Boston Among Top Three Cities for Commercial Real Estate; Survey Says Tight Market Promises Stable Investment Opportunities.

Business/Technology Editors

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 28, 2000

It may have the frustrations of the Big Dig and a severe housing crunch, but the city of Boston ranks in the top echelon of the nation's most stable and lucrative markets for commercial real estate investment, according to a report released today by PricewaterhouseCoopers and Lend Lease Real Estate Investments Inc.

In the report, Boston ranked third, after San Francisco and New York, as a top investment. "Boston's lack of supply makes it an incredible landlords' market," said Tim Egan, senior partner in the real estate industry practice group at PricewaterhouseCoopers. "It is not surprising to see why Boston is such a lucrative investment especially given the scarcity in the market."

The report, entitled Emerging Trends in Real Estate(R) 2001 also said that "stock market meltdown" was the biggest risk to the Boston market, largely because of so many tech and mutual fund companies in the area. But it noted that the continued desire to work in the city, along with the expected growth in the seaport area, bodes well for those looking to buy office space or develop multifamily units in the city and suburbs.

"In Boston, this is a good time to sell B and C office properties," said Chuck Burd of Lend Lease, one of the contributors to the study. "It is also a great time to buy or develop multifamily housing in town or in the suburbs as demand grows for housing near workplaces."

Emerging Trends is written and published jointly by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC and Lend Lease. It is based on in-depth interviews with more than 150 leading real estate authorities. In addition to reporting on the top capital markets for real estate, the annual report contains other chapters on industry trends.

Copies of Emerging Trends in Real Estate(R) 2001 are available for $95 by calling Lorna Butts, 301-897-4629 or Bonnie White, 212-554-4168. They also can be obtained by emailing requests to [e-mail] or [e-mail].

Lend Lease Real Estate Investments (www.lendleaserei.com) is one of the largest real estate investment managers in the world and a leading U.S. real estate advisor to pension funds. The company has $41 billion in real estate and commercial mortgages under management for institutional and private clients in the U.S. In addition, the Group services some $56 billion of commercial real estate loans.

On a worldwide basis, the Lend Lease Group is an integrated real estate funds management and services business comprising funds management, project management and construction and property development. In real estate funds management, Lend Lease provides equity and debt origination and management, in public and private markets, and manages $48 billion on behalf of clients globally. Lend Lease provides project management and construction services in almost 40 countries, usually on a fee for service basis, for a blue chip client base with a high level of repeat business. In property development, Lend Lease has expertise in commercial, retail and complex urban mixed use developments, with a strong retail focus, in Europe, Asia, Australia and the United States, utilizing primarily third-party capital.

PricewaterhouseCoopers (www.pwcglobal.com) is the world's largest professional services organization. Drawing on the knowledge and skills of more than 150,000 people in 150 countries, the organization helps its clients solve complex business problems and measurably enhance their ability to build value, manage risk and improve performance in an Internet-enabled world.

PricewaterhouseCoopers refers to the member firms of the worldwide PricewaterhouseCoopers organization.