AmREIT Completes Tender Offer

AmREIT, a Houston-based real estate investment trust, has announced the completion of a tender offer to purchase class B common shares of beneficial interest in the REIT at $9.25 per share in cash.Holders of 997,797 class B shares -- approximately 48% of the total class B common shares outstanding -- voluntarily tendered their shares, AmREIT reported. The class B shares are convertible on a one-for-one basis into the company's class A common shares and have a fixed dividend of 8%. Chad Braun, AmREIT's chief financial officer, said the completion of the tender offer "allows us to swap lower-cost secured debt for common shares with a higher dividend." The shopping center REIT can be found online at http://www.amreit.com.