LITTLE ROCK, AR and TORONTO, May 9, 2019 /CNW/ - BSR Real Estate Investment Trust ("BSR" or the "REIT") (TSX: HOM.U) announced today that a second phase of its Wimbledon Green property ("Wimbledon Green" or the "Property") is under construction. The Property is located in Little Rock, Arkansas which is also where BSR is headquartered. Wimbledon Green currently consists of 96 garden style apartment homes constructed in 2005. The new development will more than double Wimbledon Green's current size to 252 apartment units. This second phase is under construction on land the REIT already owns.

"BSR always seeks to maximize asset value and adding a second phase to the Wimbledon Green community is an ideal growth opportunity," said the REIT's CEO John Bailey. "Wimbledon Green consistently maintains the highest occupancy of our nine properties in the Little Rock metropolitan statistical area. This demand coupled with the ownership of the adjacent land provides an excellent opportunity to continue to build unitholder value."

For the past two years, Wimbledon Green has made the "Elite 1% List" published by the independent research company J Turner Research. This annual distinction is awarded to the top ranked properties based on their Online Reputation Assessment (ORA™) score. The ORA score is given monthly by J Turner to over 101,000 communities in the US as a measurement of online customer review satisfaction. Wimbledon Green's ORA™ score is in the top five of the state of Arkansas.

Phase II of Wimbledon Green will consist of a mix of 156 new one bedroom and two bedroom apartment units. The new construction will have three floors and some apartment units will feature attached garages with direct access. With the addition of the second phase of Wimbledon Green, BSR will own and operate 48 multifamily properties, comprising of 10,206 apartment units.

The cost of construction for the project is estimated at approximately $15.6 million. Construction has begun and is expected to be completed in early summer 2020. The REIT plans to begin leasing Phase II of Wimbledon Green in early 2020.

About BSR Real Estate Investment Trust

BSR Real Estate Investment Trust is an internally managed, unincorporated, open-ended real estate investment trust established pursuant to a declaration of trust under the laws of the Province of Ontario. The REIT owns a portfolio of 47 multifamily garden-style residential properties aggregating 10,050 apartment units located across five bordering states in the Sunbelt region of the United States.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may contain forward-looking statements (within the meaning of applicable securities laws) relating to the business of the REIT, including statements regarding the extent to which the construction of Phase II of Wimbledon Green is expected to be accretive to AFFO per Unit. Forward-looking statements are identified by words such as "believe", "anticipate", "project", "expect", "intend", "plan", "will", "may", "estimate" and other similar expressions. The forward-looking statements in this news release are based on certain assumptions, including assumptions regarding the expected financial performance of Phase II of Wimbledon Green. They are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to control or predict. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the REIT's Management's Discussion & Analysis for the period ended December 31, 2018, dated March 7, 2019, which is available at www.sedar.com. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. Readers, therefore, should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Further, these forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and, except as expressly required by applicable law, the REIT assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE BSR Real Estate Investment Trust

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