SANTA ANA, Calif., Oct. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Grubb & Ellis
Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment
firm, announced today that it has entered into exclusive
negotiations with a subsidiary of C-III Capital Partners LLC, an
affiliate of Island Capital Group LLC, which has partnered with an
affiliate of Colony Capital LLC regarding a strategic transaction
with the company.
A C-III affiliate also has agreed to invest $10 million in Grubb & Ellis through the
expansion of the company's existing $18
million credit facility with Colony Capital and purchase
$4 million of Colony's existing
facility, which will establish both C-III and Colony Capital as
significant stakeholders in Grubb & Ellis.
"This announcement is very positive for Grubb & Ellis
employees, clients and stakeholders. C-III Capital Partners
and Colony Capital are highly regarded multifaceted organizations
with deep expertise and involvement in the commercial real estate
industry. Partnering with these firms offers significant
growth opportunities for Grubb & Ellis," said Grubb & Ellis
Chairman C. Michael Kojaian.
"Grubb & Ellis is a long-time leader in the real estate
industry and we share management's vision of strengthening the
platform and growing the company. C-III Capital Partners and
Colony have the capital base and industry expertise necessary to
bolster Grubb & Ellis' client offerings and position the
company for long-term success," said Andrew
L. Farkas, chairman and CEO of C-III Capital Partners.
Farkas is the founder of New
York-based Island Capital Group LLC and former chairman and
CEO of Insignia Financial Group, Inc. Island Capital Group is
a leading international real estate merchant banking firm
specializing in real estate investing, real estate operating
businesses and real estate securities. Island Capital was
founded by Farkas in 2003 immediately following Insignia's merger
with CB Richard Ellis.
Island Capital owns controlling interests in a number of
businesses which oversee or manage, in the aggregate, in excess of
$150 billion in assets, including
C-III Capital Partners. C-III is engaged in primary and
special loan servicing, loan origination, title services,
investment management and principal investment activities.
C-III is one of the largest special servicers in the U.S. and
acquired the special servicing business of JER Partners, a private
real estate investment management company in August 2011.
Colony Capital is a private, international investment firm
focusing primarily on debt and equity investments in real
estate-related assets and operating companies, headquartered in
Los Angeles. In March,
Colony, which has a strong track record of identifying undervalued
real estate investment opportunities, provided Grubb & Ellis
with $18 million in financing in
exchange for a 60-day negotiating period to evaluate a larger
strategic investment in Grubb & Ellis.
"We look forward to working with C-III and Colony to complete a
transaction which offers broad benefits to our professionals and
platform. A transaction with these two highly regarded firms
would provide the scale for us to more efficiently and effectively
serve our clients and broker-dealer partners," said Thomas P. D'Arcy, president and chief executive
officer of Grubb & Ellis.
JMP Securities is serving as financial advisor to Grubb &
Ellis.
About Grubb & Ellis Company
Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE) is one of the largest and
most respected commercial real estate services and investment
companies in the world. Our 5,200 professionals in more than 100
company-owned and affiliate offices draw from a unique platform of
real estate services, practice groups and investment products to
deliver comprehensive, integrated solutions to real estate owners,
tenants and investors. The firm's transaction, management,
consulting and investment services are supported by highly regarded
proprietary market research and extensive local expertise. Through
its investment management business, the company is a leading
sponsor of real estate investment programs. For more information,
visit www.grubb-ellis.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements included in this press release may constitute
forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the
company's actual results and events in future periods to be
materially different from those anticipated, including risks and
uncertainties related to the financial markets. Such factors which
could adversely affect the company's ability to obtain these
results include, among other things: (i) the general economic
pressures on transaction values of sales and leasing transactions
and businesses in general; (ii) a prolonged and pronounced
recession in real estate markets and values; (iii) the
unavailability of credit to finance real estate transactions in
general; (iv) the success of current and new investment programs;
(v) the success of new initiatives and investments; (vi) the
inability to attain expected levels of revenue, performance, brand
equity in general, and in the current macroeconomic and credit
environment, in particular; (vii) the occurrence of a bankruptcy by
the Met 10 tenant-in-common program or the demand for payments on
certain non-recourse/carve-out guaranty and indemnification
obligations issued by the company, which may, in turn, in the event
such bankruptcy, or such guaranty or indemnification obligations
cannot be met, result in a cross-default under the company's issued
and outstanding Convertible Senior Notes; and (viii) other factors
described in the company's annual report on Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ending December 31, 2010,
the Company's quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended
March 31, 2011 and June 30,
2011 in other Current Reports on Form 8-K filed by the company from
time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The
company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking
statements.
SOURCE Grubb & Ellis Company