AVALONBAY COMMUNITIES, INC. (NYSE:AVB) announced today that the Company entered into a $741 million loan commitment with Deutsche Bank Berkshire Mortgage, Inc. on behalf of Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) under which the Company intends to obtain a total of $741,140,000 of capital from fourteen separate mortgage loans each to be secured by one of the Company’s current communities. The loans are expected to close on or before April 17, 2009. Interest will be fixed at 5.86% per annum for ten years. Each of the loans will provide for payments of interest only during the first and second years of the loan term, with payments of principal and interest (based on a 30 year amortization schedule) thereafter and the remaining principal amount and any unpaid interest due at maturity on the tenth anniversary.

There can be no assurance that these loans will close. The Company expects to use the funds from these loans, if completed, to pay amounts outstanding under the Company’s unsecured credit facility; to retire unsecured debt securities and other maturing debt; to support the Company’s working capital needs related to development and redevelopment activity currently underway; and general corporate purposes.

Commenting on the loan commitment, Bryce Blair, AvalonBay’s Chairman and CEO, said: “Over the past several months, we have been working diligently to ensure that our capital needs are adequately met on a go-forward basis at relatively attractive rates and terms. This loan facility, combined with the recent second closing of additional equity commitments to our $400 million AvalonBay Value Added Fund II, underscores our strong financial flexibility, enabling us to meet future capital needs and respond to opportunities as they emerge.”

About AvalonBay Communities, Inc.

As of December 31, 2008, the Company owned or held a direct or indirect ownership interest in 178 apartment communities containing 50,292 apartment homes in ten states and the District of Columbia, of which 14 communities were under construction and nine communities were under reconstruction. AvalonBay is in the business of developing, redeveloping, acquiring, and managing apartment communities in high barrier-to-entry markets of the United States. More information on AvalonBay, an S&P 500 company, may be found on the Company’s Web site at http://www.avalonbay.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. You can identify these forward-looking statements by the Company’s use of words such as “expects,” “plans,” “estimates,” “projects,” “intends,” “believes,” “outlook” and similar expressions that do not relate to historical matters. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements as a result of risks and uncertainties, which include the following: adverse capital and credit market conditions may affect our access to various sources of capital and/or cost of capital, which may affect our business activities, earnings and common stock price, among other things; and debt and/or equity financing for development, redevelopment or acquisitions of communities may not be available or may not be available on favorable terms. Additional discussions of risks and uncertainties appear in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008 under the headings “Risk Factors” and under the heading “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Forward-Looking Statements”.

Copyright © 2009 AvalonBay Communities, Inc. All Rights Reserved

AvalonBay Communities, Inc.
John Christie
Senior Director
Investor Relations & Research
703-317-4747