CANADIAN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT UP 48% IN 2010

Nearly every regional market in Canada showed volume increases; Toronto grew 93%
TORONTO, February 14, 2011 – A stronger economy and surging investor confidence triggered a 48%
increase in Canadian commercial real estate investment volume in 2010 to $18.9 billion, with the Toronto
market growing by a staggering 93%.
With the exception of London, Ontario, all regional markets saw an increase in volume in 2010. Toronto
finished the year with $7.4 billion in trades, up from $3.8 billion in 2009, according to the 2010 National
Investment Report released today by CB Richard Ellis Limited (CBRE).
Canadian commercial real estate transaction volumes in 2010 increased by 47.9 cent, year-over-year, from
$12.7 billion in 2009 to $18.9 billion in 2010, approaching pre-recession 2005 levels when $19.8 billion of
commercial property traded in Canada. By year-end, the number of commercial transactions reached 4,589,
compared to 3,872 transactions completed in 2009.
“This level of activity was not unexpected,” said John O’Bryan, vice-chairman of CB Richard Ellis. “Once
we were a few weeks into 2010, we could feel momentum picking up so that by the year-end, we were
about where we expected it to be.”
“It’s almost as if the recession was 20 years ago, instead of just two,” he observed. “It was really a coast-to-
coast recovery-- something we haven’t seen before.”
“Virtually every asset class in the country showed strong performance,” O’Bryan said, “although operating
businesses, such as hotels, manufacturing plants, and retirement homes were somewhat slower to recover.”
“We saw some extremely large transactions in 2010,” he said, “such as ING Groep NV's sale of its
Canadian industrial real estate portfolio for $2.2 billion. This year we can expect strong transaction
volumes, but the size of individual deals will likely be somewhat smaller.”
As stated above, Toronto recorded the highest commercial real estate activity volume of all the major
cities, with $7.4 billion traded, and 1,156 transactions.. “We’re seeing sales growth of land sites in the GTA
for intensification purposes,” said O’Bryan. “When investors show renewed interest in acquiring and
holding land banks,” he added, “it’s a good sign for the long-term health of the entire market. “
In Vancouver, 1,263 commercial real estate transactions took place during 2010, valued at over $2.9
billion. Although the number of deals and transaction volumes appear relatively unchanged on a year-over-
year basis, Mark Renzoni, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of CB Richard Ellis’
Vancouver brokerage operation said there is more to the story. “In 2009, we saw a strong recovery in the
unique post-Olympic period as well as several unusually large and somewhat anomalous transactions in the
market. The fact that deal count and transaction volumes remained stable during 2010 demonstrates that
Vancouver has maintained its momentum. In fact, we’re seeing steady and growing interest from Asian-
based private investors, European institutional investors, and, of course Canadian buyers.” Renzoni said
that the office, industrial and retail markets in the Vancouver area are all attracting investor interest. He also
noted that many local companies are seeking to upgrade their existing properties or expand into new
facilities, so he expects the 2011 market to be characterized by high levels of activity and strong liquidity.
In Calgary during 2010, 332 real estate transactions took place, totalling over $1.6 billion in transaction
volume. Edmonton’s commercial real estate market recorded 339 transactions for the year, totalling $2.0
billion. “We were all amazed at the rapid return to optimism in 2010,” said Greg Kwong, Executive Vice
President and Regional Managing Director for Alberta. “That optimism showed itself in renewed investor
confidence, the higher amount of capital put into play, and rising prices. We are not back to the lofty
heights of 2007, but it is encouraging to see liquidity return to the market. We expect 2011 will maintain the
momentum that we saw in 2010.”
In Edmonton, investor demand across all asset classes was strong over the course of 2010. The long term
fundamentals of the resource-based recovery of the Alberta economy helped drive transaction volume,”
said Dave Young, CBRE Senior Vice President and Edmonton Managing Director. The short supply of
investment grade assets in Edmonton pushed pricing to 2007 levels and this trend is expected to continue in
2011. The downtown office market was very active in 2010, with sales by CBRE's National Investment
Team-Edmonton of four Class A office buildings totalling almost $350 million.
London’s commercial real estate market was relatively stable on a year-over-year basis, with 138
transactions totalling $294 million in value, said Peter Whatmore, Senior Vice President and Managing
Director of CB Richard Ellis for London region. He noted that the completion of two particularly large
transactions in 2009 inflated the volume numbers for that year and obscured the reality that in fact 2010
was a good year for London with a significant increase in overall activity resulting from renewed investor
confidence and market demand. “With numerous trades in the retail, multi-residential and industrial
categories during 2010, it’s clear that London is back in favour following a tough grind during the market
downturn.”
In Waterloo, the market was down from the 2009 recession year as the spread between the ask prices and
the bid prices resulted in little activity, said Peter Hall, CBRE’s Senior Vice President and Managing
Director for Waterloo Region. In 2010, 192 deals closed generating $581 million in transaction volume,
which was only a third of the volume that was recorded in 2007.
In 2010, Ottawa’s commercial real estate market saw 145 transactions totalling $855 million in investment
volume. “Ottawa saw considerable investment activity during the past year with several major portfolio
sales and one-off asset trades,” said Greg Clark, Vice President and Managing Director of CB Richard Ellis
in the National Capital Region “In particular, we saw a resurgence in downtown office trades with four
major towers coming to market and trading at record levels. For institutional and private capital investors,
Ottawa is as high on the radar screen as any local market given the stability offered here by the presence of
the federal government. As a result, we anticipate that the momentum we saw in 2010 will continue
throughout 2011.”
Commercial real estate activity in Montreal showed renewed strength, with increased market activity
across all asset classes. During 2010, 976 real estate transactions took place, totalling over $2.9 billion in
value. “The fact that volume increased by 52% while the number of transactions grew only 32% shows the
significance of larger institutional deals in the Montreal market during 2010, particularly the Place
Innovation and 1801 McGill College transactions,” said Brett Miller, CBRE’s Executive Vice President and
Regional Managing Director for Eastern Canada.
During 2010, Halifax experienced strong, broad-based economic performance relative to many parts of the
country with one of the highest GDP growth performances in Canada and an unemployment rate that was
among the lowest. “The city experienced the return of strong buy-side interest, which resulted in 48
transactions totalling $306 million in investment volume,” said Bob Mussett, CBRE’s Senior Vice
President and Senior Managing Director for Atlantic Canada. “As with many markets, the lack of
investment product across all asset classes was the limiting factor on overall transaction volume. We
believe that investment activity will increase as continued low interest rates,, the threat of inflation, and cap
rates hovering near the lows of 2007, continue to provide a compelling window of opportunity for
vendors.”
“On the basis of market performance in 2010, it’s clear that commercial real estate in Canada is attracting
heightened interest from both domestic and foreign investors,” said John O’Bryan, CBRE vice-chairman.
“They recognize that this market is providing relatively strong yields in comparison to the stagnant
performance of many financial instruments. In my view, their growing confidence in this product class will
be amply justified by its continuing strength in 2011.”

2010 Regional Transaction Volume Chart

Yr. Deals/Vol Vancou Calga Edmon Lond Waterl Toron Otta Mont Halifa
ume ver ry ton on oo to wa real x
Region
2009 # of Deals 1,225 328 327 143 141 747 184 738 39

Volume $2,904 $1,386 $1,144 $300 $313 $3,83 $850 $1,91 $93
(millions) 9 9
2010 # of Deals 1,263 332 339 138 192 1,156 145 976 48

Volume $2,928 $1,565 $1,984 $294 $581 $7,42 $855 $2,91 $306
(millions) 5 8

2009 # of Deals 3.1% 1.2% 3.7% -3.5% 36.2% 54.8% - 32.2% 23.1%
Y/Y 21.2
Chan %
ge
2010 Volume 0.8% 12.9% 73.4% -1.8% 85.5% 93.4% 0.6% 52.0% 229.6
Y/Y (millions) %
Chan
ge

About CB Richard Ellis

CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in
Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services firm (in terms of 2010 revenue).
The Company has approximately 31,000 employees (excluding affiliates), and serves real estate
owners, investors and occupiers through more than 300 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide.
CB Richard Ellis offers strategic advice and execution for property sales and leasing; corporate
services; property, facilities and project management; mortgage banking; appraisal and valuation;
development services; investment management; and research and consulting.
CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in
Los Angeles, is the world's largest commercial real estate services firm (in terms of 2009 revenue).
The Company has approximately 29,000 employees (excluding affiliates), in over 60 countries
(excluding affiliates), and serves real estate owners, investors and occupiers through more than 300
offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide.
In Canada, CB Richard Ellis employs approximately 1,850 people in 24 locations from coast to coast.
Please visit our Web site at www.cbre.ca.
-30-
For further information, please contact:

John O’Bryan
Vice-Chairman
CB Richard Ellis
416.815.2388
Jim Bailey
Mansfield Communications
416-505-5617
jim@mcipr.com

CANADIAN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT UP 48% IN 2010

Nearly every regional market in Canada showed volume increases; Toronto grew 93%
TORONTO, February 14, 2011 – A stronger economy and surging investor confidence triggered a 48%
increase in Canadian commercial real estate investment volume in 2010 to $18.9 billion, with the Toronto
market growing by a staggering 93%.
With the exception of London, Ontario, all regional markets saw an increase in volume in 2010. Toronto
finished the year with $7.4 billion in trades, up from $3.8 billion in 2009, according to the 2010 National
Investment Report released today by CB Richard Ellis Limited (CBRE).
Canadian commercial real estate transaction volumes in 2010 increased by 47.9 cent, year-over-year, from
$12.7 billion in 2009 to $18.9 billion in 2010, approaching pre-recession 2005 levels when $19.8 billion of
commercial property traded in Canada. By year-end, the number of commercial transactions reached 4,589,
compared to 3,872 transactions completed in 2009.
“This level of activity was not unexpected,” said John O’Bryan, vice-chairman of CB Richard Ellis. “Once
we were a few weeks into 2010, we could feel momentum picking up so that by the year-end, we were
about where we expected it to be.”
“It’s almost as if the recession was 20 years ago, instead of just two,” he observed. “It was really a coast-to-
coast recovery-- something we haven’t seen before.”
“Virtually every asset class in the country showed strong performance,” O’Bryan said, “although operating
businesses, such as hotels, manufacturing plants, and retirement homes were somewhat slower to recover.”
“We saw some extremely large transactions in 2010,” he said, “such as ING Groep NV's sale of its
Canadian industrial real estate portfolio for $2.2 billion. This year we can expect strong transaction
volumes, but the size of individual deals will likely be somewhat smaller.”
As stated above, Toronto recorded the highest commercial real estate activity volume of all the major
cities, with $7.4 billion traded, and 1,156 transactions.. “We’re seeing sales growth of land sites in the GTA
for intensification purposes,” said O’Bryan. “When investors show renewed interest in acquiring and
holding land banks,” he added, “it’s a good sign for the long-term health of the entire market. “
In Vancouver, 1,263 commercial real estate transactions took place during 2010, valued at over $2.9
billion. Although the number of deals and transaction volumes appear relatively unchanged on a year-over-
year basis, Mark Renzoni, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of CB Richard Ellis’
Vancouver brokerage operation said there is more to the story. “In 2009, we saw a strong recovery in the
unique post-Olympic period as well as several unusually large and somewhat anomalous transactions in the
market. The fact that deal count and transaction volumes remained stable during 2010 demonstrates that
Vancouver has maintained its momentum. In fact, we’re seeing steady and growing interest from Asian-
based private investors, European institutional investors, and, of course Canadian buyers.” Renzoni said
that the office, industrial and retail markets in the Vancouver area are all attracting investor interest. He also
noted that many local companies are seeking to upgrade their existing properties or expand into new
facilities, so he expects the 2011 market to be characterized by high levels of activity and strong liquidity.
In Calgary during 2010, 332 real estate transactions took place, totalling over $1.6 billion in transaction
volume. Edmonton’s commercial real estate market recorded 339 transactions for the year, totalling $2.0
billion. “We were all amazed at the rapid return to optimism in 2010,” said Greg Kwong, Executive Vice
President and Regional Managing Director for Alberta. “That optimism showed itself in renewed investor
confidence, the higher amount of capital put into play, and rising prices. We are not back to the lofty
heights of 2007, but it is encouraging to see liquidity return to the market. We expect 2011 will maintain the
momentum that we saw in 2010.”
In Edmonton, investor demand across all asset classes was strong over the course of 2010. The long term
fundamentals of the resource-based recovery of the Alberta economy helped drive transaction volume,”
said Dave Young, CBRE Senior Vice President and Edmonton Managing Director. The short supply of
investment grade assets in Edmonton pushed pricing to 2007 levels and this trend is expected to continue in
2011. The downtown office market was very active in 2010, with sales by CBRE's National Investment
Team-Edmonton of four Class A office buildings totalling almost $350 million.
London’s commercial real estate market was relatively stable on a year-over-year basis, with 138
transactions totalling $294 million in value, said Peter Whatmore, Senior Vice President and Managing
Director of CB Richard Ellis for London region. He noted that the completion of two particularly large
transactions in 2009 inflated the volume numbers for that year and obscured the reality that in fact 2010
was a good year for London with a significant increase in overall activity resulting from renewed investor
confidence and market demand. “With numerous trades in the retail, multi-residential and industrial
categories during 2010, it’s clear that London is back in favour following a tough grind during the market
downturn.”
In Waterloo, the market was down from the 2009 recession year as the spread between the ask prices and
the bid prices resulted in little activity, said Peter Hall, CBRE’s Senior Vice President and Managing
Director for Waterloo Region. In 2010, 192 deals closed generating $581 million in transaction volume,
which was only a third of the volume that was recorded in 2007.
In 2010, Ottawa’s commercial real estate market saw 145 transactions totalling $855 million in investment
volume. “Ottawa saw considerable investment activity during the past year with several major portfolio
sales and one-off asset trades,” said Greg Clark, Vice President and Managing Director of CB Richard Ellis
in the National Capital Region “In particular, we saw a resurgence in downtown office trades with four
major towers coming to market and trading at record levels. For institutional and private capital investors,
Ottawa is as high on the radar screen as any local market given the stability offered here by the presence of
the federal government. As a result, we anticipate that the momentum we saw in 2010 will continue
throughout 2011.”
Commercial real estate activity in Montreal showed renewed strength, with increased market activity
across all asset classes. During 2010, 976 real estate transactions took place, totalling over $2.9 billion in
value. “The fact that volume increased by 52% while the number of transactions grew only 32% shows the
significance of larger institutional deals in the Montreal market during 2010, particularly the Place
Innovation and 1801 McGill College transactions,” said Brett Miller, CBRE’s Executive Vice President and
Regional Managing Director for Eastern Canada.
During 2010, Halifax experienced strong, broad-based economic performance relative to many parts of the
country with one of the highest GDP growth performances in Canada and an unemployment rate that was
among the lowest. “The city experienced the return of strong buy-side interest, which resulted in 48
transactions totalling $306 million in investment volume,” said Bob Mussett, CBRE’s Senior Vice
President and Senior Managing Director for Atlantic Canada. “As with many markets, the lack of
investment product across all asset classes was the limiting factor on overall transaction volume. We
believe that investment activity will increase as continued low interest rates,, the threat of inflation, and cap
rates hovering near the lows of 2007, continue to provide a compelling window of opportunity for
vendors.”
“On the basis of market performance in 2010, it’s clear that commercial real estate in Canada is attracting
heightened interest from both domestic and foreign investors,” said John O’Bryan, CBRE vice-chairman.
“They recognize that this market is providing relatively strong yields in comparison to the stagnant
performance of many financial instruments. In my view, their growing confidence in this product class will
be amply justified by its continuing strength in 2011.”

2010 Regional Transaction Volume Chart

Yr. Deals/Volum Vancouve Calgary Edmonto Londo Waterlo Toront Ottaw Montre Halifax
e r n n o Region o a al

2009 # of Deals 1,225 328 327 143 141 747 184 738 39
Volume $2,904 $1,386 $1,144 $300 $313 $3,839 $850 $1,919 $93
(millions)
2010 # of Deals 1,263 332 339 138 192 1,156 145 976 48
Volume $2,928 $1,565 $1,984 $294 $581 $7,425 $855 $2,918 $306
(millions)

2009 # of Deals 3.1% 1.2% 3.7% -3.5% 36.2% 54.8% - 32.2% 23.1%
Y/Y 21.2%
Chang
e
2010 Volume 0.8% 12.9% 73.4% -1.8% 85.5% 93.4% 0.6% 52.0% 229.6%
Y/Y (millions)
Chang
e

About CB Richard Ellis

CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in
Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services firm (in terms of 2010 revenue).
The Company has approximately 31,000 employees (excluding affiliates), and serves real estate
owners, investors and occupiers through more than 300 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide.
CB Richard Ellis offers strategic advice and execution for property sales and leasing; corporate
services; property, facilities and project management; mortgage banking; appraisal and valuation;
development services; investment management; and research and consulting.
CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in
Los Angeles, is the world's largest commercial real estate services firm (in terms of 2009 revenue).
The Company has approximately 29,000 employees (excluding affiliates), in over 60 countries
(excluding affiliates), and serves real estate owners, investors and occupiers through more than 300
offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide.
In Canada, CB Richard Ellis employs approximately 1,850 people in 24 locations from coast to coast.
Please visit our Web site at www.cbre.ca.