CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) today announced that its operating limited partnership, ERP Operating Limited Partnership, issued $400 million in 4.15% unsecured notes due in 2028. Including the effect of the termination of certain interest rate hedges, underwriters’ fees and other costs associated with the offering, the all-in effective rate of the notes is approximately 3.85%.
These notes were issued as “green” bonds and as a result, the Company will allocate an amount equal to the net proceeds of approximately $396.7 million from this issuance to one or more eligible green projects, such as its recently developed 855 Brannan community in San Francisco, which received LEED Home Platinum certification. This is the first green bond issuance from an apartment REIT.
“We are very pleased with the demand for this issuance, especially from investors with an environmental focus,” said Mark J. Parrell, Equity Residential’s President. “Our company has been an industry leader in ESG (environmental, social and governance) matters and this issuance demonstrates another element of our support for sustainability in all that we do.”
Equity Residential was named the 2018 Global Residential Listed Sector Leader in ESG by the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB), the fifth consecutive time the Company has been recognized as a Sector Leader by GRESB. The Company was also named the recipient of the 2018 Residential Leader in the Light Award by Nareit (National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts), the third year in a row that the Company has been recognized by Nareit for its leadership in sustainability.
About Equity Residential
Equity Residential is an S&P 500 company focused on the acquisition, development and management of rental apartment properties located in urban and high-density suburban markets where today’s renters want to live, work and play. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 306 properties consisting of 79,260 apartment units, primarily located in Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., Seattle, San Francisco, Southern California and Denver. For more information on Equity Residential, please visit our website at www.equityapartments.com.
