Onex Real Estate and Morgan Stanley Real Estate Complete $1.73 Billion Acquisition of the Town and Country Trust

Business Wire, March 31, 2006

TORONTO & NEW YORK -- All amounts in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated

Onex Corporation (TSX:OCX.SV) announced today that a joint venture investment vehicle formed by Onex Real Estate, Morgan Stanley Real Estate and Sawyer Realty Holdings LLC has completed its acquisition of The Town and Country Trust (NYSE: TCT) in an all-cash transaction totalling approximately $1.73 billion, including the assumption of debt. TCT is a multifamily real estate investment trust that owns and operates 37 apartment communities in the Mid-Atlantic states and Florida.

Onex Real Estate and Morgan Stanley Real Estate have each invested approximately $116 million for a 47.6% equity interest in the TCT joint venture. The remaining 4.8% of the venture was acquired by Sawyer Realty, a multifamily real estate investment and property management firm that will manage the TCT assets.

The joint venture intends to reposition and maximize the value of TCT's portfolio. "This is an optimal time to invest in multifamily as an asset class generally and in these geographies in particular," said Michael Dana, President and CEO of Onex Real Estate. "TCT's assets are located in attractive Mid-Atlantic and Florida markets, which are characterized by strong supply and demand fundamentals and positive demographic trends and which should provide exciting opportunities for value enhancement."

Onex Corporation is a diversified company with annual consolidated revenues of more than $17 billion and consolidated assets of approximately $15 billion. Onex is one of Canada's largest companies with global operations in service, manufacturing and technology industries. Its operating companies include Celestica Inc., Spirit AeroSystems, Inc., Emergency Medical Services Corporation, Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc., ClientLogic Corporation, Cineplex Entertainment Limited Partnership, Res-Care, Inc., Cosmetic Essence, Inc., Center for Diagnostic Imaging, Inc. and Radian Communication Services Corporation. Onex Real Estate was formed by Onex in January 2005 to invest in real estate assets in North America. Onex shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the stock symbol OCX.SV.

For more information on Onex Corporation, visit its website at http://www.onex.com.

Onex Corporation's security filings can also be accessed at http://www.sedar.com.

Onex Corporation (TSX:OCX.SV)