BSR REIT Acquires Ariza Plum Creek Apartments in Austin Market for $55.0 Million

LITTLE ROCK, AR and TORONTO, March 16, 2020 /CNW/ - BSR Real Estate Investment Trust ("BSR" or the "REIT") (TSX: HOM.U and HOM.UN) announced today that it has acquired Ariza Plum Creek Apartments (Ariza), a 349 apartment unit, garden style residential community in Kyle, Texas for $55.0 million. Ariza was constructed in 2018 in the high-growth Austin Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) and sits in Hays County, which was the second fastest growing county in the US from 2010-2018. The property includes multiple amenities such as golf course views, a two-story fitness center, resort style pool, package locker, dog park/pet wash station and access to the benefits of the new Plum Creek master planned community. The REIT now owns 1,189 apartment units in the Austin MSA. The transaction was funded with $35.8 million in mortgage debt, and the REIT's credit facility was used for the balance. The addition of the property is expected to be immediately accretive to the REIT's adjusted funds from operations ("AFFO") on a per unit basis.

"Ariza is a cutting edge, modern property packed with the amenities that our residents seek, and we are thrilled to add it to our portfolio," stated John Bailey, BSR's Chief Executive Officer. "The purchase of Ariza  reflects the benefits of our clustering and asset repositioning strategy, under which we are attaining scale in targeted primary markets that lead the country in projected population and employment growth."

The addition of Ariza marks nine property acquisitions for BSR since completing its initial public offering (IPO) on the Toronto Stock Exchange on May 18, 2018. Other acquisitions since the IPO include Brandon Place in Oklahoma City, OK; Towne Park in Springdale, AR; Riverhill in Grand Prairie, TX; Wimberly Apartments in Dallas, TX; as well as Cielo and Madrone in Austin, TX; Auberry in Allan, TX; and Satori at Long Meadow Apartments  in Richmond Texas. The acquisitions have added 2,562 apartment units to the REIT's portfolio with an average age of 11 years.

About BSR Real Estate Investment Trust

BSR Real Estate Investment Trust is an internally managed, unincorporated, and open-ended real estate investment trust established pursuant to a declaration of trust under the laws of the Province of Ontario. The REIT owns a portfolio of multifamily garden-style residential properties located in attractive primary and secondary markets in the Sunbelt region of the United States.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may contain forward-looking statements (within the meaning of applicable securities laws) relating to the business of the REIT. Forward-looking statements are identified by words such as "believe", "anticipate", "project", "expect", "intend", "plan", "will", "may", "estimate" and other similar expressions. The forward-looking statements in this news release are based on certain assumptions. They are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to control or predict. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the REIT's Annual Information Form for the dated March 10, 2020, which is available at www.sedar.com. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. Readers, therefore, should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Further, these forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and, except as expressly required by applicable law. The REIT assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Non-IFRS Financial Measure

AFFO is a key measure of performance commonly used by real estate operating companies and real estate investment trusts. It is not a measure recognized under International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") and does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS. AFFO as calculated by the REIT may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Please refer to the REIT's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months and year ended December 31, 2019 for a reconciliation of AFFO to standardized IFRS measures.

SOURCE BSR Real Estate Investment Trust