AFRT to Form JV With Och-Ziff

American Financial Realty Trust, a real estate investment trust based in Jenkintown, Pa., has signed a letter of intent to form a real estate joint venture with Och-Ziff Real Estate Acquisitions.The joint venture would be aimed chiefly at acquiring from AFRT noncore assets with significant development, redevelopment, or repositioning potential, the REIT said. AFRT said Och-Ziff has expressed its intention to commit 85% of the total equity to the joint venture, with AFRT contributing the remainder. The REIT, which acquires properties from and leases properties to regulated financial institutions, projected that the venture could acquire more than $1 billion worth of assets over three to five years. The REIT can be found online at http://www.afrt.com.