Nominees and winners are selected by the editorial staff of Institutional Investor's Real Estate Finance & Investment - a newsletter that exclusively provides weekly coverage of the U.S. commercial real estate property markets and capital markets - following their industry-wide due-diligence. The editorial staff draws on their market intelligence and accepts input from readers and industry leaders when making their selections.

On Thursday, June 5th, 2008, award nominees were honored and winners were announced and awarded at a gala dinner and awards ceremony at the Ritz-Carlton New York, Battery Park in New York City.

The EPIC Awards bring together leaders from across the industry to recognize and celebrate the achievements of their peers and is an event not to be missed. Last year's gala hosted more than 150 guests and this year's dinner and ceremony is expected to enjoy an even greater turnout!

AWARD CATEGORIES & WINNERS:
Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient Tad Philipp, Retired Managing Director, Moody's Investors Service
Outstanding Contributor Award Recipient Commercial Mortgage Securities Association
REIT or REOC of the Year Lexington Realty Trust Fund of the Year Guggenheim Structured Real Estate III Developer of the Year Taconic Investment Partners, Square Mile Capital Green Giant of the Year Principal Global Investors Advisory Firm of the Year Realpoint Investment Firm of the Year H/2 Capital Partners Innovator of the Year Moody's Investors Service, Real Estate Analytics	CDO Manager of the Year Centerline Capital Group CMBS Deal of the Year GS Mortgage Securities 2007-EOP Underwriters: The Blackstone Group, Goldman Sachs, Bear Stearns and Bank of America Bank of the Year Goldman Sachs Deal of the Year Hilton Hotels Privatization Underwriters: The Blackstone Group, Bear Stearns, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley Law Firm of the Year Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft

For information on attending or sponsoring the awards dinner, please contact Tracey Redmond, Awards Director, at 212-224-3239, tredmond@iievents.com.

This year's event will also celebrate the 20 Rising Stars of Real Estate, 20 up-and-coming, talented young professionals nominated by their managers, mentors and peers, and selected by the business editors of Institutional Investor News as future leaders of the real estate industry.