NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust releases fourth quarter and year-end results

TORONTO, March 11, 2015 /CNW/ - NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (the "REIT") (TSX: NWH.UN), Canada's largest non-government owner and manager of medical office buildings and healthcare real estate, today announced its results for the three months and year ended December 31, 2014.

Highlights of the Quarter:

• AFFO per unit for the quarter was $0.21, consistent with that of the previous quarter and comparable prior year quarter. AFFO per unit for the year was $0.83, a $0.01 decrease from the prior year.
• FFO per unit for the quarter was $0.24, a decrease of $0.01 compared to that of the previous quarter and a decrease of $0.02 compared to that of the comparable prior year quarter. FFO per unit for the year was $1.00, a $0.04 decrease from the prior year.
• Occupancy was 91.9%, an increase from that of the previous quarter at 91.8%.
• During the quarter the REIT sold a non-core property in Hamilton, Ontario (Victoria Medical Centre) for $6.6 million, before adjustments, resulting in net proceeds of approximately $6.3 million after transaction costs.
• The REIT paid distributions of $0.06667 per Unit on October 15, 2014, November 14, 2014 and December 15, 2014 consistent with its annualized target of $0.80 cents per Unit.

Peter Riggin, CEO, commented that "Our key objective is to optimize our portfolio and position the REIT for future growth, and we made good progress in this regard throughout 2014 and subsequent to year-end."

Selected Financial Information:

(unaudited) ($000's, except unit and per unit amounts)	Three Months Ended		Three Months Ended		Year Ended		Year Ended
	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013^(2)		December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013^(2)
Number of Properties	73		78		73		78
Revenue	$36,725		$38,425		$150,429		$150,110
Net Operating Income	$20,102		$20,741		$80,788		$81,521
Net Income (loss)	$327		$758		($22,195)		$36,520
Funds from Operations ("FFO")	$11,403		$12,158		$46,347		$48,068
Adjusted Funds from Operations ("AFFO")^(1)	$9,901		$9,873		$38,777		$38,649
Debt to Gross Book Value	55.3%		53.1%		55.3%		53.1%
Per unit data
FFO	$0.24		$0.26		$1.00		$1.04
AFFO	$0.21		$0.21		$0.83		$0.84
Distributions	$0.20		$0.20		$0.80		$0.80
AFFO Payout ratio	94%		94%		96%		96%

(1)	AFFO amounts are calculated utilizing leasing and capital reserves of 6% of revenue.
(2)	FFO and AFFO for the three months and year ended December 31, 2013 have been restated to conform with the current year presentation.

Subsequent Events:

• The REIT completed a series of transactions, as previously disclosed, including the acquisition of the Owen Sound Medical Building, a two-building complex located at 81-85 The East Mall in Toronto and two land parcels slated for medical office building development, one in Barrie, Ontario and one in St. Albert, Alberta. The transactions improve portfolio quality and position the REIT for growth. A press release describing the transaction is available on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com or from the "Recent News" page of the REIT's web site at www.nwhp.ca.
• The REIT declared distributions of $0.06667 per unit to Unitholders of record as at January 30, 2015 and February 27, 2015.
• The REIT executed term sheets, subject to the usual lender conditions and approvals, expected to generate gross mortgage proceeds of approximately $70.6 million, and net proceeds of approximately $18.8 million after repayment of maturing mortgages, to be secured against nine existing properties. Such new mortgages are expected to fund in March 2015 and will have a weighted average term to maturity of 6.5 years and weighted average interest rate of approximately 3.1%.
• On March 10, 2015, the REIT entered into an agreement with NorthWest International Healthcare Properties REIT to combine and create a leading global diversified healthcare real estate investment trust. A joint press release describing the transaction is available on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com or from the "Recent News" page of the REIT's web site at www.nwhp.ca.

Some financial measures used in this press release, such as FFO and AFFO, are used by the real estate industry to measure and compare the operating performance of real estate companies, but they do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS. As such, they are unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other real estate companies.  These non-IFRS measures are more fully defined and discussed in the REIT's management discussion and analysis (the "MD&A") for the fourth quarter of 2014, which is available on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.  Also on SEDAR are the financial statements of the REIT for the year ended December 31, 2014.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements with respect to the REIT, its operations, strategy, financial performance and condition.  These statements generally can be identified by use of forward-looking words such as "may", "will", "expect", "estimate", "anticipate", "intends", "believe", or "continue" or the negative thereof or similar variations.  The REIT's actual results and performance discussed herein could differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements.  Such statements are qualified in their entirety by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future expectations, including that the transactions contemplated herein are completed.  Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include, among other things, general economic and market factors, competition, changes in government regulations and the factors described under "Risks and Uncertainties" in the REIT's Annual Information Form and the risks and uncertainties set out in the MD&A which are available on www.sedar.com.  These cautionary statements qualify all forward-looking statements attributable to the REIT and persons acting on its behalf.  Unless otherwise stated, all forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release, and, except as expressly required by applicable law, the REIT assumes no obligation to update such statements.

The REIT invites you to participate in its conference call with senior management to discuss our fourth quarter 2014 results on Thursday, March 12, 2015 at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern).

The conference call can be accessed by dialing 647-427-7450 or 1-888-231-8191. The conference ID is 86612589.

Audio replay is available until March 19, 2015 by dialing 416-849-0833 or 1-855-859-2056. The passcode is 86612589.

Following the call, the webcast can be accessed from the "Investor Information" page, under "Webcasts & Presentations", of the REIT's web site at www.nwhp.ca, and will be archived for 30 days.

About NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust
NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust is an unincorporated, open-ended real estate investment trust established under the laws of the Province of Ontario. The REIT holds a portfolio of 74 income-producing properties, with a focus on medical office buildings and healthcare real estate, comprising approximately 4.6 million square feet of gross leasable area located in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

SOURCE NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust

Peter Riggin, Chief Executive Officer, [phone], or www.nwhp.ca