Liberty Property Buying Office REIT

Liberty Property Trust, a Malvern, Pa.-based office and industrial real estate investment trust, is acquiring Republic Property Trust, a Herndon, Va.-based office REIT, for a total payment of about $900 million.The price includes a payment of $14.70 per Republic common share as well as the assumption of $415 million in debt, Liberty reported. The acquisition is expected to add 24 office buildings to Liberty's portfolio, which will swell to 2.6 million square feet of office properties. William P. Hankowsky, Liberty's chairman and chief executive officer, said the acquisition will create a "critical mass of office assets in the D.C. market" for Liberty. The Washington, D.C., presence will also be "a natural complement to our Baltimore/Washington corridor presence," he said. The purchase price represents a 28% premium over Republic's common share price on July 23, according to Republic. The REITs can be found online at http://www.libertyproperty.com and http://www.republicpropertytrust.com.