RICHMOND, Va., Nov. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc. announces that it is the first non-Russian company to issue a title insurance policy related to a real estate transaction in Russia.
LandAmerica covered the title risks for Baltic Property Trust's (BPT) acquisition of a major shopping center in the Moscow region. BPT is headquartered in Copenhagen.
"We are committed to supporting our customers wherever they buy and finance real estate, so we were prepared to address the unique challenges of land titles and leaseholds, which BPT faced in Russia," said Jean-Bernard Wurm, Managing Director -- LandAmerica (Europe), based in Geneva. "And now we are in the closing stages of several additional major Russian-related transactions."
In stating why he turned to LandAmerica, Vojkan Brankovic, Managing Director for BPT Arista, its commercial real estate fund investing in Russia, said, "We are continuously working to minimize risks for our investors, especially in a market like Russia, which is why we chose a title insurance policy, a new instrument for protecting our investment."
A Record Year in Europe
Wurm noted that 2007 will be a record year for LandAmerica in Europe. The company launched its European operations at the end of 2004, and has since issued title insurance policies on properties in Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, the United Kingdom and, now, Russia.
"Title insurance is also playing an important role in European Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities (CMBS) transactions, where issuers, ratings agencies and investors recognize its critical benefit in mitigating title and mortgage risks, and closing registration gaps," said Jean-Bernard Wurm, "especially in light of the current sub-prime crisis."
LandAmerica also offers a full range of property condition and environmental assessment services, construction project monitoring, and construction cost analysis associated with commercial real estate acquisitions and finance throughout Europe. For more information visit: http://www.landam.com/Europe.
About LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc.
LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc. is a leading provider of real estate transaction services with over 800 offices and a network of more than 10,000 active agents. LandAmerica serves agent, residential, commercial, and lender customers throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, and Asia. LandAmerica is recognized as number one in the mortgage services industry on Fortune's 2007 list of America's Most Admired Companies.
About Baltic Property Trust
Established in 2001, Baltic Property Trust (BPT) is one of the largest institutional investors in commercial real estate in the Baltic Sea region, with a total investment capacity in excess of euros 1 billion, and 5 institutional real estate funds under management. BPT is headquartered in Copenhagen. For more information visit: http://www.balticpropertytrust.com/
LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc.
