Estate Investment Trust

This Bethesda-based developer and operator of commercial real estate said its income for the second quarter rose 4.5 percent as it used proceeds from a stock offering to buy office buildings in Northern Virginia.The company said money raised through the offering carries a dividend yield of about 5 percent and was used to buy assets yielding up to 11 percent returns on the company's purchase prices."By paying all cash, we were able to purchase superbly located office buildings at far lower prices and higher yields than available a couple of years ago," company President B. Franklin Kahn said.

Corporate Office Properties Trust, the Columbia-based office real estate investment trust, is issuing $350 million in debt, the sale of which is expected to close next week, the company announced Thursday. The senior unsecured notes are due in ten years and will pay 3.6 percent interest, according to a statement from COPT. The closing is expected on Monday, the firm said. COPT's operating partnership plans to use the funds raised by the offering to repay borrowed funds and for general corporate purposes.

BTR Realty Inc. is still considering converting from a corporation to a real estate investment trust, but the switch has been held up by a hefty initial price tag and some raw land in the company's portfolio that does not produce income.Company President F. Patrick Hughes said most of the company's earnings increase in the first quarter was based on real operating gains rather than asset sales or one-time events, but he stopped short of saying the Linthicum-based development company could keep up its progress throughout the year.

Corporate Office Properties Trust said Monday that it had sold two office buildings and land in Rockville for about $48.7 million, part of the Columbia-based real estate investment trust's strategy of selling off non-core assets. COPT, which develops, owns and manages office buildings primarily for government agencies and contractors in the defense information sector, has sold $116.9 million worth of properties and land since the beginning of the year. Since last April, the company has been selling suburban office buildings to focus on high-security offices for defense tenants.

BTR Realty Inc. is still considering converting from a corporation to a real estate investment trust, but the switch has been held up by a hefty initial price tag and some raw land in the company's portfolio that does not produce income.Company President F. Patrick Hughes said most of the company's earnings increase in the first quarter was based on real operating gains rather than asset sales or one-time events, but he stopped short of saying the Linthicum-based development company could keep up its progress throughout the year.

Weyerhaeuser Co. Shares gained $5.51 to $73.85. North America's largest lumber producer may exceed $100 a share if it converts to a real estate investment trust and sells assets such as its recycling operations, Barron's said.

Corporate Office Properties Trust, the Columbia-based office real estate investment trust, is issuing $350 million in debt, the sale of which is expected to close next week, the company announced Thursday. The senior unsecured notes are due in ten years and will pay 3.6 percent interest, according to a statement from COPT. The closing is expected on Monday, the firm said. COPT's operating partnership plans to use the funds raised by the offering to repay borrowed funds and for general corporate purposes.

Bethesda-based Host Marriott Corp. plans to consolidate six of its subsidiary partnerships into a real estate investment trust.According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the new company has been tentatively named CRF Lodging Co. The REIT will consist of 221 Marriott hotels -- Courtyard by Marriott, Residence Inn by Marriott and Fairfield Inn by Marriott.CRF will lease the hotels back to Host Marriott and they will be run by Marriott International Inc., according to the filing.

The State Highway Administration is trying to condemn a small piece of private land in Westminster so it can move forward with construction on Route 140. The State Roads Commission of the State Highway Administration and the trustees of Washington Real Estate Investment Trust of Rockville, which owns the Westminster Shopping Center at Route 140 and Engler Road, could not agree on a purchase price for a parcel of land that is 0.013 of an acre, according to...

Comptroller Peter Franchot announced yesterday Maryland's first successful attempt at closing a real estate-related "tax-avoidance scheme," which yielded $10.8 million in back taxes. The amount represents three years' worth of taxes from a "major corporation" that was not identified because of tax confidentiality laws. Tax collectors have several other related audits under way and have determined that another company owes $5.7 million for using the same practice, officials said. Under the scheme, a company with stores in Maryland establishes a real estate investment trust to which its stores pay rent.

Omega Healthcare Investors Inc., a Hunt Valley real estate investment trust that finances the long-term care industry, has acquired 63 long-term care facilities for $295 million, the company said. Omega acquired facilities in 19 states with a total of 6,607 beds under an option agreement with the seller, affiliates of CapitalSource Inc., for $34 million in cash and the repayment of $261 million in debt. The sale is expected to close in June. Omega had acquired the option to purchase the facilities as part of a previously announced securities purchase agreement with CapitalSource that included the acquisition in December of entities owing 40 facilities.

Comptroller Peter Franchot announced yesterday Maryland's first successful attempt at closing a real estate-related "tax-avoidance scheme," which yielded $10.8 million in back taxes. The amount represents three years' worth of taxes from a "major corporation" that was not identified because of tax confidentiality laws. Tax collectors have several other related audits under way and have determined that another company owes $5.7 million for using the same practice, officials said. Under the scheme, a company with stores in Maryland establishes a real estate investment trust to which its stores pay rent.

Provident Bankshares Corp. officials yesterday attributed Tuesday's move to restate quarterly profit that was announced only a month ago to unexpected guidance from auditors on how to value certain investment securities. Gary N. Geisel, chairman and chief executive of Provident, said in an interview that the "unusual" timing of KPMG's advice put the bank in an uncomfortable position. He said the advice came 41 days after the accountants were given updated guidance by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Shares of Provident Bankshares Corp. fell 11 percent yesterday after the bank said it will write off $28.9 million of its real estate investment trust portfolio, making it the latest victim of the nation's declining housing and credit markets. In a related move, the Baltimore-based bank also said it is increasing its provision for bad loans by $6 million in the fourth quarter in recognition of the region's slumping housing market. The bank said it has only limited exposure to the subprime mortgage business in its loan portfolio.

Weyerhaeuser Co. Shares gained $5.51 to $73.85. North America's largest lumber producer may exceed $100 a share if it converts to a real estate investment trust and sells assets such as its recycling operations, Barron's said.

Maryland Loan-officer program offered The Maryland Mortgage Bankers Association will offer its loan-officer university program Oct. 19-21. The program is designed for first and second-year loan originators and processors and has been approved for 12 hours of Maryland continuing education credits. It will include an overview of the mortgage lending process, including pre-qualifying loan applicants and preventing mortgage fraud. For more information or to register, go to www.mdmba.org or call 410-465-6697.

BTR Realty Inc. of Linthicum unveiled a long-awaited plan yesterday to convert the company from a corporation to a real estate investment trust, as part of a plan to raise up to $100 million to lower the debt load on BTR.The company, which struggled during the recent recession, said it plans to form a real estate investment trust called Mid-Atlantic Realty Trust, which will sell between $60 million and $100 million worth of stock and convertible debt.The...

Host Marriott Corp. expects to announce today that it has completed a long-planned conversion to a real estate investment trust, a move expected to save the company tens of millions of dollars in taxes each year."

The last time the office market was this lousy, Manekin LLC made a fleeting foray into residential development. This time, the Columbia company best known for building, brokering and managing offices says it has branched out for keeps. Projects in early stages in Harford County, Cecil County, Delaware and Pennsylvania will produce in excess of 3,500 lots over the long haul - more than a decade - for the company to sell to builders. "Rather than starting small, we're starting large," said Richard Alter, president and chief executive officer of the 150-employee company.

The State Highway Administration is trying to condemn a small piece of private land in Westminster so it can move forward with construction on Route 140. The State Roads Commission of the State Highway Administration and the trustees of Washington Real Estate Investment Trust of Rockville, which owns the Westminster Shopping Center at Route 140 and Engler Road, could not agree on a purchase price for a parcel of land that is 0.013 of an acre, according to...