BentleyForbes Acquires GN ReSound's Minnesota Office/Technical Center for Approximately $14 Million in a Sale-Leaseback Deal.

Business Editors

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 10, 2001

BentleyForbes today announced that it has acquired the Bloomington, Minn., office/technical center building of GN ReSound Corp. in a sale-leaseback transaction valued at approximately $14 million.

GN ReSound Corp. is a subsidiary of GN Great Nordic, an international group of expanding information, communication and technology companies with headquarters in Denmark.

The GN ReSound property is located in a southwestern Minneapolis/St. Paul suburb, and consists of a single-story, 122,177-square-foot office/technical center building and 381 surface parking stalls on nearly eight acres of land. It is within close proximity to numerous area restaurants and hotels, the Mall of America, and the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport.

Although originally developed for Control Data Corp. in the 1960s, the property was expanded during the next decade, and has been leased by Seagate Technology LLC from 1974 until recently.

A $5.1 million renovation of the GN ReSound property was completed earlier this year. This renovation included a new building entrance and roof, additional exterior windows and skylights, replacement of the facility's heating/air-conditioning system, and general tenant improvements.

GN Resound Corp. is a leading international manufacturer of advanced technology hearing instruments. The company offers a full range of hearing instruments under the GN ReSound, ReSound, Danavox, Beltone, Phillips, and Viennatone brand names, including software-based digital instruments, and digitally programmable and traditional products in all sizes and models.

With its recent acquisition of Beltone, GN ReSound is now the world's second-largest producer of hearing aids with estimated annual sales of nearly $400 million. Through its Madsen Electronics and Danplex divisions, GN ReSound also produces advanced software-based audiological measurement equipment.

GN Great Nordic was founded in 1869 and is listed on both the Copenhagen and London stock exchanges. As of September 2000, GN Great Nordic had total assets of $2.52 billion, total shareholder's equity of $2.179 billion, and net income of $1.6 billion. Although the company operates globally, 60 percent of its 5,000 worldwide employees are located in North America.

Simultaneous to the sale closing, BentleyForbes leased the property back to GN ReSound on a triple net, 10-year lease with renewal options.

Rob Hervey of NorthMarq Capital's office in Newport Beach, Calif., and Patrick Minea of the firm's Bloomington office, brokered the transaction. GE Capital Business Asset Funding Corp. in Bellevue, Wash., provided financing for the property.

Los Angeles-based BentleyForbes, one of the nation's fastest-growing commercial real estate investment firms, specializes in the sale-leaseback of single-tenant, income-producing properties. Its current portfolio includes office buildings, industrial parks and warehouses.