TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - June 1, 2012) - Canadian Apartment Properties Real Estate Investment Trust ("CAPREIT") (TSX:CAR.UN) announced today that it completed the acquisition of a large and well-established national portfolio of 12 manufactured home communities ("MHC") comprised of 2,032 land lease sites from Killam Properties Inc. ("Killam") (TSX:KMP). The MHCs are well located in Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. The total purchase price was approximately $72.3 million or approximately $35,600 per land lease site and includes the acquisition of all community services and amenities. The purchase price was satisfied by the assumption of $38.4 million in existing mortgages with a weighted average stated interest rate of 5.33% and a weighted average term to maturity of 3.0 years, with the balance from the proceeds of CAPREIT's recently completed equity offering. Details of the acquired portfolio are provided below.

In a related transaction, CAPREIT sold to Killam a 199-suite Greater Toronto Area apartment property for a sale price of approximately $33.5 million. Killam assumed the current mortgages on the property of approximately $15.0 million.

"We are very pleased to be expanding our presence in the Canadian manufactured home communities sector," commented Thomas Schwartz, President and CEO. "With this important transaction, we have grown our MHC presence across the country to approximately 10.3% of our total portfolio."

"Our experience has been very positive since entering the MHC market in July 2007, with secure and stable long-term cash flows, high occupancies, steady increases in average monthly rents, and significantly lower capital and maintenance costs," Mr. Schwartz continued. "Importantly, the transaction will be immediately accretive to our AFFO."

Homeowners in manufactured home communities own their home and enter into a lease agreement for the lot which it is located on for a monthly rental charge. Homeowners are responsible for all of their utility costs. The homes are available in a variety of styles and floor plans and can be customized to an owner's specifications.

"2012 will be a record year of portfolio growth for CAPREIT," Mr. Schwartz concluded. "Looking ahead, we will continue to evaluate additional accretive growth opportunities that add to our significant presence from coast to coast."

The following outlines details of the portfolio acquisition:

ABOUT CAPREIT

CAPREIT is a growth-oriented investment trust owning interests in multi-unit residential rental properties, including apartments, townhomes and manufactured home communities located in and near major urban centres across Canada. CAPREIT owns interests in 32,711 residential units, comprised of 29,346 apartment and townhome suites and fourteen manufactured home communities ("MHC") comprising 3,365 land lease sites. For more information about CAPREIT, its business and its investment highlights, please refer to our website at [ www.capreit.net ] and our public disclosure which can be found under our profile at [ www.sedar.com ].

CAUTIONARY STATEMENTS REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

All statements in this press release that do not relate to historical facts constitute forward-looking statements. These statements represent CAPREIT's intentions, plans, expectations and beliefs and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could result in actual results differing materially from these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties are more fully described in regulatory filings that can be obtained on SEDAR at [ www.sedar.com ].

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