Cousins Properties Incorporated Announces Prudential Venture.

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 12, 1998--Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ), one of the largest diversified real estate development companies in the U.S., today announced that the Company has entered into a venture with The Prudential Insurance Company of America that will provide substantial capital for the Company's pipeline of new projects.

Cousins has contributed nine properties to the Prudential venture valued at approximately $284 million and subject to approximately $54 million of long-term mortgages. Prudential will contribute approximately $230 million in cash to the venture, which will be used to fund some of the Company's new real estate developments. Cousins will have discretion to determine which of the Company's future projects will be developed in the venture and will manage and lease all of the venture's properties.

Prudential will hold its interests in the venture for its Prudential Property Investment Separate Account (PRISA), a commingled account providing real estate investments for pension funds. Prudential's investment will be phased-in over the next year. Once Prudential's investment is fully funded, Prudential will have an 88.5% interest in the economics of the contributed properties and Cousins will have an 11.5% interest in the economics of those properties. Prior to full funding, Cousins will retain a proportionately higher interest in the economics of the contributed properties. From the beginning of the venture, Prudential will have an approximately 11.5% interest in the economics of the development activity in the venture and Cousins will have an approximately 88.5% interest in the economics of that development activity.

The properties contributed by Cousins to the venture include: the 100 and 200 North Point Center East office buildings in Alpharetta, Georgia; the First Union Tower office building in Greensboro, North Carolina; the Grandview II office building in Birmingham, Alabama; the Presbyterian Medical Plaza medical office building in Charlotte, North Carolina; the North Point MarketCenter and the Mansell Crossing Phase II power centers in Alpharetta, Georgia; the Greenbrier MarketCenter power center in Chesapeake, Virginia; and the Los Altos MarketCenter power center in Long Beach, California.

Daniel M. DuPree, president and chief operating officer of Cousins, said, "We're excited by this relationship with Prudential and the tremendous benefits it offers both parties. Cousins is a development company, and the capital received through the formation of this venture will be used to help finance its extensive development pipeline. In the past year, we have announced a number of significant projects; and today are in the enviable position of having a pipeline of new projects under development in excess of approximately $600 million at cost, $188 million of which has already been funded. This is more than double the pipeline in the previous year. Our traditional approach to financing our development activities has been to use a combination of project financing and equity. The combination of capital provided from this transaction and future mortgage financing will provide substantial capital to fund development projects, mitigating the need to raise equity capital. The long-term benefits of this transaction are significant in terms of cost of capital, financial flexibility and managing the size of the Company to allow for stronger future growth in FFO."

DuPree continued, "Our decision to enter into the Prudential venture resulted from Cousins' ongoing evaluation of strategic alternatives. We will continue to consider new strategic options which will facilitate our goal of maintaining sustained superior growth and returns for our shareholders."

Dave Bradford, managing director of Prudential Real Estate Investors (PREI) and senior portfolio manager for PRISA, said, "This is a real win-win situation for both parties. The venture provides PRISA with an investment in quality real estate and an opportunity to participate in future projects of a top-notch developer. At the same time, Cousins is able to retain an investment in the existing deals while establishing a vehicle with fresh funding for development activity. I think this deal is an excellent example of the manner in which PREI has been able to partner with public real estate companies in a way that is mutually profitable for both sides."

Cousins Properties Incorporated has extensive experience in the real estate industry, including the development, acquisition, financing, management and leasing of properties. The property types that Cousins actively invests in include office, retail, medical office and land development projects. The Company's portfolio consists of interests in more than 8.6 million square feet of office space, 3.4 million square feet of retail space, .6 million square feet of medical office space, and over 400 acres of land for future commercial development. Cousins is a fully integrated equity real estate investment trust (REIT) that has been public since 1962 and trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "CUZ."

PRISA is a $2.5 billion open-end equity real estate account managed by PREI on behalf of over 80 pension plans. PRISA has investments in over 100 properties. PREI, a division of Prudential, is a leading manager of real estate assets for pension plans and currently manages over $10 billion of real estate on behalf of those investors.

Certain matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal Securities laws and are subject to uncertainties and risks, including, but not limited to, general economic conditions, local real estate conditions, interest rates, Cousins' ability to obtain favorable financing, and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 1996.