TORONTO, June 9, 2016 /CNW/ - Firm Capital Property Trust ("FCPT" or the "Trust") (TSXV: FCD.UN) is pleased to announce the acquisition of a 40% interest in The Whitby Mall and Thickson Place two retail properties located in Whitby, Ontario (the "Portfolio"). The acquisition price for 100% of the Portfolio is approximately $75.3 million, excluding transaction costs. The properties are located directly across from each other providing a strategic benefit and long term synergies. As a result of the Portfolio acquisition, the Trust will increase the size of its current portfolio by approximately 25% to $157 million.

The Whitby Mall which is located at 1615 Dundas Street East, Whitby Ontario is a 374,811 square foot mixed use commercial property anchored by Sobeys with a strong mix of retail, office and medical tenants together with repositioning opportunities.  The property is currently 83% occupied.  The property is being acquired from a third party.

Thickson Place which is located at 80 Thickson Road South, Whitby Ontario is a 104,808 square foot retail property anchored by Metro and the LCBO. The property is currently 100% occupied.  The property is currently owned 100% by First Capital Realty Inc.

The initial acquisition of The Whitby Mall is being financed through existing cash resources and through the Trust's revolving credit facility. The acquisition of Thickson Place which is expected to close in early July, will be funded through debt to be arranged on The Whitby Mall and Thickson Place.

The acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive to AFFO. Management of the Trust expects the AFFO payout ratio of the Trust to drop below 85% and the leverage of the Trust to increase slightly to approximately 53% of Gross Book Value.

The joint venture will be comprised of the Trust for 40%, First Capital Realty for 50%, and 10% will be acquired by a syndicate group. Both properties will be managed by First Capital Realty Inc.  "We are pleased to be able to partner with one of Canada's premier owners and managers of grocery anchored, retail-focused properties on this acquisition" said Bob McKee President and CEO of the Trust.

ABOUT FIRM CAPITAL PROPERTY TRUST (TSXV :FCD.UN)
Firm Capital Property Trust is focused on creating long-term value for Unitholders, through capital preservation and disciplined investing to achieve stable distributable income. In partnership with management and industry leaders, The Trust's plan is to co-own a diversified property portfolio of multi-residential, flex industrial, net lease convenience retail, and core service provider professional space. In addition to stand alone accretive acquisitions, the Trust will make joint acquisitions with strong financial partners and acquisitions of partial interests from existing ownership groups, in a manner that provides liquidity to those selling owners and professional management for those remaining as partners.  Firm Capital Properties Inc., through a structure focused on an alignment of interests with the Trust sources, syndicates and property and asset manages investments on behalf of the Trust.

Further information about the Trust can be found by selecting the Firm Capital Property Trust link at www.firmcapital.com.

FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION
This press release may contain forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "continue", and by discussions of strategies that involve risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements are based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by the Trust regarding, among other things, the closing of the acquisition of the Portfolio. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve numerous assumptions, inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, that contribute to the possibility that the predictions, forecasts, projections and various future events will not occur. Although management of the Trust believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements will occur as anticipated. Neither the Trust nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of any forward-looking statements, and no one has any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or such other factors which affect this information, except as required by law.

SOURCE Firm Capital Property Trust