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The Hampshire Companies Host Governor Christie and Local Officials at Groundbreaking Event for Its Premier, LEED Certified, State-of-the-Art Facility in Madison, N.J.

175 Park Avenue to be Future Headquarters for Realogy Corporation
Madison, N.J.

The Hampshire Companies, a full-service, private real estate investment firm with equity in assets valued at over $2.5 billion, held a groundbreaking event for its LEED Certified office building located at 175 Park Avenue in Madison, N.J., on February 1, 2012. Realogy Corporation, which is the parent company of leading real estate franchise brands including Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, Century 21, Coldwell Banker, Coldwell Banker Commercial, ERA, and Sotheby's International Realty, will relocate from Parsippany, N.J., to occupy the entire soon-to-be 270,000-square-foot building as its new headquarters in late 2012. Governor Chris Christie, Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno, Mayor Robert Conley, Madison officials, and Hampshire and Realogy executives were in attendance.

"We're extremely proud to break ground on what marks Hampshire’s third speculative office project since 2007, when commercial construction halted across the state," said James E. Hanson, II, President and CEO of The Hampshire Companies. "Through our persistent development of spec office products in New Jersey, and with great support from Gov. Christie and Lt. Gov. Guadagno, we’ve been able to attract and retain quality tenants like Realogy. We're honored to welcome Realogy to its new home, a building designed to embody what it means to be a productive and competitive 21st century business."

Richard A. Smith, President and CEO of Realogy Corporation, applauded both Gov. Christie and Lt. Gov. Guadagno for their extraordinary efforts in keeping 1,300 jobs in New Jersey. "As a global company with locations in over 100 countries, we were in a position to locate our headquarters anywhere,” said Smith. "We were strongly considering relocating to North Carolina, but the state administration’s dedication to business development allowed us the great opportunity to stay and grow our business right here in New Jersey in a new, state-of-the art headquarters."

Mayor Robert Conley welcomed Realogy to Madison, thanking Hampshire, Realogy and state officials, "for their partnership in repositioning a functionally obsolete building into a LEED Certified, state-of-the-art building," which he predicted "would become another award-winning building in the state of New Jersey."

Lt. Gov. Guadagno applauded the state’s first retention save and highlighted the importance of incentivizing businesses to stay in New Jersey, adding that, "No price can be put on the community contributions these Realogy employees will make and the value they’ll bring the state by improving quality of life."

Jon Hanson, Chairman and Founder of The Hampshire Companies, welcomed Gov. Christie, who praised Lt. Gov. Guadagno’s support of business retention in the state, citing the great progress the administration has made in the last two years. “We have ended the decade of joblessness and business rejection in New Jersey, and we’re back to letting businesses know that they’re welcome to grow here,” said Gov. Christie. “The noise of construction is the greatest noise I can hear as Gov., and I want to thank Hampshire and Realogy for continuing to invest in the state of New Jersey and contributing to its comeback."

Watch the video of the groundbreaking event.

Hampshire partnered with Kohn Pederson Fox, an international architectural firm recognized for design excellence and innovation in its buildings throughout the world, to pioneer a major change in commercial real estate development in New Jersey combining great use of space, natural light and the latest technologies with superior design.

Upon completion, the property will be LEED Silver Certified and designed to be sensitive to the neighborhood and its surrounding natural environment. The 270,000-square-foot Class A office building will feature a full range of amenities, including a fitness center, full-service cafe, and conference / team room facilities.  175 Park Avenue will have cutting edge green roof technology and state-of-the-art energy efficient mechanical systems.

Situated on over 15 acres and conveniently located in the heart of Morris County’s premier suburban office market, 175 Park Avenue offers easy access to major area highways, including Routes 124 and 24, I-78 and The Garden State Parkway. Convent Station is also minutes away and offers 45-minute midtown direct NJ Transit service to New York City.

About The Hampshire Companies
The Hampshire Companies is a full-service, private real estate firm based in Morristown, New Jersey. The Hampshire Companies is a vibrant, dynamic organization that combines creative vision and superior execution, thereby enabling it to create and enhance value in real estate investments. Additional information on The Hampshire Companies is available online at HampshireRE.com.

Contact
Leann Moczydlowski
R&J Public Relations
908-722-5757
LMoczydlowski@randjpr.com