ATLANTA - July 18, 2011 - Piedmont Office Realty Trust (NYSE: PDM) today announced the completion of 1,179,469 square feet of leasing activity in the second quarter of 2011.  The Atlanta-based Office REIT achieved these leasing results through a combination of new leases and lease renewals across its national property portfolio.  The following transactions represent leases of 25,000 or more square feet executed in respective markets during the past quarter:  

Washington, D.C. - The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) renewed a 333,815 square foot lease for 2 years at One Independence Square, 250 E Street, S.W., Washington D.C. 

Detroit, MI - Chrysler Group, LLC signed a new 210,000 square foot lease for 7+ years at 1075 West Entrance Drive, Auburn Hills, MI.

Chicago, IL- Jones Lang LaSalle, Inc. completed a 164,375 square foot forward short term lease extension at Aon Center, 200 East Randolph Street, Chicago, IL.  

Portland, OR - Nike, Inc. renewed a 105,272 square foot lease for 5+ years at the Rogue building, 1345 SW Burlington Drive, Beaverton, OR.

Phoenix, AZ - AmeriCredit Financial Services, Inc. completed a 3-year forward lease extension for 62,521 square feet at Chandler Forum, 1975 South Price Road, Chandler, AZ.

Fort Lauderdale, FL - State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance signed a new 50,000 square foot lease for 5+ years at 5601 Hiatus Road, Tamarac, FL.  

Fort Lauderdale, FL - Convergys Corporation, Inc. renewed a 50,000 square foot lease for 5 years at 5601 Hiatus Road, Tamarac, FL.  

Phoenix, AZ - Grand Canyon Education, Inc. signed a new 45,540 square foot lease for 7+ years at Desert Canyon 300, 2411 West Peoria Avenue, Phoenix, AZ.

Washington, D.C. - Watkins Meegan, LLC completed a new 35,240 square foot lease for 12+ years at Piedmont Pointe II, 6720-B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, MD. 

"We are pleased with the leasing trend over the past several quarters, especially in light of the ongoing lag in employment growth and the slow recovery of the office real estate market," said C.A. "Bo" Reddic, IV, Executive Vice President of Real Estate Operations for Piedmont.  "These leasing accomplishments are largely attributed to the hard work of our internal asset and property managers  and our leasing partners, coupled with our reputation as a high quality owner/manager with balance sheet strength," added Reddic.

As previously announced, Piedmont completed the acquisition of two Class A properties in the Atlanta Market during the second quarter.  In April, Piedmont acquired the Dupree building, a Class-A, six-story, 137,818 square foot building located in Atlanta's Northwest submarket for approximately $20.5 million.  In June, Piedmont completed the purchase of the Medici building, a Class-A, 152,221 square foot property located within the prominent Piazza at Paces development complex in Atlanta's Buckhead submarket for $13.2 million.

About Piedmont: Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM) is a fully-integrated and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in high-quality, Class A office properties located primarily in the ten largest U.S. office markets, including Chicago, Washington, D.C., New York, Dallas, Los Angeles and Boston.  As of March 31, 2011, Piedmont's 77 wholly-owned office buildings were comprised of approximately 21 million rentable square feet and were 87.3 % leased. The Company is headquartered in Atlanta, GA with local management offices in each of its major markets. Investment-grade rated by Standard & Poor's and Moody's, Piedmont has maintained a low-leverage strategy while acquiring over $5.8 billion in properties since 1998.  For more information, see http://www.piedmontreit.com/.