HMT Host Marriott Cp

Host Marriott Corporation Announces the Sale of Six Hotels BETHESDA, Md., Jan. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Host Marriott Corporation (NYSE:HMT) today announced that it has sold six hotels for total proceeds of approximately $223 million. The six hotels sold include the Albuquerque Marriott, the Bethesda Marriott, the Hartford Marriott Farmington, the Salt Lake City Marriott, the Tampa Marriott Westshore and the Torrance Marriott. The hotels were sold in three separate transactions that closed in late December and early January. The proceeds will be reinvested in the purchase of upper-upscale or luxury hotels consistent with the Company's target profile, return on investment projects, repayment of debt obligations, or other corporate purposes. The dispositions will result in a book gain in excess of $45 million. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040324/HOSTMARRIOTTLOGO ) Host Marriott is a Fortune 500 lodging real estate company that owns or holds controlling interests in upscale and luxury hotel properties primarily operated under premium brands, such as Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Hyatt, Four Seasons, Fairmont, Hilton, Sheraton and Westin. For further information, please visit the Company's website at http://www.hostmarriott.com/. This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities regulations. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "plan," "predict," "project", "will," "continue," and other similar terms and phrases including references to assumption and forecasts of future results. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results to differ materially from those anticipated at the time the forward-looking statements are made. These risks include, but are not limited to: national and local economic and business conditions, including the potential for additional terrorist attacks, that will affect occupancy rates at our hotels and the demand for hotel products and services; operating risks associated with the hotel business; risks associated with the level of our indebtedness and our ability to meet covenants in our debt agreements; relationships with property managers; our ability to maintain our properties in a first-class manner, including meeting capital expenditure requirements; our ability to compete effectively in areas such as access, location, quality of accommodations and room rate structures; changes in travel patterns, taxes and government regulations which influence or determine wages, prices, construction procedures and costs; and our ability to continue to satisfy complex rules in order for us to qualify as a REIT for federal income tax purposes and other risks and uncertainties associated with our business described in the Company's filings with the SEC. Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that the expectations will be attained or that any deviation will not be material. All information in this release is as of January 6, 2005, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in the Company's expectations. http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040324/HOSTMARRIOTTLOGO http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Host Marriott Corporation CONTACT: Gregory J. Larson, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, of Host Mariott Corporation, +1-240-744-5120 Web site: http://www.hostmarriott.com/

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