Announces Strategic Capital Markets Transaction

ATLANTA - October 25, 2012 - Piedmont Office Realty Trust (NYSE: PDM) announced today that it completed 1,052,361 square feet of total leasing transactions, as well as a strategic Capital Markets disposition in the third quarter of 2012 .  Piedmont also noted that it completed an additional 565,163 square feet of leasing subsequent to September 30, 2012.

Significant leasing highlights for the quarter included:

Chicago, IL  

• Aon Corporation signed a 396,406 square foot, 15-year new lease through 2028 at 200 East Randolph Street in Chicago, IL.  After 14 years as a sublease tenant, the global risk management and HR solutions firm entered into a new direct lease agreement at the 83-story East Loop tower that bears its name, Aon Center.

• Catamaran, Inc. completed a 300,686 square foot, 12-year new lease through 2024 at Piedmont's Windy Point II property, located at 1600 McConnor Parkway in Schaumburg, IL. 

• General Electric Company signed a 53,972 square foot, 14+ year new lease through 2027 at Piedmont's 500 West Monroe Street in downtown Chicago.  The building will house the corporate headquarters of GE Transportation, a unit of General Electric Company, which will move its current headquarters from Erie, PA.  

• Also at 500 West Monroe: 

• BGC Brokers US completed a 31,999 square foot, 15+ year new lease through 2028. 

• Starr Indemnity & Liability Company signed a 19,718 square foot, 15-year lease renewal, as well as a 7,248 square foot new lease.  The 26,966 square foot lease expires in 2028. 

Los Angeles, CA - Guidance Software, Inc. signed a 86,790 square foot, 10+ year new lease through 2024 at 1055 East Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena, CA.

Houston, TX - Schlumberger Technology completed a 26,358 square foot, 11+ year lease expansion at 1200 Enclave Parkway in Houston, TX.  The expansion is coterminous with its existing 105,432 square foot lease expiration of 2024.

Denver, CO -Molycorp signed a 25,605 square foot, 5-year new lease through 2017 at a Piedmont joint venture asset, 8560 Upland Drive in Englewood, CO.  

Additionally, the following lease transactions were completed subsequent to September 30, 2012:

Minneapolis, MN - U.S. Bancorp completed a 395,493 square foot, 10-year lease renewal  through 2024 at Piedmont's US Bancorp Center, located at 800 Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis, MN.

Washington, DC - Lockheed Martin Corporation completed a 115,315 square foot, 5-year lease renewal through 2019 at 9221 Corporate Boulevard in Rockville, MD.  

Dallas, TX - GE Aviation, a unit of General Electric Co., signed a 27,938 square foot, 6-year new lease through 2019 at 6031 Connection Drive in Irving, TX.  

Boston, MA - Bank of America completed a 26,417 square foot, 10-year lease renewal through 2024 at 1414 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge, MA.  

"We are extremely pleased with our leasing success of exceeding 1 million square feet during the quarter and over 500,000 additional square feet shortly thereafter," said C.A. "Bo" Reddic, IV, Executive Vice-President of Real Estate Operations for Piedmont.  "We feel fortunate to welcome new, large and creditworthy corporate tenants such as Catamaran and Guidance Software, while continuing our previously established relationships with many tenants of this same quality and caliber  - Aon, Bank of America, General Electric, Lockheed Martin,  Schlumberger and US Bank," added Reddic.

Piedmont also announced the following capital markets transaction in the third quarter:

Greenville, SC - Completed the sale of 110 & 112 Hidden Lake Circle in Duncan, SC for $25.9 million.  STAG Industrial purchased the two-building, 787,380 square-foot industrial properties which are currently 100% leased to three tenants.  L. Perrigo Company and ResMed Corporation lease the 474,000 square feet at 110 Hidden Lake Circle, while Arvato Digital Services leases the remaining 313,380 square feet at sister building, 112 Hidden Lake Circle.  

"This disposition is a true win-win for Piedmont.  It not only reflects our stated strategy of continuing to exit non-strategic markets, but it also completes the sale of the last industrial assets in our portfolio," said Raymond L. Owens, Executive Vice-President, Capital Markets for Piedmont.  "Further aligning with our corporate goals, this disposition allows us to focus on future capital reallocation opportunities," added Owens.

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 September 30, 2012, Piedmont's 74 wholly-owned office buildings were comprised of approximately 20.5 million rentable square feet. 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 transacting $5.9 billion and $1.7 billion in property acquisitions and dispositions, respectively, during its fourteen year operating history. For more information, see www.piedmontreit.com.

Contact:   Kerry Hughes

Company:   Piedmont Office Realty Trust

Phone:     + 1 770 418 8678

Email:        Kerry.Hughes@Piedmontreit.com