But this may not last long. Property values have been rising recently. And the buyout firm does not anticipate any final clawbacks that will prove significant. Many funds require employees to put funds into an escrow-like account to fund future clawbacks should they necessary.

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