Grubb & Ellis Acquires Las Vegas Affiliate

SANTA ANA, Calif., July 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE), a leading real estate services and investment firm, today announced that it has strengthened its presence in the Western United States by acquiring a 100 percent interest in its Las Vegas affiliate, Grubb & Ellis|Las Vegas.  The acquisition marks the third owned office the company has established during 2010.  Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

"The acquisition is consistent with Grubb & Ellis' growth strategy to bolster its full-service capabilities throughout the country," said Thomas P. D'Arcy, president and chief executive officer of Grubb & Ellis.  "We believe Las Vegas offers significant opportunity, and Grubb & Ellis|Las Vegas is a recognized leader in the region.  They have been one of our most productive affiliate offices, and there is no question that they best represent our company and our clients in the market."

The change in ownership structure adds approximately 30 experienced brokerage professionals to Grubb & Ellis Company, who specialize in all aspects of commercial real estate, including office, industrial, retail, investments, multi-family and land.  In addition to leasing, acquisition and disposition services, the office manages nearly 3 million square feet of commercial property.  

Joseph E. Kupiec, Sr. will continue to oversee the Las Vegas office as executive vice president, managing director.  Allan M. Murow, former principal of Grubb & Ellis|Las Vegas, will stay on as a management consultant.

"Over the past decade, we've built a solid relationship with Grubb & Ellis and look forward to working even closer together in the months and years ahead," said Kupiec.  "We're excited about the progress the company has made over the past two years and believe that there is long-term benefit for our employees to be part of Grubb & Ellis."

Grubb & Ellis has stated that its goal is to be the leading provider of integrated real estate services.  In support of this objective, over the past two years it has restructured its Real Estate Services business, aggressively recruited top talent into the company and strengthened and expanded its service platform to better meet the needs of clients and enhance the company's overall profitability.

"Since joining the company as an affiliate in 2000, the Las Vegas office has demonstrated its willingness to take full advantage of the Grubb & Ellis platform and its strong commitment to clients," said Jack Van Berkel, chief operating officer of Grubb & Ellis and president, Real Estate Services.  "Our affiliate platform remains an important component of servicing the company's clients in a number of secondary and tertiary markets throughout the country; however, there are certain markets where we believe it is critical to have an owned-office presence."

During 2010, Grubb & Ellis opened owned offices in San Diego and Phoenix, and announced similar plans for Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio, and Charlotte, N.C.

Grubb & Ellis' Las Vegas office will remain at 3930 Howard Hughes Parkway, Suite 180.

About Grubb & Ellis Company

Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE) is one of the largest and most respected commercial real estate services and investment companies in the world. Our 6,000 professionals in more than 100 company-owned and affiliate offices draw from a unique platform of real estate services, practice groups and investment products to deliver comprehensive, integrated solutions to real estate owners, tenants and investors. The firm's transaction, management, consulting and investment services are supported by highly regarded proprietary market research and extensive local expertise. Through its investment subsidiaries, the company is a leading sponsor of real estate investment programs that provide individuals and institutions the opportunity to invest in a broad range of real estate investment vehicles, including public non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs), mutual funds and other real estate investment funds. For more information, visit www.grubb-ellis.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements included in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements regarding, among other things, the expected closing of the sale of the notes and the expected use of proceeds.  These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the company's actual results and events in future periods to be materially different from those anticipated, including risks and uncertainties related to the financial markets.  Such factors which could adversely affect the company's ability to obtain these results include, among other things: (i)  a continued or further slowdown in the volume and the decline in transaction values of sales and leasing transactions; (ii) the general economic downturn and recessionary pressures on businesses in general; (iii) a prolonged and pronounced recession in real estate markets and values; (iv) the unavailability of credit to finance real estate transactions in general and the company's tenant-in-common programs, in particular; (v) the ability of the company to return to compliance with the NYSE's continued listing standards; (vi) the success of current and new investment programs; (vii) the success of new initiatives and investments; (viii) the inability to attain expected levels of revenue, performance, brand equity and expense synergies resulting from the merger of Grubb & Ellis Company and NNN Realty Advisors in general, and in the current macroeconomic and credit environment, in particular; and (ix) other factors described in the company's annual report on Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2009, the company's 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2010 and in other current reports on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  The company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Grubb & Ellis Company