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MALVERN, PA-Through its limited partnership subsidiary, Liberty Property Trust has sold $300 million in 10-year, 6.6%, unsecured senior notes. They are due Oct. 1, 2017 and priced to yield 6.7%.

The net proceeds of approximately $295.7 million after expenses will be used to repay outstanding debt on the locally based REIT's $600-million credit facility. According to an SEC filing, as of Aug. 31, the outstanding debt was approximately $390 million at an interest rate of about 6%. The facility matures in January 2010 and has a one-year extension option.

Joint book runners of the offering are Banc of America Securities LLC, Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc., and Wachovia Capital Markets LLC, each with a principal amount of $90 million. Co-managers Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Credit Suisse Securities USA LLC and UBS Securities LLC each undertook a principal amount of $10 million in the notes. Moody's Investor Service has rated the notes Baa2, the Standard & Poor's rating is BBB, and the Fitch Ratings is BBB+.

As GlobeSt.com previously reported, Liberty has formed a joint venture with an institutional partner for properties it intends to obtain from a pending $850-million, all-cash acquisition of Herndon, VA-based Republic Property Trust and Republic Property Limited Partnership. Liberty plans to retain a 25% interest in the JV.

Republic shareholders will vote on the acquisition at a special meeting Sept. 27. The acquisition would give the Liberty JV 2.6 million sf of office assets in the Greater Washington, DC area. "We view our entry into the Washington, DC market as a natural complement to our Baltimore/Washington corridor presence," says Bill Hankowsky, Liberty's chairman and CEO, in a statement.

Instant Insights /

Liberty Targets Debt With $296M in Senior Notes

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