10-K 1 d10k.htm FORM 10-K Form 10-K
Table of Contents

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 


 

FORM 10-K

 

ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15 (d)

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2004

 

Commission File Number 000-32983

 


 

CB RICHARD ELLIS GROUP, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 


 

Delaware   94-3391143

(State or other jurisdiction

of incorporation or organization)

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification Number)

865 South Figueroa Street, Suite 3400

Los Angeles, California

  90017
(Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)

 

(213) 613-3226

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 


 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

Title of Each Class


 

Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered


Common Stock, $0.01 par value   New York Stock Exchange

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

N.A.

 


 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes  x    No  ¨

 

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to the Form 10-K.  ¨

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an accelerated filer (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).    Yes  ¨    No  x

 

As of June 30, 2004, the aggregate market value of Class A common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant was $1.3 billion based upon the last sales price on June 30, 2004 on the New York Stock Exchange of $19.10 for the Company’s Class A Common Stock.

 

As of February 28, 2005, the number of shares of Class A common stock outstanding was 71,894,925.

 

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

 

Portions of the Proxy statement for the Registrant’s 2005 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held June 2, 2005 are incorporated by reference in Part II and Part III of this Form 10-K Report.

 



Table of Contents

Item 1. Business

 

Overview

 

CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. (which may be referred to in this Form 10-K as “we”, “us” and “our”) is the largest global commercial real estate services firm, based on 2004 revenue, offering a full range of services to occupiers, owners, lenders and investors in office, retail, industrial, multi-family and other commercial real estate assets. As of December 31, 2004, excluding affiliate and partner offices, we operated in over 200 offices worldwide with approximately 13,500 employees providing commercial real estate services under the “CB Richard Ellis” brand name. Our business is focused on several service competencies, including strategic advice and execution assistance for property leasing and sales, forecasting, valuations, origination and servicing of commercial mortgage loans, facilities and project management and real estate investment management. We generate revenues both on a per project or transaction basis and from annual management fees. For the year ended December 31, 2004, approximately 89.2% of our revenue related to engagements on a per project or transaction basis and approximately 10.8% of our revenue related to ongoing management fee engagements.

 

We have a well-balanced, highly diversified base of clients that includes more than 70 of the Fortune 100 companies. Many of our clients are consolidating their commercial real estate-related expenditures with fewer providers and, as a result, awarding their business to those providers that have a strong presence in important markets and the ability to provide a complete range of services worldwide. As a result of this trend and our ability to deliver comprehensive solutions for our clients’ needs across a wide range of markets, we believe we are well positioned to capture a growing percentage of our clients’ commercial real estate services expenditures.

 

Our History

 

We trace our roots to a San Francisco-based firm formed in 1906 that grew to become one of the largest commercial real estate services firms in the western United States during the 1940s. In the 1960s and 70s, the company expanded both its service portfolio and geographic coverage to become a full-service provider with a growing presence throughout the United States.

 

In 1989, employees and third-party investors acquired the company’s operations to form CB Commercial. Throughout the 1990s, CB Commercial moved aggressively to accelerate growth and cultivate global capabilities to meet client demands. The company acquired leading firms in investment management (Westmark Realty Advisors—now CB Richard Ellis Investors, in 1995), mortgage banking (L.J. Melody & Company, in 1996) and property and corporate facilities management, as well as capital markets and investment management (Koll Real Estate Services, in 1997). In 1996, CB Commercial became a public company.

 

In 1998, the company, then known as CB Commercial Real Estate Services Group, achieved significant global expansion with the acquisition of REI Limited. REI Limited, which traces its roots to London in 1773, was the holding company for all “Richard Ellis” operations outside of the United Kingdom. Following the REI Limited acquisition, the company changed its name to CB Richard Ellis Services, Inc. and, later in 1998, acquired the London-based firm of Hillier Parker May & Rowden, one of the top property services firms operating in the United Kingdom. With these acquisitions, we believe we became the first real estate services firm with a platform to deliver integrated real estate services across the world’s major business capitals through one commonly-owned, commonly-managed company.

 

CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc., which was initially known as Blum CB Holding Corp. and later as CBRE Holding, Inc., was formed by an affiliate of Blum Capital Partners, L.P. as a Delaware corporation on February 20, 2001 for the purpose of acquiring all of the outstanding stock of CB Richard Ellis Services in a “going private” transaction. This transaction, which involved members of our senior management team and affiliates of Blum Capital Partners and Freeman Spogli & Co., was completed in 2001.

 

In July 2003, our global position was further solidified as CB Richard Ellis Services and Insignia Financial Group, Inc. were brought together to form a premier, worldwide, full-service real estate company. As a result of

 

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the Insignia acquisition, we now operate globally under the “CB Richard Ellis” brand name, which we believe is a well-recognized brand in virtually all of the world’s key business centers. In order to enhance our financing flexibility and to provide liquidity for some of our stockholders, in June 2004, we completed the initial public offering of our common stock. Lastly, in December 2004, we completed a secondary public offering that provided further liquidity for some of our stockholders.

 

Our Corporate Structure

 

We are a holding company and conduct all of our operations through our indirect subsidiaries. Our directly-owned subsidiary CB Richard Ellis Services is also generally a holding company and is the primary obligor or issuer with respect to most of our long-term indebtedness, including our senior secured credit facilities, our 9 3/4% senior notes due 2010 and our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes due 2011.

 

In our Americas segment described below, substantially all of our advisory services and outsourcing services operations, other than mortgage loan origination and servicing, are conducted exclusively through our indirect wholly owned subsidiary CB Richard Ellis Real Estate Services, Inc., which we acquired in connection with the Insignia acquisition and was formerly known as Insignia/ESG, Inc., and CB Richard Ellis Inc. Our mortgage loan origination and servicing operations are conducted exclusively through our indirect wholly owned subsidiary L.J. Melody & Company and its subsidiaries. Our operations in Canada are primarily conducted through our indirect wholly owned subsidiary CB Richard Ellis Limited.

 

Our operations outside the Americas segment, including our Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Global Investment Management segments described below, are conducted through a number of indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. The most significant of such subsidiaries in Europe, Middle East and Africa include CB Richard Ellis Ltd. and CB Richard Ellis Europe Ltd. (the United Kingdom), CB Richard Ellis SA and CB Richard Ellis Bourdais Holding SAS Group (France), CB Richard Ellis SA (Spain) and CB Richard Ellis, B.V. (the Netherlands). The most significant of such subsidiaries in Asia Pacific include CB Richard Ellis Pty Ltd. (Australia), CB Richard Ellis (Agency) Ltd. (New Zealand), CB Richard Ellis Ltd. (Hong Kong) and CB Richard Ellis Pte Ltd. (Singapore).

 

Operations in our Global Investment Management segment are conducted through our indirect wholly owned subsidiary CB Richard Ellis Investors, L.L.C. and its global affiliates.

 

Industry Overview

 

Our business covers all the various segments that comprise the commercial real estate services industry, which includes leasing, sales, property management, facilities management, consulting, mortgage origination and servicing, valuation and appraisal services and investment management.

 

We review on a quarterly basis various internally-generated statistics and estimates regarding both office and industrial space within the U.S. commercial real estate services industry, including the total available “stock” of rentable space and the average rent per square foot of space. Our management believes that changes in the addressable commercial rental market represented by the product of available stock and rent per square foot provide a reliable estimate of changes in the overall commercial real estate services industry because nearly all segments within the industry are affected by changes in these two measurements. We estimate that the product of available stock and rent per square foot grew at a compound annual growth rate of approximately 4.3% from 1994 through 2004.

 

During the next few years, we believe the key drivers of revenue growth for the largest commercial real estate services companies will be (1) the continued outsourcing of commercial real estate services, (2) the consolidation of clients’ activities with fewer providers and (3) the increasing institutional ownership of commercial real estate.

 

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Outsourcing

 

Motivated by reduced costs, lower overhead, improved execution across markets, increased operational efficiency and a desire to focus on their core competencies, property owners and occupiers have increasingly contracted out for their commercial real estate services, including the following:

 

    Transaction management—oversight of purchase and sale of properties, execution of lease transactions, renewal of leases, expansions and relocation of offices and disposition of surplus space;

 

    Facilities management—oversight of all the operations associated with the functioning of occupied real estate, whether owned and leased, including engineering services, janitorial services, security services, landscaping and capital improvements and directing and monitoring of various subcontractors;

 

    Project management—oversight of the design and construction of interior space (as distinct from building design and construction), including assembling and coordinating contracting teams, and creating and managing budgets;

 

    Lease administration—analysis of all real estate leases of a client to ensure that it is in compliance with all terms and maintenance of reports on all lease data, including critical dates such as renewal options, expansion options and termination options, performance of required services and proper charging or payment for costs;

 

    Property Management—oversight of the daily operation of a single property or portfolio of properties, including tenant service/relations and bidding, awarding and administering subcontracts for maintenance, landscaping, security, parking, capital and tenant improvements to implement the owner’s specific property value enhancement objectives through maximization of cash flow; and

 

    Property Accounting—performance of all of the accounting and financial reporting associated with a property or portfolio, including operating budgets and expenses, rent collection and other accounts receivable, accounts payable, capital and tenant improvements and tenant lease administration.

 

Consolidation

 

Despite recent consolidation, the commercial real estate services industry remains highly fragmented. Other than the limited number of national and international real estate services firms with whom we compete in a number of service competencies, most firms within the industry are local or regional firms that are substantially smaller than us on an overall basis, although in some cases have a larger local presence in certain competencies. We believe that major property owners and corporate users are motivated to consolidate their service provider relationships on a regional, national and global basis to obtain more consistent execution across markets to achieve economies of scale and to benefit from streamlined management oversight and the efficiency of “single point of contact” service delivery. As a result, we believe large owners and occupiers are awarding a disproportionate share of this business to the larger real estate services providers, particularly those that provide a full suite of services across geographical boundaries.

 

Institutional Ownership of Commercial Real Estate

 

Institutional owners, such as real estate investment trusts, or REITs, pension funds, foreign institutions and other financial entities, increasingly are acquiring more real estate assets and financing them in the capital markets. Many institutional investors are dedicating a higher percentage of their capital to real estate. Particularly with borrowing costs low, investors believe they can generate higher current-cash yields with real estate investments than with alternative investments. Gradually improving leasing market fundamentals (i.e., higher occupancy, increased rents) also offer these investors the potential for rising future cash-flow. Total U.S. real estate assets held by institutional owners increased to $479 billion in 2004 from $223 billion in 1994. REITs were the main drivers of this growth, with a portfolio increase of more than 550% over this time period. Pension fund assets also grew by 53% and foreign institutions augmented their U.S. real estate investments by 71%. We believe it is likely that these owners will outsource management of their portfolios and consolidate their use of real estate services vendors.

 

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Our Regions of Operation and Principal Services

 

Effective with the fourth quarter of 2004, we reorganized our business segments for financial reporting purposes by separating the Global Investment Management business from our geographic regions. This action was taken in an effort to increase our transparency of reporting in light of the growing significance of our Global Investment Management business. This reorganization has reduced revenues and earnings in the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Africa and Asia Pacific regions, but has had no impact on consolidated results. All periods presented have been restated to conform with the 2004 presentation.

 

We now report our results of operations through four primary segments: (1) the Americas, (2) Europe, Middle East and Africa, or EMEA, (3) Asia Pacific and (4) Global Investment Management. Within our Americas segment, we organize our services into the following business areas in order to maximize synergies and cross-selling opportunities among our clients: (a) advisory services and (b) outsourcing services.

 

Information regarding revenue and operating income or loss, attributable to each of our segments, is included in “Segment Operations” within the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” section and within Note 20 of our Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, which are incorporated herein by reference. Information concerning the identifiable assets of each of our business segments is also set forth in Note 20 of our Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, which is incorporated herein by reference.

 

The Americas

 

The Americas segment is our largest segment of operations and provides a comprehensive range of services throughout the United States and in the largest metropolitan regions in Canada, Mexico and other selected parts of Latin America. Our Americas segment accounted for 70.2% of our 2004 revenue, 70.9% of our 2003 revenue and 73.6% of our 2002 revenue.

 

Advisory Services

 

Corporations, institutions and other users of real estate services have been increasingly consolidating their relationships with fewer service providers that have depth of resources, a full array of services and broad geographic reach. We believe our advisory services businesses have been at the vanguard of this trend, offering occupier/tenant and investor/owner services that meet the full spectrum of marketplace needs, including (1) real estate services, (2) mortgage loan origination and servicing and (3) valuation. Our advisory services business line accounted for 61.3% of our 2004 revenue, 57.5% of our 2003 revenue and 57.5% of our 2002 revenue.

 

Within advisory services, our major service lines are the following:

 

    Real Estate Services. We provide strategic advice and execution to owners, investors and occupiers of real estate in connection with leasing, disposition and acquisition of property. These businesses are built upon strong client relationships that frequently lead to recurring revenue opportunities over many years. Our real estate services professionals are particularly adept at aligning real estate strategies with client business objectives, serving as an advisor as well as transaction executor. During 2004, we advised on nearly 24,000 lease transactions involving aggregate rents of approximately $37.4 billion and more than 5,800 real estate sales transactions with an aggregate value of approximately $42.3 billion. We believe we are a market leader for the provision of sales and leasing real estate services in many of the top U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau), including New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago, Boston and Dallas.

 

Our real estate services professionals are compensated primarily through commission-based programs, which are payable upon completion of the assignment. Therefore, as compensation is our largest expense, this flexible cost structure permits us to mitigate the negative effect on our operating margins during difficult market conditions. Due to the low barriers to entry and significant competition for

 

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quality employees, we strive to retain top professionals through an attractive compensation program tied to productivity. We also invest in greater support resources than available at most other firms, such as training, market information, technology and marketing, and we foster an entrepreneurial culture that emphasizes client service and rewards performance.

 

We further strengthen our relationships with our real estate services clients by offering proprietary research to clients through our Torto Wheaton Research unit, a leading provider of commercial real estate market information, forecasting and consulting services. Torto Wheaton Research provides data and analysis to its clients in various formats, including TWR Outlook reports for office, industrial, hotel, retail and multi-housing sectors covering 54 U.S. metropolitan areas and the TWR Select office and industrial database coverage of over 210,000 commercial properties.

 

    Mortgage Loan Origination and Servicing. Our wholly owned subsidiary, L.J. Melody & Company, originates and services commercial mortgage loans primarily through relationships established with investment banking firms, national banks, credit companies, insurance companies, pension funds and government agencies. During 2004, L.J. Melody completed $13.3 billion in debt and equity transactions, representing a 21.0% increase in total volume from 2003. Approximately $1.7 billion of loans were originated for federal government sponsored entities, most of which were financed through a revolving credit line dedicated exclusively for this purpose. Loans financed through the revolving credit line generally occur without principal risk because L.J. Melody obtains a legally binding purchase commitment from the government sponsored entity before it actually originates the loan. GEMSA Loan Services, a joint venture between L.J. Melody and GE Capital Real Estate, services approximately $60.0 billion of mortgage loans, $24.0 billion of which relate to the servicing rights of L. J. Melody.

 

    Valuation. We provide valuation services that include market value appraisals, litigation support, discounted cash flow analyses and feasibility and fairness opinions. Our valuation business has developed proprietary technology for preparing and delivering valuation reports to its clients, which we believe provides it with a competitive advantage over its rivals. We believe that our valuation business is one of the largest in the industry. During 2004, we completed over 14,000 valuation, appraisal and advisory assignments.

 

Outsourcing Services

 

Outsourcing is a long-term trend in commercial real estate, with corporations, institutions and others seeking to achieve improved efficiency, better execution and lower costs by relying on the expertise of third-party real estate specialists. Our outsourcing services business includes two business lines that seek to capitalize on this trend: (1) asset services and (2) corporate services. Although our management agreements with our outsourcing clients generally may be terminated on relatively short notice ranging between 30 days to a year, we have developed long-term relationships with many of these clients and we continue to work closely with them to implement their specific goals and objectives and to preserve and expand upon these relationships. As of December 31, 2004, we managed approximately 447.0 million square feet of commercial space for property owners and occupiers, which we believe represents one of the largest portfolios in the Americas. Our outsourcing services business line accounted for 8.9% of our 2004 revenue, 13.4% of our 2003 revenue and 16.1% of our 2002 revenue.

 

    Asset Services. We provide property management, construction management, marketing, leasing, accounting and financial services on a contractual basis for income-producing office, industrial and retail properties owned by local, regional and institutional investors. We believe our contractual relationships with these clients put us in an advantageous position to provide other services for them, including refinancing, disposition and appraisal.

 

   

Corporate Services. We provide a comprehensive set of portfolio management, transaction management, project management, strategic consulting, facilities management and other corporate real estate services to leading global companies and public sector institutions with large, geographically–diverse real estate portfolios. Corporate facilities under management in the Americas region include headquarters buildings,

 

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regional offices, administrative offices and manufacturing and distribution facilities. Corporate services’ clients are typically companies or public sector institutions with large, distributed real estate portfolios. We enter into long-term, contractual relationships with these organizations with the goal of ensuring that our clients’ real estate strategies support their overall business strategies.

 

Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)

 

Our EMEA segment has offices in 29 countries, with its largest operations located in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, the Netherlands and Germany. Operations within the EMEA countries generally include brokerage, investment properties, corporate services, valuation/appraisal services, asset management services, facilities management and other services similar to our Americas segment. Our EMEA segment accounted for 19.4% of our 2004 revenue, 18.3% of our 2003 revenue and 14.6% of our 2002 revenue.

 

We are one of the leading commercial real estate services companies in the United Kingdom. We hold the leading market position in London in terms of 2004 leased square footage and investment market activity and provide a broad range of commercial property real estate services to investment, commercial and corporate clients located in London. We also have nine regional offices in Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, Jersey, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow. In France, we believe we are a market leader in Paris and we provide a complete range of services to the commercial property sector, as well as some services to the residential property market. In Spain, we provide full-service coverage through our offices in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Malaga, Marbella and Palma de Mallorca. Our business in the Netherlands is based in Amsterdam, while our German operations are located in Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin and Hamburg. Our operations in these countries generally provide a full range of services to the commercial property sector. Additionally, we provide some residential property services in France and Spain.

 

We also have affiliated offices that provide commercial real estate services under our brand name in the Middle East and Africa, including the countries of Botswana, Israel, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Our agreements with these independent offices include licenses to use the “CB Richard Ellis” name in the relevant territory in return for payments to us of annual royalty fees. In addition, these agreements also include business cross-referral arrangements between us and the affiliates. We do not have any ownership interests with respect to these affiliated offices.

 

Asia Pacific

 

Our Asia Pacific segment has offices in 12 countries. We believe that we are one of only a few companies that can provide a full range of real estate services to large corporations throughout the region, similar to the broad range of services provided by our Americas and EMEA segments. Our principal operations in Asia are located in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Japan. In addition, we have agreements with affiliated offices in India, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam that generate royalty fees and support cross-referral arrangements on terms similar to those with our affiliated offices in our EMEA segment, as described above. The Pacific region includes Australia and New Zealand, with principal offices located in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Auckland. Our Asia Pacific segment accounted for 6.4% of our 2004 revenue, 6.6% of our 2003 revenue and 6.9% of our 2002 revenue.

 

Global Investment Management

 

Our wholly owned subsidiary, CB Richard Ellis Investors, L.L.C. and its investment management affiliates, provides investment management services to client/partners that include pension plans, investment funds and other organizations seeking to generate returns and diversification through investment in real estate. It sponsors funds and investment programs that span the risk/return spectrum across three continents. In higher yield strategies, CBRE Investors and its investment teams “co-invest” with its limited partners. Our Global Investment Management segment accounted for 4.0% of our 2004 revenue, 4.2% of our 2003 revenue and 4.9% of our 2002 revenue.

 

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CBRE Investors is organized into three general customer-focused groups according to investment strategy, which include Managed Accounts Group (low risk), Strategic Partners (value added funds) and Special Situations (higher yield and highly focused strategies). Operationally, a dedicated investment team with the requisite skill sets executes each investment strategy, with the team’s compensation being driven largely by the investment performance of its particular strategy/fund. This organizational structure is designed to align the interests of team members with those of the firm and its investor clients/partners and to enhance accountability and performance. Dedicated teams share resources such as accounting, financial controls, information technology, investor services and research. In addition to the research provided by our advisory services group, which focuses primarily on market conditions and forecasts, CBRE Investors has an in-house team of research professionals who focus on investment strategy and underwriting.

 

CBRE Investors closed over $3.5 billion and $2.1 billion of new acquisitions in 2004 and 2003, respectively. It liquidated $1.9 billion of investments in 2004. Assets under management have increased from $3.7 billion in 1997 to $15.1 billion in 2004, representing a 22.3% compound annual growth rate.

 

Our Competitive Position

 

We believe we possess several competitive strengths that position us to capitalize on the positive outsourcing, consolidation and increasing institutional ownership trends in the commercial real estate services industry. Our strengths include the following:

 

    Global Brand and Market Leading Positions. For nearly a century, we and our predecessors have built the CB Richard Ellis brand into the largest commercial real estate services provider in the world, based on 2004 revenue, and one of only three commercial real estate services companies with a global brand. As a result of our global brand recognition and geographic reach, large corporations, institutional owners and users of real estate recognize us as a leading provider of world-class, comprehensive real estate services. Operating under the global CB Richard Ellis brand name, we are a leader in many of the local markets in which we operate, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, London and Paris.

 

    Full Service Capabilities. We provide a full range of commercial real estate services to meet the needs of our clients, and we believe this suite of services represents a broader range globally than those of many of our competitors. When combined with our extensive global reach and localized market knowledge, this full range of real estate services enables us to provide world-class service to our multi-regional and multi-national clients, as well as to maximize our revenue per client.

 

    Strong Client Relationships and Client-tailored Service. We have forged long-term relationships with many of our clients. Our clients include more than 70 of the Fortune 100 companies. In order to better satisfy the needs of our largest clients and to capture cross-selling opportunities, we have organized fully-integrated client coverage teams comprised of senior management, a global relationship manager and regional and product specialists. We believe that this client-tailored approach contributed significantly to our 24.5% compound annual growth rate in revenues from the 50 largest clients of our U.S. investment sales group within our real estate services line of business during the period from 2000 to 2004.

 

    Attractive Business Model. Our business model features a diversified client base, recurring revenue streams, a variable cost structure, low capital requirements and strong cash flow generation.

 

    Diversified Client Base. Our global operations, multiple service lines and extensive client relationships provide us with a diversified revenue base. For 2004, we estimate that corporations accounted for approximately 27% of our global revenue, insurance companies and banks accounted for approximately 19% of our revenue, pension funds and their advisors accounted for approximately 9% of our revenue, individuals and partnerships accounted for approximately 16% of our revenue, REITs accounted for approximately 5% of our revenue and other types of clients accounted for the remainder of our revenue.

 

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    Recurring Revenue Streams. Our years of strong local market presence have allowed us to develop significant repeat client relationships, which along with the turnover of leases and properties for which we have previously acted as transaction manager, we estimate accounted for approximately 64% of our 2004 revenue. This includes referrals associated with our contractual, annual fee-for-services businesses, which generally involve facilities management, property management, mortgage loan servicing provided by L.J. Melody & Company and asset management provided by CBRE Investors. Our contractual, fee-for-service business represented 10.8% of our 2004 revenue.

 

    Variable Cost Structure. Compensation is our largest expense and our sales and leasing professionals are generally paid on a commission and bonus basis, which correlates with our revenue performance. This flexible cost structure mitigates the negative effect on our operating margins during difficult market conditions. However, our cost structure also includes significant other operating expenses that may not correlate to our revenue performance, including office lease and information technology maintenance and other support services expenses along with insurance premiums.

 

    Low Capital Requirements. Our business model is structured to provide value-added services with low capital intensity. During 2004, our net capital expenditures were 1.7% of our revenue.

 

    Strong Cash Flow Generation. Our strong brand name, full-service capabilities, and global presence enable us to generate significant revenues which, when combined with our flexible cost structure and low capital requirements, have allowed us historically to generate significant cash flow in a variety of economic conditions.

 

    Strong Senior Management Team and Workforce. Our most important asset is our people. We have recruited a talented and motivated work force of approximately 13,500 employees worldwide who are supported by a strong and deep senior management team consisting of a number of highly-respected executives, most of whom have over 20 years of broad experience in the real estate industry. In addition, we use equity compensation to align the interests of our senior management team with the interests of our stockholders.

 

Although we believe these strengths will create significant opportunities for our business, you should also be aware of the risks that may impact our competitive position, which include the following:

 

    Significant Leverage. We are highly leveraged and have significant debt service obligations. For the year ended December 31, 2004, our interest expense was $65.4 million. In addition, the instruments governing our indebtedness impose significant operating and financial restrictions on the conduct of our business.

 

    Geographic Concentration. During 2004, approximately 20.9% of our revenue was generated from transactions originating in California and approximately 8.1% was generated from transactions originating in the greater New York metropolitan area. In addition, a significant portion of our European operations is concentrated in London and Paris. As a result, future adverse economic effects in these regions may affect us more than our competitors.

 

    Exposure to Risks of International Operations. We conduct a significant portion of our business and employ a substantial number of people outside of the United States. During 2004, we generated approximately 31.6% of our revenue from operations outside the United States. Because a significant portion of our revenues are derived from operations outside the United States, we are exposed to adverse changes in exchange rates and social, political and economic risks of doing business in foreign countries.

 

   

Smaller Presence in Some Markets than our Local Competitors. Although we are the largest commercial real estate services firm in the world in terms of 2004 revenue, our relative competitive position varies significantly across service categories and geographic areas. Depending on the service, we face competition from other real estate service providers, institutional lenders, insurance

 

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companies, investment banking firms, investment managers and accounting firms, some of which may have greater financial resources than we do. Many of our competitors are local or regional firms. Although substantially smaller than we are, some of these competitors are larger on a local or regional basis.

 

Our Growth Strategy

 

We believe we have built the premier integrated global services platform in our industry. In developing this integrated global platform, we acquired such entities as The Koll Company, Westmark Realty Advisors, L.J. Melody, Richard Ellis International and Hillier Parker May & Rowden during the 1990s and, in 2003, we acquired Insignia. Today, we believe we offer the commercial real estate services industry’s most complete suite of service offerings and that we have a leadership position in many of the top business centers around the world. Our primary business objective is to leverage this platform in order to garner an increasing share of industry revenues relative to our competitors. We believe this will enable us to maximize and sustain our long-term cash flow and increase long-term stockholder value. Our strategy to achieve these business objectives consists of several elements:

 

    Increase Revenue from Large Clients. We plan to capitalize on our client management strategy for our large clients, which is designed to provide them with a full range of services globally while maximizing our revenue per client. We deliver these services through relationship management teams that are charged with thoroughly understanding our customers’ business and real estate strategies and matching our services to the customers’ requirements. The global relationship manager is a highly seasoned professional who is focused on maximizing revenue per client and compensated with a salary and a performance-based bonus and is supported by salaried professionals with specialized expertise, such as marketing, financial analysis and construction. The team leader also taps into our field-level transaction professionals, as necessary, for execution of client strategies. We believe this approach to client management will lead to stronger client relationships and enable us to maximize cross-selling opportunities and capture a larger share of our clients’ commercial real estate services expenditures. For example:

 

    we generated repeat business in 2004 from approximately 68% of our U.S. real estate sales and leasing clients;

 

    more than 60% of our corporate services clients today purchase more than one service and, in many cases, more than two;

 

    the square footage we manage for our 15 largest asset services clients has grown by 64% in three years; and

 

    the 50 largest clients of the investment sales group within our real estate services line of business generated $99.4 million in revenues in 2004—up 141% from $41.3 million for the top 50 clients four years earlier.

 

    Capitalize on Cross-selling Opportunities. Because we believe cross-selling represents a large growth opportunity within the commercial real estate services industry, we are committed to emphasizing this opportunity across all of our clients, services and regions. We have dedicated substantial resources and implemented several management initiatives to better enable our workforce to capitalize on these opportunities among our various lines of business, including our “CBRE University” outside Chicago that provides intensive training for sales and management professionals, a customer relationship management database and sales management principles and incentives designed to improve individual productivity. We believe the combination of these initiatives will enable us to further penetrate local markets and better capitalize on our worldwide platform.

 

   

Continue to Grow our Investment Management Business. Our growing investment management business provides us with an attractive revenue source through fees on assets under management and gains on the sales of assets. We also expect to achieve strong growth in this business by continuing to harness the vast resources of the entire CB Richard Ellis organization for the benefit of our investment

 

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management clients. CBRE Investors’ independent structure creates an alignment of interests with its investors, while permitting its clients to use the broad range of services provided by our other business lines. As a result, we historically have received significant revenue from the provision of services on an arm’s length basis to these clients, and we believe this will continue in the future.

 

    Expansion through Fill-In Acquisitions. We believe that it is beneficial to us to grow our business through strategic acquisitions. There are a number of quality smaller firms throughout the world that may be suitable acquisition candidates for us. We expect that each of these acquisitions would generally be less than $100 million in total consideration and would serve to add to our existing geographic and/or line of business platforms in our markets.

 

    Focus on Improved Operating Efficiency. We have been focused for several years on efficiency improvements and contribution enhancements from our internal support services and functions including travel, advertising and entertainment as well as headcount. We believe our efforts have contributed strongly to lower operating costs, higher margins and improved performance. We remain committed to the continued realization of operational efficiencies and cost savings associated with these efforts in order to maximize our operating margins and cash flow.

 

Competition

 

We compete across a variety of business disciplines within the commercial real estate services industry, including investment management, tenant representation, corporate services, construction and development management, property management, agency leasing, valuation and mortgage banking. Each of the business disciplines in which we compete is highly competitive on an international, national, regional and local level. Although we are the largest commercial real estate services firm in the world in terms of 2004 revenue, our relative competitive position varies significantly across product and service categories and geographic areas. Depending on the product or service, we face competition from other commercial real estate service providers, institutional lenders, insurance companies, investment banking firms, investment managers and accounting firms, some of which may have greater financial resources than we do. Many of our competitors are local or regional firms. Although substantially smaller than we are, some of these competitors are larger on a local or regional basis. We are also subject to competition from other large national and multi-national firms that have similar service competencies to ours, including Cushman & Wakefield, Grubb & Ellis, Jones Lang LaSalle and Trammell Crow.

 

Different factors weigh heavily in the competition for clients. In advisory services, key differentiating factors include quality service, resource depth, demonstrated track record, analytical skills, market knowledge, strategic thinking and creative problem-solving. These factors are also vital in outsourcing services, and are supplemented by consistency of execution across markets, economies of scale, enhanced efficiency and cost reduction strategies. In investment management the ability to enhance asset value and produce solid, consistent returns on invested capital are keys to success.

 

Seasonality

 

A significant portion of our revenue is seasonal. Historically, this seasonality has caused our revenue, operating income, net income and cash flow from operating activities to be lower in the first two calendar quarters and higher in the third and fourth calendar quarters of each year. The concentration of earnings and cash flow in the fourth quarter is due to an industry-wide focus on completing transactions by year-end.

 

Employees

 

At December 31, 2004, we had approximately 13,500 employees worldwide. At December 31, 2004, 228 of our employees were subject to collective bargaining agreements, the substantial majority of whom are employees in our asset services business in the New York/New Jersey area. We believe that relations with our employees are satisfactory.

 

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Intellectual Property

 

We hold various trademarks and trade names worldwide, which include the “CB Richard Ellis” name. Although we believe our intellectual property plays a role in maintaining our competitive position in a number of the markets that we serve, we do not believe we would be materially, adversely affected by expiration or termination of our trademarks or trade names or the loss of any of our other intellectual property rights other than the “CB Richard Ellis” name and the “L.J. Melody” name. With respect to the CB Richard Ellis and L.J. Melody names, we have processed and continuously maintain trademark registrations for these service marks in the United States and the CB Richard Ellis related marks are in registration or in process in most foreign jurisdictions where we conduct significant business. We obtained our most recent U.S. trademark registrations for the CB Richard Ellis related marks in 2005, and these registrations would expire in 2015 if we failed to renew them. We obtained our most recent U.S. trademark registration for the L.J. Melody name in 1997, and this registration would expire in 2007 if we failed to renew it.

 

In addition to trade names, we have developed proprietary technology for preparing and developing valuation reports to our clients through our valuation business and we offer proprietary research to clients through our Torto Wheaton research unit. We also offer proprietary investment structures through CB Richard Ellis Investors. While we seek to secure our rights under applicable intellectual property protection laws in these and any other proprietary assets that we use in our business, we do not believe any of these other items of intellectual property are material to our business.

 

Environmental Matters

 

Federal, state and local laws and regulations impose environmental controls, disclosure rules and zoning restrictions that impact the management, development, use, or sale of commercial real estate. We are not aware of any material noncompliance with the environmental laws or regulations currently applicable to us, and we are not the subject of any material claim for liability with respect to contamination at any location. However, these laws and regulations may discourage sales and leasing activities and mortgage lending with respect to some properties, which may adversely affect both us and the commercial real estate services industry in general. In addition, if we fail to disclose environmental issues in connection with a real estate transaction, we may become liable to a buyer or lessee of property. Environmental contamination or other environmental liabilities may also negatively affect the value of commercial real estate assets held by entities that are managed by our investment management business, which could adversely impact the result of operations of that business line.

 

Applicable laws and contractual obligations to property owners could also subject us to environmental liabilities through our provision of management services. Environmental laws and regulations impose liability on current or previous real property owners or operators for the cost of investigating, cleaning up or removing contamination caused by hazardous or toxic substances at the property. As a result, we may be held liable as an operator for such costs in our role as an on-site property manager. This liability may result even if the original actions were legal and we had no knowledge of, or were not responsible for, the presence of the hazardous or toxic substances. Under certain environmental laws, we could also be held responsible for the entire amount of the liability if other responsible parties are unable to pay. We may also be liable under common law to third parties for property damages and personal injuries resulting from environmental contamination at our sites, including the presence of asbestos-containing materials. Insurance coverage for such matters may be unavailable or inadequate to cover our liabilities. Additionally, liabilities incurred to comply with more stringent future environmental requirements could adversely affect any or all of our lines of business.

 

Factors Affecting Our Future Performance

 

Set forth below and elsewhere in this report and in other documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission are risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from the results contemplated by the forward-looking statements contained in this report and other public statements we make.

 

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The success of our business is significantly related to general economic conditions and, accordingly, our business could be harmed in the event of an economic slowdown or recession.

 

Periods of economic slowdown or recession, significantly rising interest rates, a declining employment level, a declining demand for real estate or the public perception that any of these events may occur, can reduce volumes for many of our business lines. These economic conditions could result in a general decline in rents, which in turn would reduce revenue from property management fees and brokerage commissions derived from property sales and leases. In addition, these conditions could lead to a decline in sales prices as well as a decline in funds invested in commercial real estate and related assets. An economic downturn or a significant increase in interest rates also may reduce the amount of loan originations and related servicing by our commercial mortgage brokerage business. If our real estate and mortgage brokerage businesses are negatively impacted, it is likely that our other lines of business would also suffer due to the relationship among our various business lines. Further, as a result of our debt level and the terms of our existing debt instruments, our exposure to adverse general economic conditions is heightened.

 

As an example of this risk, during 2002 and 2001, we were adversely affected by the slowdown in the U.S. economy, which negatively impacted the commercial real estate market generally. This caused a decline in our leasing activities within the United States. Moreover, in part because of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 and the subsequent conflict with Iraq, the economic climate in the United States became very uncertain, which had an adverse effect on commercial real estate market conditions and, in turn, our operating results for 2002 and 2001.

 

If the properties that we manage fail to perform, then our financial condition and results of operations could be harmed.

 

The revenue we generate from our asset services and facilities management lines of business is generally a percentage of aggregate rent collections from properties, although many management agreements provide for a specified minimum management fee. Accordingly, our success partially depends upon the performance of the properties we manage. The performance of these properties will depend upon the following factors, among others, many of which are partially or completely outside of our control:

 

    our ability to attract and retain creditworthy tenants;

 

    the magnitude of defaults by tenants under their respective leases;

 

    our ability to control operating expenses;

 

    governmental regulations, local rent control or stabilization ordinances which are in, or may be put into, effect;

 

    various uninsurable risks;

 

    financial conditions prevailing generally and in the areas in which these properties are located;

 

    the nature and extent of competitive properties; and

 

    the real estate market generally.

 

We have numerous significant competitors, some of which may have greater financial resources than we do.

 

We compete across a variety of business disciplines within the commercial real estate industry, including investment management, tenant representation, corporate services, construction and development management, property management, agency leasing, valuation and mortgage brokerage. In general, with respect to each of our business disciplines, we cannot give assurance that we will be able to continue to compete effectively or maintain our current fee arrangements or margin levels or that we will not encounter increased competition. Each of the

 

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business disciplines in which we compete is highly competitive on an international, national, regional and local level. Although we are the largest commercial real estate services firm in the world in terms of 2004 revenue, our relative competitive position varies significantly across product and service categories and geographic areas. Depending on the product or service, we face competition from other real estate service providers, institutional lenders, insurance companies, investment banking firms, investment managers and accounting firms, some of which may have greater financial resources than we do. Many of our competitors are local or regional firms. Although substantially smaller than us, some of these competitors are larger on a local or regional basis. We are also subject to competition from other large national and multi-national firms that have similar service competencies to ours.

 

Our international operations subject us to social, political and economic risks of doing business in foreign countries.

 

We conduct a significant portion of our business and employ a substantial number of people outside of the United States. During 2004, we generated approximately 31.6% of our revenue from operations outside the United States. Circumstances and developments related to international operations that could negatively affect our business, financial condition or results of operations include, but are not limited to, the following factors:

 

    difficulties and costs of staffing and managing international operations;

 

    currency restrictions, which may prevent the transfer of capital and profits to the United States;

 

    unexpected changes in regulatory requirements;

 

    potentially adverse tax consequences;

 

    the responsibility of complying with multiple and potentially conflicting laws;

 

    the impact of regional or country-specific business cycles and economic instability;

 

    the geographic, time zone, language and cultural differences among personnel in different areas of the world;

 

    greater difficulty in collecting accounts receivable in some geographic regions such as Asia, where many countries have underdeveloped insolvency laws and clients are often slow to pay, and in some European countries, where clients also tend to delay payments;

 

    political instability; and

 

    foreign ownership restrictions with respect to operations in countries such as China.

 

We have committed additional resources to expand our worldwide sales and marketing activities, to globalize our service offerings and products in selected markets and to develop local sales and support channels. If we are unable to successfully implement these plans, to maintain adequate long-term strategies that successfully manage the risks associated with our global business or to adequately manage operational fluctuations, our business, financial condition or results of operations could be harmed.

 

In addition, our international operations and, specifically, the ability of our non-U.S. subsidiaries to dividend or otherwise transfer cash among our subsidiaries, including transfers of cash to pay interest and principal on our debt, may be affected by limitations on imports, currency exchange control regulations, transfer pricing regulations and potentially adverse tax consequences, among other things.

 

Our revenue and earnings may be adversely affected by foreign currency fluctuations.

 

Our revenue from non-U.S. operations is denominated primarily in the local currency where the associated revenue was earned. During 2004, approximately 31.6% of our business was transacted in currencies of foreign countries, the majority of which included the Euro, the British Pound Sterling, the Hong Kong dollar, the

 

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Singapore dollar and the Australian dollar. Thus, we may experience fluctuations in revenues and earnings because of corresponding fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. For example, during 2004, the U.S. dollar dropped in value against many of the currencies in which we conduct business.

 

We have made significant acquisitions of non-U.S. companies and we may acquire additional foreign companies in the future. As we increase our foreign operations, fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar relative to the other currencies in which we may generate earnings could adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. Due to the constantly changing currency exposures to which we are subject and the volatility of currency exchange rates, we cannot predict the effect of exchange rate fluctuations upon future operating results. In addition, fluctuations in currencies relative to the U.S. dollar may make it more difficult to perform period-to-period comparisons of our reported results of operations.

 

From time to time, our management uses currency hedging instruments, including foreign currency forward and option contracts and borrows in foreign currencies. Economic risks associated with these hedging instruments include unexpected fluctuations in inflation rates, which impact cash flow relative to paying down debt, and unexpected changes in the underlying net asset position. These hedging activities also may not be effective.

 

Our growth has depended significantly upon acquisitions, which may not be available in the future.

 

A significant component of our growth has occurred through acquisitions, including our acquisition of Insignia on July 23, 2003. Any future growth through acquisitions will be partially dependent upon the continued availability of suitable acquisition candidates at favorable prices and upon advantageous terms and conditions. However, future acquisitions may not be available at advantageous prices or upon favorable terms and conditions. In addition, acquisitions involve risks that the businesses acquired will not perform in accordance with expectations and that business judgments concerning the value, strengths and weaknesses of businesses acquired will prove incorrect. Future acquisitions and any necessary related financings also may involve significant transaction-related expenses. For example, through December 31, 2004, we have incurred approximately $200.9 million of transaction-related expenses in connection with our acquisition of Insignia in 2003.

 

If we acquire companies in the future, we may experience integration costs and the acquired businesses may not perform as we expect.

 

We have had, and may continue to experience, difficulties in integrating operations and accounting systems acquired from other companies. These challenges include the diversion of management’s attention from other business concerns and the potential loss of our key employees or those of the acquired operations. We believe that most acquisitions will initially have an adverse impact on operating and net income. Acquisitions also frequently involve significant costs related to integrating information technology, accounting and management services and rationalizing personnel levels. In connection with the Insignia acquisition, we recorded significant charges during 2003 and 2004 relating to integration costs.

 

If we are unable to fully integrate the accounting and other systems of the businesses we acquire, we may not be able to effectively manage them. Moreover, the integration process itself may be disruptive to our business as it requires coordination of geographically diverse organizations and implementation of new accounting and information technology systems.

 

A significant portion of our operations are concentrated in California and New York, and our business could be harmed in the event of a future economic downturn in the California or New York real estate markets.

 

During 2004 and 2003, approximately 20.9% and 23.8%, respectively, of revenue was generated from transactions originating in California and approximately 8.1% and 6.9%, respectively, was generated from transactions originating in the greater New York metropolitan area. As a result of the geographic concentrations

 

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in California and New York, any future economic downturn in the California or New York commercial real estate markets and in the local economies in San Diego, Los Angeles, Orange County or the greater New York metropolitan area could harm our results of operations.

 

Our results of operations vary significantly among quarters during each calendar year, which makes comparisons of our quarterly results difficult.

 

A significant portion of our revenue is seasonal. Historically, this seasonality has caused our revenue, operating income, net income and cash flow from operating activities to be lower in the first two quarters and higher in the third and fourth quarters of each year. The concentration of earnings and cash flow in the fourth quarter is due to an industry-wide focus on completing transactions toward the fiscal year-end. This has historically resulted in lower profits or a loss in the first and second quarters, with profits growing (or losses decreasing) in each subsequent quarter. This variance among quarters during each calendar year makes comparison between such quarters difficult, but does not generally affect the comparison of the same quarters during different calendar years.

 

Our substantial leverage and debt service obligations could harm our ability to operate our business, remain in compliance with debt covenants and make payments on our debt.

 

We are highly leveraged and have significant debt service obligations. For 2004, our interest expense was $65.4 million. Our substantial level of indebtedness increases the possibility that we may be unable to generate cash sufficient to pay when due the principal of, interest on or other amounts due in respect of our indebtedness. In addition, we may incur additional debt from time to time to finance strategic acquisitions, investments, joint ventures or for other purposes, subject to the restrictions contained in the documents governing our indebtedness. If we incur additional debt, the risks associated with our substantial leverage, including our ability to service our debt, would increase.

 

Our substantial debt could have other important consequences, which include, but are not limited to, the following:

 

    we could be required to use a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to pay principal and interest on our debt;

 

    our level of debt may restrict us from raising additional financing on satisfactory terms to fund working capital, strategic acquisitions, investments, joint ventures and other general corporate requirements;

 

    our interest expense could increase if interest rates increase because, the loans under our amended and restated credit agreement governing our senior secured credit facilities bear interest at floating rates;

 

    our substantial leverage could increase our vulnerability to general economic downturns and adverse competitive and industry conditions, placing us at a disadvantage compared to those of our competitors that are less leveraged;

 

    our debt service obligations could limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and in the commercial real estate services industry;

 

    our failure to comply with the financial and other restrictive covenants in the documents governing our indebtedness, which, among others, require us to maintain specified financial ratios and limit our ability to incur additional debt and sell assets, could result in an event of default that, if not cured or waived, could harm our business or prospects; and

 

    from time to time, Moody’s Investors Service and Standard and Poor’s Ratings Service rate our outstanding senior secured term loan, our 9 3/4% senior notes and our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes. These ratings may impact our ability to borrow under any new agreements in the future, as well as the interest rates and other terms of any such future borrowings and could also cause a decline in the market price of our common stock or changes in the interest rate for the term loan under our new amended and restated credit agreement.

 

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We cannot be certain that our earnings will be sufficient to allow us to pay principal and interest on our debt and meet our other obligations. If we do not have sufficient earnings, we may be required to refinance all or part of our existing debt, sell assets, borrow more money or sell more securities, none of which we can guarantee that we will be able to do.

 

We are able to incur more indebtedness, which may intensify the risks associated with our substantial leverage, including our ability to service our indebtedness.

 

Our amended and restated credit agreement governing our senior secured credit facilities and the indentures relating to our 9 3/4% senior notes due 2010 and our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes due 2011 permit us, subject to specified conditions, to incur a significant amount of additional indebtedness, including up to $150.0 million of additional indebtedness under our revolving credit facility. Our amended and restated credit agreement also permits us to borrow up to $25.0 million of additional term loans under our term loan facility, subject to the satisfaction of customary conditions. If we incur additional debt, the risks associated with our substantial leverage, including our ability to service our debt, would increase.

 

Our debt instruments impose operating and financial restrictions on us, and in the event of a default, all of our borrowings would become immediately due and payable.

 

The indentures governing our 9 3/4% senior notes due 2010 and our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes due 2011 impose, and the terms of any future debt may impose, operating and other restrictions on us and many of our subsidiaries. These restrictions will affect, and in many respects will limit or prohibit, our ability and our restricted subsidiaries’ abilities to:

 

    incur or guarantee additional indebtedness;

 

    pay dividends or make distributions on capital stock or redeem or repurchase capital stock;

 

    repurchase equity interests;

 

    make investments;

 

    create restrictions on the payment of dividends or other amounts to us;

 

    sell stock of subsidiaries;

 

    transfer or sell assets;

 

    create liens;

 

    enter into transactions with affiliates;

 

    enter into sale/leaseback transactions; and

 

    enter into mergers or consolidations.

 

The amended and restated credit agreement also requires us to maintain compliance with specified financial ratios. Our ability to comply with these ratios may be affected by events beyond our control.

 

The restrictions contained in our debt instruments could:

 

    limit our ability to plan for or react to market conditions or meet capital needs or otherwise restrict our activities or business plans; and

 

    adversely affect our ability to finance ongoing operations, strategic acquisitions, investments or other capital needs or to engage in other business activities that would be in our interest.

 

A breach of any of these restrictive covenants or the inability to comply with the required financial ratios could result in a default under our debt instruments. If any such default occurs, the lenders under the senior

 

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secured credit facilities and the holders of our 9 3/4% senior notes due 2010 and our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes due 2011, pursuant to the respective indentures, may elect to declare all outstanding borrowings, together with accrued interest and other fees, to be immediately due and payable. The lenders under our senior secured credit facilities also have the right in these circumstances to terminate any commitments they have to provide further borrowings. If we are unable to repay outstanding borrowings when due, the lenders under the senior secured credit facilities will have the right to proceed against the collateral granted to them to secure the debt, which collateral is described in the immediately following risk factor. If the debt under the senior secured credit facilities, our 9 3/4% senior notes due 2010 or our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes due 2011 were to be accelerated, we cannot give assurance that this collateral would be sufficient to repay our debt.

 

If we fail to meet our payment or other obligations under the senior secured credit facilities, the lenders under the senior secured credit facilities could foreclose on, and acquire control of, substantially all of our assets.

 

In connection with the incurrence of indebtedness under our senior secured credit facilities and the completion of our acquisition of Insignia, the lenders under our senior secured credit facilities received a pledge of all of our equity interests in our significant domestic subsidiaries, including CB Richard Ellis Services, Inc., CB Richard Ellis Investors, L.L.C., L.J. Melody & Company, Insignia and Insignia/ESG, Inc., which was subsequently renamed CB Richard Ellis Real Estate Services, Inc., and 65% of the voting stock of our foreign subsidiaries that is held directly by us or our domestic subsidiaries. Additionally, these lenders generally have a lien on substantially all of our accounts receivable, cash, general intangibles, investment property and future acquired material property. As a result of these pledges and liens, if we fail to meet our payment or other obligations under the senior secured credit facilities, the lenders under the senior secured credit facilities will be entitled to foreclose on substantially all of our assets and liquidate these assets.

 

Our co-investment activities subject us to real estate investment risks which could cause fluctuations in earnings and cash flow.

 

An important part of the strategy for our investment management business involves investing our capital in certain real estate investments with our clients. As of December 31, 2004, we had committed $24.3 million to fund future co-investments. We expect that approximately $23.5 million of these commitments will be funded during 2005. In addition to required future capital contributions, some of the co-investment entities may request additional capital from us and our subsidiaries holding investments in those assets, and the failure to provide these contributions could have adverse consequences to our interests in these investments. These adverse consequences could include damage to our reputation with our co-investment partners and clients, as well as the necessity of obtaining alternative funding from other sources that may be on disadvantageous terms for us and the other co-investors. Providing co-investment financing is also a very important part of CBRE Investor’s investment management business, which would suffer if we were unable to make these investments. Although our debt instruments contain restrictions that limit our ability to provide capital to the entities holding direct or indirect interests in co-investments, we may provide this capital in many instances.

 

Participation in real estate transactions through co-investment activity could increase fluctuations in earnings and cash flow. Risks associated with these activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

 

    losses from investments;

 

    difficulties associated with international co-investments described in “—Our international operations subject us to social, political and economic risks of doing business in foreign countries” and “—Our revenue and earnings may be adversely affected by foreign currency fluctuations;” and

 

    potential lack of control over the disposition of any co-investments and the timing of the recognition of gains, losses or potential incentive participation fees.

 

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Our joint venture activities involve unique risks that are often outside of our control which, if realized, could harm our business.

 

We have utilized joint ventures for commercial investments and local brokerage and other partnerships both in the United States and internationally, and although we currently have no specific plans to do so, we may acquire minority interests in other joint ventures in the future. In many of these joint ventures, we may not have the right or power to direct the management and policies of the joint ventures and other participants may take action contrary to our instructions or requests and against our policies and objectives. In addition, the other participants may become bankrupt or have economic or other business interests or goals that are inconsistent with ours. If a joint venture participant acts contrary to our interest, it could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

 

Our success depends upon the retention of our senior management, as well as our ability to attract and retain qualified and experienced employees.

 

Our continued success is highly dependent upon the efforts of our executive officers and other key employees, including Ray Wirta, our Chief Executive Officer; Brett White, our President; and Kenneth J. Kay, our Chief Financial Officer. In addition, Messrs. Wirta, White, Kay currently are not parties to employment agreements with us. On February 22, 2005, Mr. Wirta announced his intention to resign as chief executive officer after our Annual Meeting of stockholders on June 2, 2005, at which time Mr. White will assume the additional title of chief executive officer. Mr. Wirta has agreed to serve on the board of directors after that date as vice chairman, and will remain our employee during a transition period. If any of our key employees leave and we are unable to quickly hire and integrate a qualified replacement, our business, financial condition and results of operations may suffer. In addition, the growth of our business is largely dependent upon our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel in all areas of our business, including brokerage and property management personnel. If we are unable to attract and retain these qualified personnel, our growth may be limited and our business and operating results could suffer.

 

If we fail to comply with laws and regulations applicable to real estate brokerage and mortgage transactions and other business lines, we may incur significant financial penalties.

 

Due to the broad geographic scope of our operations and the numerous forms of real estate services performed, we are subject to numerous federal, state and local laws and regulations specific to the services performed. For example, the brokerage of real estate sales and leasing transactions requires us to maintain brokerage licenses in each state in which we operate. If we fail to maintain our licenses or conduct brokerage activities without a license, we may be required to pay fines or return commissions received or have licenses suspended. In addition, because the size and scope of real estate sales transactions have increased significantly during the past several years, both the difficulty of ensuring compliance with the numerous state licensing regimes and the possible loss resulting from non-compliance have increased. Furthermore, the laws and regulations applicable to our business, both in the United States and in foreign countries, also may change in ways that increase the costs of compliance.

 

We may have liabilities in connection with real estate brokerage and property management activities.

 

As a licensed real estate broker, we and our licensed employees are subject to statutory due diligence, disclosure and standard-of-care obligations. Failure to fulfill these obligations could subject us or our employees to litigation from parties who purchased, sold or leased properties that we or they brokered or managed. We could become subject to claims by participants in real estate sales claiming that we did not fulfill our statutory obligations as a broker.

 

In addition, in our property management business, we hire and supervise third-party contractors to provide construction and engineering services for our managed properties. While our role is limited to that of a

 

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supervisor, we may be subject to claims for construction defects or other similar actions. Adverse outcomes of property management litigation could negatively impact our business, financial condition or results of operations.

 

We agreed to retain contingent liabilities in connection with Insignia’s sale of substantially all of its real estate investment assets in 2003.

 

Immediately prior to the completion of our acquisition of Insignia on July 23, 2003, Insignia completed the sale of substantially all of its real estate investment assets to Island Fund. Under the terms of the purchase agreement, we agreed to retain some contingent liabilities related to these real estate investment assets, including, as of December 31, 2004, approximately $5.2 million of letters of credit support and a guarantee of an approximately $1.3 million repayment obligation. Island Fund is obligated to reimburse us for only 50% of any future draws against these letters of credit or the repayment guarantee, and there can be no assurance that Island Fund will be able to satisfy any future requests for reimbursement.

 

Also in connection with the sale to Island Fund, we agreed to indemnify Island Fund against any losses resulting from the ownership, use or operation of the real estate investment assets prior to the closing of the sale. Although this indemnification obligation to Island Fund is subject to a number of exceptions and limitations, future claims against us pursuant to this indemnification obligation may be material.

 

In addition, a number of the real estate investment assets that we agreed to sell to Island Fund required the consent of one or more third parties in order to transfer such assets to Island Fund, and some of these third party consents were not obtained prior to the closing and have not been obtained since then. As a result, we continue to hold these real estate investment assets pending the receipt of these third party consents. While we continue to hold these assets, we generally have agreed to provide Island Fund with the economic benefits from these assets, and Island Fund generally has agreed to indemnify us with respect to any losses incurred in connection with our continuing to hold these assets. There can be no assurance, however, that Island Fund actually will be able to provide such indemnification if required to do so at any future date.

 

Our stock price is subject to volatility.

 

Our stock price is affected by a number of factors, including quarterly variations in our results and those of our competitors; the competitive landscape; estimates and projections by the investment community; the arrival or departure of key personnel; the introduction of new services by us or our competitors; and acquisitions, strategic alliances or joint ventures involving us or our competitors. In addition, the stock market, in general, has historically experienced significant price and volume fluctuations. Any of these factors may cause declines in the market price of our common stock. When the market price of a company’s common stock drops significantly, stockholders sometimes institute securities class action lawsuits against the company. A securities class action lawsuit against us could cause us to incur substantial costs and could divert the time and attention of our management and other resources from our business.

 

Availability of this Report.

 

Our internet address is www.cbre.com. On our Investor Relations page on this web site, we post the following filings as soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission: our Annual Report on Form 10-K, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, our current reports on Form 8-K, and any amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All such filings on our Investor Relations web page are available to be viewed on this page free of charge. Information contained on our website is not part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K or our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements in the Annual Report on Form 10-K, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless we are required to do so by law. A copy of this Annual Report on Form 10-K is available without charge upon written request to: Investor Relations, CB Richard Ellis, Inc., 200 Park Avenue, Floors 16-19, New York, New York 10166.

 

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Forward-Looking Statements

 

This Annual Report on Form 10-K includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “should,” “propose,” “continue,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,” “project,” “will” and similar terms and phrases are used in this Annual Report on Form 10-K to identify forward-looking statements. These statements relate to analyses and other information based on forecasts of future results and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. These statements also relate to our future prospects, developments and business strategies.

 

These forward-looking statements are made based on our management’s expectations and beliefs concerning future events affecting us and are subject to uncertainties and factors relating to our operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control. These uncertainties and factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from those matters expressed in or implied by these forward-looking statements.

 

The following factors are among those, but are not only those, that may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements:

 

    changes in general economic and business conditions;

 

    the failure of properties managed by us to perform as anticipated;

 

    competition;

 

    changes in social, political and economic conditions in the foreign countries in which we operate;

 

    foreign currency fluctuations;

 

    future acquisitions;

 

    integration issues relating to acquired businesses;

 

    an economic downturn in the California and New York real estate markets;

 

    significant variability in our results of operations among quarters;

 

    our substantial leverage and debt service obligations;

 

    our ability to incur additional indebtedness;

 

    our ability to generate a sufficient amount of cash to satisfy working capital requirements and to service our existing and future indebtedness;

 

    the success of our co-investment and joint venture activities;

 

    our ability to retain our senior management and attract and retain qualified and experienced employees;

 

    our ability to comply with the laws and regulations applicable to real estate brokerage and mortgage transactions;

 

    our exposure to liabilities in connection with real estate brokerage and property management activities;

 

    changes in the key components of revenue growth for large commercial real estate services companies;

 

    reliance of companies on outsourcing for their commercial real estate needs;

 

    our ability to leverage our global services platform to maximize and sustain long-term cash flow;

 

    our ability to maximize cross-selling opportunities;

 

    our ability to achieve annual cash interest savings;

 

    the effect of implementation of new tax and accounting rules and standards; and

 

    the other factors described in this Annual Report on Form 10-K under the heading “Business-Factors Affecting Our Future Performance” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Policies.”

 

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Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statements are made. You should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. We assume no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking information, except to the extent required by applicable securities laws. If we do update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that we will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements. Additional information concerning these and other risks and uncertainties is contained in our other period filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

Item 2. Properties

 

We occupied the following offices as of December 31, 2004:

 

Location


   Sales Offices

   Corporate Offices

   Total

Americas

   133    2    135

Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)

   51    1    52

Asia Pacific

   27    1    28
    
  
  

Total

   211        4    215
    
  
  

 

As of December 31, 2004, our Global Investment Management segment occupied 16 offices, including eleven in the Americas (all in the United States), four in EMEA and one in Asia Pacific. Since some of our offices contain both employees of our Global Investment Management segment and our other segments, offices of our Global Investment Management segment have not been included above, as to do so could be duplicative.

 

In general, these leased offices are fully utilized. The most significant terms of the leasing arrangements for our offices are the term of the lease and the rent. Our leases have terms varying in duration. The rent payable under our office leases varies significantly from location to location as a result of differences in prevailing commercial real estate rates in different geographic locations. Our management believes that no single office lease is material to our business, results of operations or financial condition. In addition, we believe there is adequate alternative office space available at acceptable rental rates to meet our needs, although adverse movements in rental rates in some markets may negatively affect our profits in those markets when we enter into new leases. We do not own any offices, which is consistent with our strategy to lease instead of own.

 

Item 3. Legal Proceedings

 

We are party to a number of pending or threatened lawsuits arising out of, or incident to, our ordinary course of business. Our management believes that any liability imposed on us that may result from disposition of these lawsuits will not have a material effect on our consolidated financial position or results of operations.

 

Item 4. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders

 

There were no matters submitted to a vote of security holders during the fourth quarter of 2004.

 

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PART II

 

Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

 

Stock Price Information

 

Our Class A common stock has traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CBG” since June 10, 2004. The high and low prices of our Class A common stock, as reported by the New York Stock Exchange, are set forth below for the periods indicated.

 

     Price Range

Fiscal Year 2004


   High

   Low

Quarter ending June 30, 2004 (commencing June 10, 2004)

   $ 19.10    $ 18.20

Quarter ending September 30, 2004

   $ 23.64    $ 18.78

Quarter ending December 31, 2004

   $ 33.94    $ 23.51

 

The closing share price for our Class A common stock on December 31, 2004, as reported by the New York Stock Exchange, was $33.55. As of December 31, 2004, there were 78 stockholders of record of our Class A common stock.

 

Dividend Policy

 

We have not declared or paid any cash dividends on any class of our common stock since our inception on February 20, 2001, and we do not anticipate declaring or paying any cash dividends on our common stock for the foreseeable future. We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance future growth. Any future determination to pay cash dividends will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on our financial condition, results of operations, capital requirements and other factors that the board of directors deems relevant. In addition, our ability to declare and pay cash dividends is restricted by the amended and restated credit agreement governing our senior secured credit facilities and the indentures relating to our 9 3/4% senior notes due 2010 and our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes due 2011.

 

Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities

 

Except as otherwise indicated, all information in this Item 5 of Part II gives effect to the 3-for-1 stock split of our outstanding Class A common stock and Class B common stock on May 4, 2004, which split was effected by a stock dividend, and the 1-for-1.0825 reverse stock split of our outstanding Class A common stock and Class B common stock on June 7, 2004. In the three years prior to December 31, 2004, we issued the following unregistered securities in private placements conducted pursuant to Section 4(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, as transactions not involving public offerings:

 

(1) We have, in recruiting various key employees, offered such employees the right to purchase shares of our Class A common stock, in each case at $5.77 per share:

 

Number of Shares

  Date of Purchase

  Consideration

6,928   January 13, 2002   $ 20,000 cash
        $ 20,000 note
20,785   February 21, 2002   $ 60,000 cash
        $ 60,000 note
34,642   May 31, 2002   $ 100,000 cash
        $ 100,000 note
27,713   January 15, 2003   $ 80,000 cash
        $ 80,000 note
69,284   January 15, 2003   $ 400,000 cash
8,661   January 27, 2003   $ 50,000 cash
8,661   January 27, 2003   $ 50,000 cash
69,284   October 2, 2003   $ 400,000 cash

 

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Such stock was issued pursuant to our 2001 Stock Incentive Plan in transactions exempt from registration under Rule 701 promulgated pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

 

(2) On May 22, 2003, CBRE Escrow, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of ours, issued and sold to Credit Suisse First Boston LLC, Credit Lyonnais Securities (USA) Inc. and HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. $200.0 million in aggregate principal amount of its 9 3/4% senior notes due May 15, 2010 at a cash price equal to 100% of the aggregate principal amount of such notes. In connection with the merger of CBRE Escrow with and into our wholly owned subsidiary CB Richard Ellis Services, Inc. on July 23, 2003, CB Richard Ellis Services assumed the obligations of CBRE Escrow with respect to the 9 3/4% senior notes due May 15, 2010 and we guaranteed such securities on a senior basis. On January 7, 2004, CB Richard Ellis Services, Inc., us and the other guarantors of such unregistered securities exchanged such securities for 9 3/4% senior notes due May 15, 2010 and related guarantees that had been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-4 (No. 333-109841) that had been declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 5, 2003.

 

(3) On July 23, 2003, we issued and sold the following unregistered securities:

 

    an aggregate of 18,421,619 shares of our Class B common stock to Blum Strategic Partners, L.P., Blum Strategic Partners II, L.P., Blum Strategic Partners II GmbH & Co. KG and Frederic V. Malek for a cash price of $5.77 per share; and

 

    an aggregate of 2,363,597 shares of our Class A common stock to DLJ Investment Partners, L.P., DLJ Investment Partners II, L.P., DLJIP II Holdings, L.P. and California Public Employees’ Retirement System for a cash price of $5.77 per share.

 

(4) Prior to June 10, 2004, we issued an aggregate of 70,372 shares of our Class A common stock in connection with distributions related to stock fund units under the deferred compensation plan of our wholly owned subsidiary, CB Richard Ellis Services, Inc. The plan participants receiving such shares previously had made aggregate deferrals of $335,296 under the plan with respect to such stock fund units. The issuances of such shares in connection with distributions under such plan were pursuant to Rule 701 promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission under Section 3(b) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, with respect to transactions pursuant to compensation benefit plans and contracts relating to compensation.

 

(5) Prior to June 10, 2004, current and former employees of ours had exercised options to acquire an aggregate of 17,321 shares of our Class A common stock for $5.77 per share. The issuance of such shares in connection with the exercise of such options was pursuant to our 2001 Stock Incentive Plan and exempt from registration under Rule 701 promulgated pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

 

Equity Compensation Plan Information

 

The information under the heading “Equity Compensation Plan Information” in the definitive proxy statement for the Company’s 2005 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, within 120 days after the end of the Company’s fiscal year is incorporated herein by reference.

 

Changes in Securities, Use of Proceeds and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

 

None.

 

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Table of Contents

Item 6. Selected Financial Data

 

The following table sets forth our selected historical consolidated financial information for each of the five years in the period ended December 31, 2004. On July 20, 2001, we acquired CB Richard Ellis Services, Inc. Except as otherwise indicated below, the selected historical financial data for the dates and periods ended prior to July 20, 2001 are derived from the consolidated financial statements of CB Richard Ellis Services, our “predecessor company.” The statement of operations data, the statement of cash flows data and the other data for the years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002 and the balance sheet data as of December 31, 2004 and 2003 were derived from our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Form 10-K. The statement of operations data, the statement of cash flows data and the other data for the period from February 20 (inception) to December 31, 2001 and for the period from January 1 to July 20, 2001 and for the year ended December 31, 2000 and the balance sheet data as of December 31, 2002, 2001 and 2000 were derived from our or our predecessor’s audited consolidated financial statements that are not included in this Form 10-K.

 

The selected financial data presented below are not necessarily indicative of results of future operations and should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the information included under the headings “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included elsewhere in this Form 10-K.

 

SELECTED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL INFORMATION

(Dollars in thousands, except share data)

 

    CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc.

    Predecessor Company

 
    Year ended December 31,

   

Period From

February 20

(inception) to

December 31,

2001 (2)


   

Period From

January 1

to July 20,

2001


   

Year Ended
December 31,

2000


 
    2004

    2003 (1)

    2002

       

STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS DATA:

                                               

Revenue

  $ 2,365,096     $ 1,630,074     $ 1,170,277     $ 562,828     $ 607,934     $ 1,323,604  

Operating income (loss)

    171,008       25,830       96,736       61,178       (17,048 )     100,780  

Interest income

    4,264       3,560       3,272       2,427       1,567       2,554  

Interest expense

    65,418       71,256       60,501       29,717       20,303       41,700  

Loss on extinguishment of debt

    21,075       13,479       —         —         —         —    

Net income (loss)

    64,725       (34,704 )     18,727       17,426       (34,020 )     33,388  

EPS (3)(4):

                                               

Basic

    0.95       (0.68 )     0.45       0.80       (1.60 )     1.60  

Diluted

    0.91       (0.68 )     0.44       0.79       (1.60 )     1.58  

Weighted average shares (4)(5):

                                               

Basic

    67,775,406       50,918,572       41,640,576       21,741,351       21,306,584       20,931,111  

Diluted

    71,345,073       50,918,572       42,185,989       21,920,915       21,306,584       21,097,240  

STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS DATA:

                                               

Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities

  $ 182,175     $ 77,279     $ 69,571     $ 91,334     $ (120,230 )   $ 80,859  

Net cash used in investing activities

    (23,319 )     (298,133 )     (28,819 )     (261,393 )     (12,139 )     (32,469 )

Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities

    (67,366 )     303,664       (17,838 )     213,831       126,230       (53,523 )

OTHER DATA:

                                               

EBITDA (6)

  $ 245,340     $ 132,817     $ 130,676     $ 74,930     $ 11,482     $ 150,484  

 

    CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc.

   Predecessor Company

    As of December 31,

  

As of

December 31,

2000


    2004

  2003

  2002

  2001

  

BALANCE SHEET DATA:

                              

Cash and cash equivalents

  $ 256,896   $ 163,881   $ 79,701   $ 57,450    $ 20,854

Total assets

    2,271,636     2,213,481     1,324,876     1,354,512      963,105

Long-term debt, including current portion

    612,838     802,705     509,715     517,423      289,447

Total liabilities

    1,705,763     1,873,896     1,067,920     1,097,693      724,018

Total stockholders’ equity

    559,948     332,929     251,341     252,523      235,339

 

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Note: We and our predecessor have not declared any cash dividends on common stock for the periods shown.

 

(1) The results for the year ended December 31, 2003 include the operations of Insignia Financial Group, Inc. from July 23, 2003, the date Insignia was acquired by our wholly owned subsidiary, CB Richard Ellis Services.
(2) The results for the period from February 20 (inception) to December 31, 2001 include the activities of CB Richard Ellis Services from July 20, 2001, the date we acquired CB Richard Ellis Services.
(3) EPS represents earnings (loss) per share. See Earnings (Loss) Per Share information in Note 15 of our Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
(4) EPS and weighted average shares for our predecessor company do not reflect the 3-for-1 stock split of our outstanding Class A common stock and Class B common stock effected on May 4, 2004, or the 1-for-1.0825 reverse stock split of our outstanding Class A common stock and Class B common stock effected on June 7, 2004 because our predecessor was a different legal entity.
(5) For the period from February 20 (inception) to December 31, 2001, the 21,741,351 and the 21,920,915 shares represent the weighted average shares outstanding for basic and diluted earnings per share, respectively. These balances take into consideration the lower number of shares outstanding prior to July 20, 2001, the date we acquired CB Richard Ellis Services.
(6) EBITDA represents earnings before net interest expense, loss on extinguishment of debt, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. Our management believes EBITDA is useful in evaluating our operating performance compared to that of other companies in our industry because the calculation of EBITDA generally eliminates the effects of financing and income taxes and the accounting effects of capital spending and acquisitions, which items may vary for different companies for reasons unrelated to overall operating performance. As a result, our management uses EBITDA as a measure to evaluate the performance of our various business lines and for other discretionary purposes, including as a significant component when measuring our performance under our employee incentive programs.

 

However, EBITDA is not a recognized measurement under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, and when analyzing our operating performance, readers should use EBITDA in addition to, and not as an alternative for, operating income (loss) and net income (loss), each as determined in accordance with GAAP. Because not all companies use identical calculations, our presentation of EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. Furthermore, EBITDA is not intended to be a measure of free cash flow for our management’s discretionary use, as it does not consider certain cash requirements such as tax and debt service payments. The amounts shown for EBITDA also differ from the amounts calculated under similarly titled definitions in our debt instruments, which are further adjusted to reflect certain other cash and non-cash charges and are used to determine compliance with financial covenants and our ability to engage in certain activities, such as incurring additional debt and making certain restricted payments.

 

EBITDA is calculated as follows (dollars in thousands):

 

     CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc.

   Predecessor Company

     Year ended December 31,

  

Period From
February 20
(inception) to
December 31,

2001


  

Period From
January 1

to July 20,

2001


   

Year Ended
December 31,

2000


     2004

   2003

    2002

       

Net income (loss)

   $ 64,725    $ (34,704 )   $ 18,727    $ 17,426    $ (34,020 )   $ 33,388

Add:

                                           

Depreciation and amortization

     54,857      92,622       24,614      12,198      25,656       43,199

Interest expense

     65,418      71,256       60,501      29,717      20,303       41,700

Loss on extinguishment of debt

     21,075      13,479       —        —        —         —  

Provision (benefit) for income taxes

     43,529      (6,276 )     30,106      18,016      1,110       34,751

Less:

                                           

Interest income

     4,264      3,560       3,272      2,427      1,567       2,554
    

  


 

  

  


 

EBITDA

   $ 245,340    $ 132,817     $ 130,676    $ 74,930    $ 11,482     $ 150,484
    

  


 

  

  


 

 

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Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

 

Overview

 

We are the largest global commercial real estate services firm, based on 2004 revenue, offering a full range of services to occupiers, owners, lenders and investors in office, retail, industrial, multi-family and other commercial real estate assets. As of December 31, 2004, excluding affiliates and partner offices, we operated in over 200 offices worldwide with approximately 13,500 employees providing commercial real estate services under the “CB Richard Ellis” brand name. Our business is focused on several service competencies, including strategic advice and execution assistance for property leasing and sales, forecasting, valuations, origination and servicing of commercial mortgage loans, facilities and project management and real estate investment management. We generate revenues both on a per project or transaction basis and from annual management fees.

 

When you read our financial statements and the information included in this section, you should consider that we have experienced, and continue to experience, several material trends and uncertainties that have affected our financial condition and results of operations and make it challenging to predict our future performance based on our historical results. We believe that the following material trends and uncertainties are most crucial to an understanding of the variability in our historical earnings and cash flows and the potential for such variances in the future:

 

Macroeconomic Conditions

 

Economic trends and government policies directly affect our operations as well as global and regional commercial real estate markets generally. These include: overall economic activity and employment growth, interest rate levels, the availability of credit to finance transactions and the impact of tax and regulatory policies. Periods of economic slowdown or recession, significantly rising interest rates, a declining employment level, a declining demand for real estate or the public perception that any of these events may occur, can negatively affect the performance of many of our business lines. Weak economic conditions could result in a general decrease in transaction activity and decline in rents, which, in turn, would reduce revenue from property management fees and brokerage commissions derived from property sales and leases. In addition, these conditions could lead to a decline in sales prices as well as a decline in funds invested in commercial real estate and related assets. An economic downturn or a significant increase in interest rates also may reduce the amount of loan originations and related servicing by our commercial mortgage brokerage business. If our real estate and mortgage brokerage businesses are negatively impacted, it is likely that our other lines of business would also suffer due to the relationship among our various business lines.

 

During 2002 and 2001, we were adversely affected by the slowdown in the United States economy, which negatively impacted the commercial real estate market generally. This caused a decline in our leasing activities within the United States. Moreover, in part because of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 and the run-up to the conflict with Iraq, the economic climate in the United States became very uncertain, which had an adverse effect on commercial real estate market conditions and, in turn, our operating results for 2002 and 2001. During 2003 and 2004, economic conditions in the United States improved, which positively impacted the commercial real estate market generally. This caused an improvement in our Americas segment’s revenue, particularly in sales and leasing activities. We expect this trend to continue in the near term.

 

Adverse changes in economic conditions would also affect our compensation expense, which is structured to decrease in line with any decrease in revenues. Compensation is our largest expense and the sales and leasing professionals in our largest line of business, advisory services, generally are paid on a commission and bonus basis that correlates with our revenue performance. As a result, the negative effect on our operating margins during difficult market conditions is partially mitigated. In addition, in circumstances when economic conditions are particularly severe, our management also has sought to improve operational performance through cost reduction programs. For example, as economic conditions worsened in 2001, our management team made targeted reductions in our workforce, reduced senior management bonuses, streamlined general and

 

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administrative operations and cut capital expenditures and other discretionary operating expenses. As a result of the operating leverage inherent in our business, we were able to reduce our operating expenses by $18.7 million during 2002 as compared to 2001. Notwithstanding these approaches, adverse global and regional economic changes remain one of the most significant risks to our future financial condition and results of operations.

 

Effects of Prior Acquisitions

 

Our management historically has made significant use of strategic acquisitions to add new service competencies, to increase our scale within existing competencies and to expand our presence in various geographic regions around the world. For example, we enhanced our mortgage banking services through our 1996 acquisition of L.J. Melody & Company (L.J. Melody) and we significantly increased the scale of our investment management business through our 1995 acquisition of Westmark Realty Advisors and our 1997 acquisition of Koll Real Estate Services. An example of a strategic acquisition that increased our geographic coverage was our 1998 acquisition of Hillier Parker May & Rowden in the United Kingdom. Our largest acquisition to date was our 2003 acquisition of Insignia Financial Group, Inc. (Insignia), which not only significantly increased the scale of our real estate advisory services and outsourcing services business lines in the Americas segment but also significantly increased our presence in the New York, London and Paris metropolitan areas.

 

Although our management believes that strategic acquisitions can significantly decrease the cost, time and commitment of management resources necessary to attain a meaningful competitive position within targeted markets or to expand our presence within our current markets, our management also believes that most acquisitions will initially have an adverse impact on our operating and net income, both as a result of transaction-related expenditures and charges and the costs of integrating the acquired business and its financial and accounting systems into our own. For example, through December 31, 2004, we have incurred $200.9 million of transaction-related expenditures in connection with our acquisition of Insignia in 2003 and $87.6 million of transaction-related expenditures in connection with our acquisition of CB Richard Ellis Services in 2001. Transaction-related expenditures include severance costs, lease termination costs, transaction costs, deferred financing costs and merger-related costs, among others. We incurred our final transaction expenditures with respect to the Insignia Acquisition in the third quarter of 2004. In addition, through December 31, 2004, we have incurred $28.0 million of expenses in connection with the integration of Insignia’s business lines, as well as accounting and other systems, into our own. We expect to incur additional Insignia-related integration expenses of approximately $6.5 million during 2005 and approximately $4.0 million during 2006.

 

International Operations

 

We have made significant acquisitions of non-U.S. companies and we may acquire additional foreign companies in the future. As we increase our foreign operations through either acquisitions or organic growth, fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar relative to the other currencies in which we may generate earnings could adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. Our management team generally seeks to mitigate our exposure by balancing assets and liabilities that are denominated in the same currency and by maintaining cash positions outside the United States only at levels necessary for operating purposes. In addition, from time to time we enter into foreign currency exchange contracts to mitigate our exposure to exchange rate changes related to particular transactions and to hedge risks associated with the translation of foreign currencies into U.S. dollars. Due to the constantly changing currency exposures to which we are subject and the volatility of currency exchange rates, our management cannot predict the effect of exchange rate fluctuations upon future operating results. In addition, fluctuations in currencies relative to the U.S. dollar may make it more difficult to perform period-to-period comparisons of our reported results of operations.

 

Our international operations also are subject to, among other things, political instability and changing regulatory environments, which may adversely affect our future financial condition and results of operations. Our management routinely monitors these risks and costs and evaluates the appropriate amount of resources to allocate towards business activities in foreign countries where such risks and costs are particularly significant.

 

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Leverage

 

We are highly leveraged and have significant debt service obligations. Although our management believes that the incurrence of this long-term indebtedness has been important in the development of our business, including facilitating our acquisition of Insignia Financial Group in 2003, the cash flow necessary to service this debt is not available for other general corporate purposes, which may limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and in the commercial real estate services industry.

 

Our management seeks to mitigate this exposure both through the refinancing of debt when available on attractive terms and through selective repayment and retirement of indebtedness. For example, we refinanced our senior secured credit facilities in October 2003 and again during 2004 to obtain more attractive interest rates and other terms, redeemed $30.0 million in aggregate principal amount of our 16% senior notes in late 2003 and repurchased $21.6 million in aggregate principal amount of our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes in the open market during May and June 2004.

 

In addition, on June 15, 2004 we received aggregate net proceeds of approximately $135.0 million, after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses payable by us, in connection with the sale of 7,726,764 shares of our Class A common stock pursuant to the completion of our initial public offering. During June 2004, we used a portion of the net proceeds received from the offering to prepay $15.0 million in principal amount of the term loan under our amended and restated credit agreement and during July 2004, we used the remaining net proceeds we received from the offering to redeem all $38.3 million in aggregate principal amount of our remaining outstanding 16% senior notes and $70.0 million in aggregate principal amount of our 9 3/4% senior notes. Lastly, in early 2005, we repurchased $26.4 million in aggregate principal amount of our 11 1/4% senior subordinated notes in the open market. Our management expects to continue to look for opportunities to reduce our debt in the future.

 

Notwithstanding the actions described above, however, our level of indebtedness and the operating and financial restrictions in our debt agreements both place constraints on the operation of our business.

 

Critical Accounting Policies

 

Our consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, which require management to make estimates and assumptions that affect reported amounts. The estimates and assumptions are based on historical experience and on other factors that management believes to be reasonable. Actual results may differ from those estimates. We believe that the following critical accounting policies represent the areas where more significant judgments and estimates are used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements:

 

Revenue Recognition

 

We record real estate commissions on sales generally upon close of escrow or transfer of title, except when future contingencies exist. Real estate commissions on leases are generally recorded as income once we satisfy all obligations under the commission agreement. Terms and conditions of a commission agreement may include, but are not limited to, execution of a signed lease agreement and future contingencies including tenant occupancy, payment of a deposit or payment of a first month’s rent (or a combination thereof). As some of these conditions are outside of our control and are often not clearly defined, judgment must be exercised in determining when such required events have occurred in order to recognize revenue.

 

A typical commission agreement provides that we earn a portion of the lease commission upon the execution of the lease agreement by the tenant, while the remaining portion(s) of the lease commission is earned at a later date, usually upon tenant occupancy. The existence of any significant future contingencies, such as tenant occupancy, results in the delay of recognition of corresponding revenue until such contingencies are

 

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satisfied. For example, if we do not earn all or a portion of the lease commission until the tenant pays its first month’s rent, and the lease agreement provides the tenant with a free rent period, we delay revenue recognition until rent is paid by the tenant.

 

Investment management and property management fees are generally based upon percentages of the revenue or profit generated by the entities managed and are recognized when earned under the provisions of the related management agreements. Our Global Investment Management segment earns performance-based incentive fees with regard to many of its investments. Such revenue is recognized at the end of the measurement periods when the conditions of the applicable incentive fee arrangements have been satisfied. With many of these investments, our Global Investment Management team has participation interests in such incentive fees. These participation interests are accrued for based upon the probability of such performance-based incentive fees being earned.

 

Appraisal fees are recorded after services have been rendered. Loan origination fees are recognized at the time a loan closes and we have no significant remaining obligations for performance in connection with the transaction, while loan servicing fees are recorded to revenue as monthly principal and interest payments are collected from mortgagors. Other commissions, consulting fees and referral fees are recorded as income at the time the related services have been performed, unless significant future contingencies exist.

 

In establishing the appropriate provisions for trade receivables, we make assumptions with respect to future collectibility. Our assumptions are based on an individual assessment of a customer’s credit quality as well as subjective factors and trends, including the aging of receivables balances. In addition to these individual assessments, in general, outstanding trade accounts receivable amounts that are more than 180 days overdue are fully provided for. Historically, our credit losses have been insignificant. However, estimating losses requires significant judgment, and conditions may change or new information may become known after any periodic evaluation. As a result, actual credit losses may differ from our estimates.

 

Principles of Consolidation

 

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our majority owned subsidiaries. The equity attributable to minority shareholders’ interests in subsidiaries is shown separately in our consolidated balance sheets included elsewhere in this filing. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

 

Our investments in unconsolidated subsidiaries in which we have the ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies, but do not control, are accounted for under the equity method. Accordingly, our share of the earnings from these equity-method basis companies is included in consolidated net income. All other investments held on a long-term basis are valued at cost less any impairment in value.

 

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

 

Goodwill mainly represents the excess of the purchase price paid by us over the fair value of the tangible and intangible assets and liabilities acquired in our acquisition of CB Richard Ellis Services in 2001 and our acquisition of Insignia in 2003. Other intangible assets include trademarks, which were separately identified as a result of the 2001 acquisition, as well as a trade name separately identified as a result of the Insignia Acquisition representing the Richard Ellis trade name in the United Kingdom that was owned by Insignia prior to the Insignia Acquisition. Both the trademarks and the trade name are not being amortized and have indefinite estimated useful lives. Other intangible assets also included backlog, which represented the fair value of Insignia’s net revenue backlog as of July 23, 2003 that was acquired as part of the Insignia Acquisition. The net revenue backlog consisted of the net commission receivable on Insignia’s revenue producing transactions, which were at various stages of completion prior to the Insignia Acquisition. Net revenue backlog was amortized as cash was received or upon final closing of these pending transactions. The remaining other intangible assets primarily include management contracts, loan servicing rights, franchise agreements and a trade name, which are all being amortized on a straight-line basis over estimated useful lives ranging up to 20 years.

 

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We adopted SFAS No. 142, “Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets,” effective January 1, 2002. This statement requires us to perform, at least annually, an assessment of impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets deemed to have indefinite useful lives based on assumptions and estimates of fair value and future cash flow information. We perform an annual assessment of our goodwill and other intangible assets deemed to have indefinite lives for impairment based in part on a third-party valuation as of the beginning of the fourth quarter of each year. We also assess goodwill and other intangible assets deemed to have indefinite useful lives for impairment when events or circumstances indicate that their carrying value may not be recoverable from future cash flows. We completed our required annual impairment tests as of October 1, 2004, 2003 and 2002, and determined that no impairment existed as of those dates.

 

Income Taxes

 

Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method in accordance with SFAS No. 109, “Accounting for Income Taxes.” Deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on temporary differences between the financial reporting and the tax basis of assets and liabilities and operating loss and tax credit carry forwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured by applying enacted tax rates and laws and are released to taxable income in the years in which the temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. Valuation allowances are provided against deferred tax assets when it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. Loss contingencies resulting from tax audits or certain tax positions are accrued when the potential loss can be reasonably estimated and where occurrence is probable.

 

Basis of Presentation

 

Recent Significant Acquisitions and Dispositions

 

On July 23, 2003, pursuant to an amended and restated agreement and plan of merger, dated as of May 28, 2003, by and among CB Richard Ellis Services, CB Richard Ellis Group, Apple Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of CB Richard Ellis Services, and Insignia Financial Group, Inc., Apple Acquisition was merged with and into Insignia (the Insignia Acquisition). Insignia was the surviving corporation in the merger and at the effective time of the merger became a wholly owned subsidiary of CB Richard Ellis Services. Also on July 23, 2003, immediately prior to the completion of the merger, Insignia completed the sale of its real estate investment assets to Island Fund I LLC for cash consideration of $36.9 million pursuant to a purchase agreement, dated as of May 28, 2003, among CB Richard Ellis Group, CB Richard Ellis Services, Apple Acquisition, Insignia Financial Group and Island Fund. These real estate investment assets consisted of Insignia subsidiaries and joint ventures that held (1) minority investments in office, retail, industrial, apartment and hotel properties, (2) minority investments in office development projects and a related undeveloped parcel of land, (3) wholly owned or consolidated investments in Norman, Oklahoma, New York City and the U.S. Virgin Islands and (4) investments in private equity funds that invest in mortgage-backed debt securities and other real estate-related assets.

 

Segment Reporting

 

Effective with the fourth quarter of 2004, we reorganized our business segments for financial reporting purposes by separating the Global Investment Management business from our geographic regions. This action was taken in an effort to increase our transparency of reporting in light of the growing significance of our Global Investment Management business. This reorganization has reduced revenues and earnings in the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Asia Pacific regions, but has had no impact on consolidated results. All periods presented have been restated to conform with the 2004 presentation.

 

We now report our operations through four primary segments. The segments are as follows: (1) Americas, (2) EMEA, (3) Asia Pacific and (4) Global Investment Management. The Americas consists of operations located

 

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in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Latin America. EMEA mainly consists of operations in Europe, while Asia Pacific includes operations in Asia, Australia and New Zealand. The Global Investment Management business consists of investment management operations in the United States, Europe and Asia.

 

Results of Operations

 

The following table sets forth items derived from the consolidated statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002:

 

     Year Ended December 31,

 
     2004

    2003

    2002

 
     (Dollars in thousands)  

Revenue

   $ 2,365,096    100.0 %   $ 1,630,074     100.0 %   $ 1,170,277    100.0 %

Costs and expenses:

                                        

Cost of services

     1,203,765    50.9       796,428     48.8       547,093    46.7  

Operating, administrative and other

     909,892    38.5       678,377     41.6       501,798    42.9  

Depreciation and amortization

     54,857    2.3       92,622     5.7       24,614    2.1  

Merger-related charges

     25,574    1.1       36,817     2.3       36    —    
    

  

 


 

 

  

Operating income

     171,008    7.2       25,830     1.6       96,736    8.3  

Equity income from unconsolidated subsidiaries

     19,475    0.8       14,365     0.9       9,326    0.8  

Interest income

     4,264    0.2       3,560     0.2       3,272    0.3  

Interest expense

     65,418    2.8       71,256     4.4       60,501    5.2  

Loss on extinguishment of debt

     21,075    0.9       13,479     0.8       —      —    
    

  

 


 

 

  

Income (loss) before provision (benefit) for income taxes

     108,254    4.5       (40,980 )   (2.5 )     48,833    4.2  

Provision (benefit) for income taxes

     43,529    1.8       (6,276 )   (0.4 )     30,106    2.6  
    

  

 


 

 

  

Net income (loss)

   $ 64,725    2.7 %   $ (34,704 )   (2.1 )%   $ 18,727    1.6 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

EBITDA

   $ 245,340    10.4 %   $ 132,817     8.1 %   $ 130,676    11.2 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

 

EBITDA represents earnings before net interest expense, loss on extinguishment of debt, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. Our management believes EBITDA is useful in evaluating our performance compared to that of other companies in our industry because the calculation of EBITDA generally eliminates the effects of financing and income taxes and the accounting effects of capital spending and acquisitions, which items may vary for different companies for reasons unrelated to overall operating performance. As a result, our management uses EBITDA as a measure to evaluate the performance of our various business lines and for other discretionary purposes, including as a significant component when measuring our performance under our employee incentive programs.

 

However, EBITDA is not a recognized measurement under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, and when analyzing our operating performance, readers should use EBITDA in addition to, and not as an alternative for, operating income and net income (loss), each as determined in accordance with GAAP. Because not all companies use identical calculations, our presentation of EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. Furthermore, EBITDA is not intended to be a measure of free cash flow for our management’s discretionary use, as it does not consider certain cash requirements such as tax and debt service payments. The amounts shown for EBITDA also differ from the amounts calculated under similarly titled definitions in our debt instruments, which are further adjusted to reflect certain other cash and non-cash charges and are used to determine compliance with financial covenants and our ability to engage in certain activities, such as incurring additional debt and making certain restricted payments.

 

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EBITDA is calculated as follows:

 

     Year Ended December 31,

     2004

   2003

    2002

     (Dollars in thousands)

Net income (loss)

   $ 64,725    $ (34,704 )   $ 18,727

Add:

                     

Depreciation and amortization

     54,857      92,622       24,614

Interest expense

     65,418      71,256       60,501

Loss on extinguishment of debt

     21,075      13,479       —  

Provision (benefit) for income taxes

     43,529      (6,276 )     30,106

Less:

                     

Interest income

     4,264      3,560       3,272
    

  


 

EBITDA

   $ 245,340    $ 132,817     $ 130,676
    

  


 

 

Year Ended December 31, 2004 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2003

 

We reported consolidated net income of $64.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2004 on revenue of $2.4 billion as compared to a consolidated net loss of $34.7 million on revenue of $1.6 billion for the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Our revenue on a consolidated basis increased by $735.0 million, or 45.1%, during the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. The increase was primarily due to the combination of the Insignia Acquisition and organic market share growth and we expect that this increased revenue level will be maintained in the near term. The strong revenue growth in 2004 was driven by significantly higher sales transaction revenue as well as increased lease transaction, management, consulting and appraisal fees. In our Global Investment Management segment, we generated higher investment management fees as a result of incentive fees earned in Japan as well as the growth of our business in the United Kingdom, which was partially attributable to the Insignia Acquisition. Additionally, with the anticipation of rising interest rates in the United States earlier in the year, we experienced an increase in loan origination fees in our Americas business segment. Finally, foreign currency translation had a $68.8 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Our cost of services on a consolidated basis increased by $407.3 million, or 51.1%, during the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. Our sales and leasing professionals generally are paid on a commission and bonus basis, which substantially correlates with our revenue performance. Accordingly, the overall increase was primarily driven by the overall increase in revenue. The Insignia Acquisition has contributed to higher payroll-related costs, including bonus accruals, insurance and benefits, producer retention and broker draw amortization. Producer retention bonuses were paid to the top real estate advisory services professionals that we retained in the acquisition. The producer retention expense represents the amortization of these bonuses, which are being amortized through cost of services over the lives of the related employment agreements. As part of our refinement of the purchase price allocation for the Insignia Acquisition, during the three months ended March 31, 2004, we assigned a $6.6 million fair value to a broker draw asset acquired in the Insignia Acquisition. Based on our management’s estimates, we generally derive benefit from brokers participating in our draw program over two years. Accordingly, we estimated that we would derive benefit from the broker draw asset related to Insignia’s brokers over two years from the date of the Insignia Acquisition and, accordingly, we are amortizing it on a straight-line basis, which reflects the pattern in which the economic benefits of the broker draw asset are consumed, during that period. During the year ended December 31, 2004, we have recorded $4.7 million for the amortization of this broker draw asset, which includes a $1.4 million adjustment to correct the amortization taken for the period from the date of the Insignia Acquisition through December 31, 2003. The producer retention and the broker draw amortization are considered integration costs associated with the Insignia Acquisition and together amounted to $10.4 million for the year

 

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ended December 31, 2004. Foreign currency translation had a $29.8 million negative impact on cost of services during the year ended December 31, 2004. Cost of services as a percentage of revenue increased from 48.8% for the year ended December 31, 2003 to 50.9% for the year ended December 31, 2004, primarily driven by producers reaching higher commission tranches as a result of higher revenue as well as the producer retention and broker draw amortization recorded in 2004 and the mix of compensation structures as a result of compensation plans adopted in the Insignia Acquisition.

 

Our operating, administrative and other expenses on a consolidated basis were $909.9 million, an increase of $231.5 million, or 34.1%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. The increase was primarily driven by higher costs as a result of the Insignia Acquisition as well as increased worldwide payroll-related expenses, such as bonuses and insurance and benefits, higher marketing expenses, increased net legal costs and higher occupancy expenses, particularly in our EMEA business segment. Professional fees of $5.5 million in the current year related to the ongoing Sarbanes-Oxley compliance work as well as the write-down of investments of $5.1 million in our Americas business segment also contributed to the variance. During the current year, we also incurred one-time compensation expense of $15.0 million related to bonus payments that were triggered by our initial public offering and were payable to several of our non-executive real estate advisory services employees as a result of provisions in their employment agreements. Additionally, in 2003 total operating expenses were reduced by substantial net foreign currency transaction gains resulting from a weaker U.S. dollar, while in the current year we experienced only moderate net foreign currency transaction gains. The lower net foreign currency transaction gains experienced in the current year were a result of the U.S. dollar weakening at a slower pace as compared to the prior year, particularly relative to the Australian and New Zealand dollars. Additionally, net foreign currency transaction gains were offset in the current year by $1.8 million of expense incurred related to option agreements entered into, which expired on December 29, 2004. Finally, foreign currency translation had a $30.4 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Our depreciation and amortization expense on a consolidated basis decreased by $37.8 million, or 40.8%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. The decrease was largely due to lower amortization expense related to intangibles acquired in the Insignia Acquisition, including a reduction in amortization expense of $46.1 million related to acquired net revenue backlog. As of December 31, 2004, the intangible asset representing the net revenue backlog acquired in the Insignia Acquisition was fully amortized. Partially offsetting the decrease in amortization expense was a $5.4 million increase in depreciation expense during 2004 mainly related to depreciation expense associated with fixed assets acquired in the Insignia Acquisition.

 

Our merger-related charges on a consolidated basis were $25.6 million and $36.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2004 and 2003, respectively. The charges for both years primarily consisted of lease termination costs associated with vacated spaces, consulting costs and severance costs, all of which were attributable to the Insignia Acquisition.

 

Our equity income from unconsolidated subsidiaries on a consolidated basis increased by $5.1 million, or 35.6%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003, primarily due to the improved overall performance of our equity investments in our Americas business segment and our Global Investment Management segment, particularly in Japan and the United Kingdom. These increases were partially offset, on a year over year comparison basis, by the impact of a one-time gain on the sale of owned units in an investment fund recognized in the prior year in the United States in our Global Investment Management segment.

 

Our consolidated interest expense was $65.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2004, a decrease of $5.8 million, or 8.2%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003, primarily due to interest savings realized as a result of debt repayments starting in the fourth quarter of 2003 and continuing throughout 2004. As a result of our de-leveraging efforts in 2004, we expect to achieve annual cash interest savings of approximately $16.0 million. Our management expects to continue to look for opportunities to reduce our debt in the future.

 

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Our loss on the extinguishment of debt on a consolidated basis was $21.1 million and $13.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2004 and 2003, respectively. The loss incurred during the current year was related to the write-offs of unamortized deferred financing fees and unamortized discount, as well as premiums paid, all in connection with the redemptions of $70.0 million in aggregate principal amount of our 9¾% senior notes and $38.3 million in aggregate principal amount of our 16.0% senior notes with the net proceeds received from our initial public offering. Additionally, we incurred a loss of $4.0 million in the second quarter of 2004 related to the write-offs of unamortized deferred financing fees and unamortized discount, as well as premiums paid, in connection with the $21.6 million repurchase of our 11¼% senior subordinated notes in the open market during May and June 2004. The loss in 2003 related to the write-off of unamortized deferred financing fees associated with a prior credit facility, which was replaced in connection with the Insignia Acquisition, and the write-off of unamortized deferred financing fees and unamortized discount, as well as premiums paid, in connection with the redemption of $30.0 million in aggregate principal amount of our 16.0% senior notes in the fourth quarter of 2003. We expect to incur additional losses in connection with the continuation of our de-leveraging efforts in the future.

 

Our provision for income taxes on a consolidated basis was $43.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to a benefit for income taxes of $6.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2003. Our effective tax rate rose from a 15.3% benefit for the year ended December 31, 2003 to a 40.2% provision for the year ended December 31, 2004. The increases in the provision for income taxes and the effective tax rate in the current year were primarily driven by the significant increase in pre-tax income over 2003. The change in the mix of domestic and foreign earnings also contributed to the year-over-year variance in the effective tax rate.

 

Year Ended December 31, 2003 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2002

 

We reported a consolidated net loss of $34.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2003 on revenue of $1.6 billion as compared to consolidated net income of $18.7 million on revenue of $1.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2002.

 

Our revenue on a consolidated basis increased $459.8 million, or 39.3%, during the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002. The increase was driven by higher revenue as a result of our capturing a larger market share in our Americas real estate services business line through our acquisition of Insignia, particularly relative to leasing activity in the New York area. Additionally, as a result of the improvement of general economic conditions in the United States, we experienced significantly higher sales transaction revenue as well as increased lease transaction revenue and appraisal fees. Internationally, the Insignia Acquisition helped us to expand our reach in Europe as evidenced by increased sales and lease transaction revenue, as well as higher consultation and appraisal fees, particularly in London and Paris. Lastly, foreign currency translation had a $54.4 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Our cost of services on a consolidated basis totaled $796.4 million, an increase of $249.3 million, or 45.6%, from the year ended December 31, 2002. As previously mentioned, our sales and leasing professionals are paid on a commission and bonus basis, which generally correlates with our revenue performance. Accordingly, the overall increase was primarily driven by the overall increase in revenue. The Insignia Acquisition also contributed to higher payroll related costs including, bonus accruals, insurance and benefits, pension expense and producer retention expense. The producer retention expense, which represents amounts paid to the top real estate advisory services professionals that we retained at the time of the acquisition, is being amortized through cost of services over the lives of the related employment agreements. The producer retention expense is considered an integration cost associated with the Insignia Acquisition and amounted to $2.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2003. Finally, foreign currency translation had a $23.9 million negative impact on cost of services during the year ended December 31, 2003. Costs of services as a percentage of revenue increased from 46.7% for the year ended December 31, 2002 to 48.8% for the year ended December 31, 2003, primarily driven by the new mix of compensation structures as a result of compensation plans adopted in the Insignia Acquisition.

 

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Our operating, administrative and other expenses on a consolidated basis were $678.4 million, an increase of $176.6 million, or 35.2 %, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002. The increase was primarily driven by higher costs as a result of the Insignia Acquisition, including $10.9 million of integration costs, as well as increased worldwide bonuses and payroll-related expenses, principally in the Americas and Europe. Included in the 2003 bonus amount was an accrual for a one-time performance award of approximately $6.9 million. Also contributing to the variance was a nonrecurring legal settlement in the United States in 2003 as well as higher occupancy expense in the United Kingdom as a result of our relocation to a new facility in 2003. Lastly, foreign currency translation had a $23.4 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2003. These increases were partially offset by net foreign currency transaction gains resulting from a weaker U.S. dollar.

 

Our depreciation and amortization expense on a consolidated basis increased by $68.0 million, or 276.3%, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002 mainly due to $59.1 million of amortization of the net revenue backlog acquired as part of the Insignia Acquisition. As of December 31, 2003, the net book value of the intangible asset representing the remaining net revenue backlog acquired in the Insignia Acquisition was $13.4 million, which was fully amortized by the end of 2004 (see Note 7 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements). The increase over the prior year was also due to a one-time reduction of amortization expense recorded in 2002 related to the adjustment of certain intangible assets to their estimated fair values as of their acquisition date in connection with our acquisition of CB Richard Ellis Services in 2001.

 

Our equity income from unconsolidated subsidiaries on a consolidated basis increased $5.0 million, or 54.0%, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002, primarily due to a one-time gain on sale of owned units in an investment fund. In addition, the trend of improved performance in our other domestic joint ventures continued, but was offset by a decrease in equity income versus the prior year as a result of a one-time disposition fee received in 2002 upon liquidation of one of our U.S. joint ventures in the normal course of business upon completion of the investment strategy set forth in its joint venture agreement.

 

Our merger-related charges on a consolidated basis were $36.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2003. These charges primarily consisted of lease termination costs associated with vacated spaces, change of control payments, consulting costs and severance costs, all of which were attributable to the Insignia Acquisition.

 

Our consolidated interest expense was $71.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2003, an increase of $10.8 million, or 17.8%, as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002. This increase was primarily driven by higher interest expense as a result of the additional debt issued in connection with the Insignia Acquisition.

 

Our loss on extinguishment of debt on a consolidated basis was $13.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2003. The loss incurred in 2003 was primarily driven by the $6.8 million write-off of unamortized deferred financing fees associated with a prior credit facility, which was replaced in connection with the Insignia Acquisition. Additionally, we incurred a $6.7 million loss as a result of the write-offs of unamortized deferred financing fees and unamortized discount, as well as premiums paid, all in connection with the redemption of $30.0 million in aggregate principal amount of our 16.0% senior notes in the fourth quarter of 2003.

 

Our benefit for income tax on a consolidated basis was $6.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to a provision for income tax of $30.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2002. The income tax (benefit) provision and effective tax rate generally were not comparable between periods due to the effects of the Insignia Acquisition. Additionally, non-deductible expenses contributed to a lower effective tax benefit rate in 2003 as compared to 2002.

 

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Segment Operations

 

The following table summarizes our revenue, costs and expenses and operating income (loss) by our Americas, EMEA, Asia Pacific, and the Global Investment Management operating segments for the years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002.

 

     Year Ended December 31,

 
     2004

    2003

    2002

 
     (Dollars in thousands)  

Americas

                                        

Revenue

   $ 1,660,307    100.0 %   $ 1,155,461     100.0 %   $ 861,027    100.0 %

Costs and expenses:

                                        

Cost of services

     924,856    55.7       609,629     52.8       438,842    51.0  

Operating, administrative and other

     569,195    34.3       438,425     37.9       335,623    39.0  

Depreciation and amortization

     37,514    2.3       56,865     4.9       15,757    1.8  

Merger-related charges

     22,038    1.3       20,367     1.8       36    —    
    

  

 


 

 

  

Operating income

   $ 106,704    6.4 %   $ 30,175     2.6 %   $ 70,769    8.2 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

EBITDA

   $ 154,506    9.3 %   $ 95,113     8.2 %   $ 93,601    10.9 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

EMEA

                                        

Revenue

   $ 459,741    100.0 %   $ 298,725     100.0 %   $ 171,187    100.0 %

Costs and expenses:

                                        

Cost of services

     206,258    44.9       135,864     45.5       70,309    41.1  

Operating, administrative and other

     207,326    45.1       136,644     45.8       81,936    47.8  

Depreciation and amortization

     12,050    2.6       31,110     10.4       4,446    2.6  

Merger-related charges

     3,205    0.7       15,958     5.3       —      —    
    

  

 


 

 

  

Operating income (loss)

   $ 30,902    6.7 %   $ (20,851 )   (7.0 )%   $ 14,496    8.5 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

EBITDA

   $ 42,433    9.2 %   $ 10,053     3.4 %   $ 18,968    11.1 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

Asia Pacific

                                        

Revenue

   $ 151,034    100.0 %   $ 107,501     100.0 %   $ 80,929    100.0 %

Costs and expenses:

                                        

Cost of services

     72,651    48.1       50,935     47.3       37,942    46.9  

Operating, administrative and other

     57,354    38.0       46,802     43.5       38,520    47.5  

Depreciation and amortization

     2,476    1.6       2,226     2.1       2,228    2.8  

Merger-related charges

     —      —         492     0.5       —      —    
    

  

 


 

 

  

Operating income

   $ 18,553    12.3 %   $ 7,046     6.6 %   $ 2,239    2.8 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

EBITDA

   $ 21,584    14.3 %   $ 9,633     9.0 %   $ 5,058    6.2 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

Global Investment Management

                                        

Revenue

   $ 94,014    100.0 %   $ 68,387     100.0 %   $ 57,134    100.0 %

Costs and expenses:

                                        

Operating, administrative and other

     76,017    80.8       56,506     82.7       45,719    80.0  

Depreciation and amortization

     2,817    3.0       2,421     3.5       2,183    3.8  

Merger-related charges

     331    0.4       —       —         —      —    
    

  

 


 

 

  

Operating income

   $ 14,849    15.8 %   $ 9,460     13.8 %   $ 9,232    16.2 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

EBITDA

   $ 26,817    28.5 %   $ 18,018     26.3 %   $ 13,049    22.8 %
    

  

 


 

 

  

 

EBITDA represents earnings before net interest expense, loss on extinguishment of debt, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. Our management believes EBITDA is useful in evaluating our operating performance compared to that of other companies in our industry because the calculation of EBITDA generally

 

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eliminates the effects of financing and income taxes and the accounting effects of capital spending and acquisitions, which items may vary for different companies for reasons unrelated to overall operating performance. As a result, our management uses EBITDA as a measure to evaluate the performance of our various business lines and for other discretionary purposes, including as a significant component when measuring our performance under our employee incentive programs.

 

However, EBITDA is not a recognized measurement under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, and when analyzing our operating performance, readers should use EBITDA in addition to, and not as an alternative for, operating income (loss) as determined in accordance with GAAP. Because not all companies use identical calculations, our presentation of EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. Furthermore, EBITDA is not intended to be a measure of free cash flow for our management’s discretionary use, as it does not consider certain cash requirements such as tax and debt service payments.

 

We do not allocate net interest expense or provision (benefit) for income taxes among our segments. Accordingly, EBITDA for our segments is calculated as follows:

 

     Year Ended December 31,

     2004

    2003

    2002

     (Dollars in thousands)

Americas

                      

Operating income

   $ 106,704     $ 30,175     $ 70,769

Add:

                      

Depreciation and amortization

     37,514       56,865       15,757

Equity income from unconsolidated Subsidiaries

     10,288       8,073       7,075
    


 


 

EBITDA

   $ 154,506     $ 95,113     $ 93,601
    


 


 

EMEA

                      

Operating income (loss)

   $ 30,902     $ (20,851 )   $ 14,496

Add:

                      

Depreciation and amortization

     12,050       31,110       4,446

Equity (loss) income from unconsolidated Subsidiaries

     (519 )     (206 )     26
    


 


 

EBITDA

   $ 42,433     $ 10,053     $ 18,968
    


 


 

Asia Pacific

                      

Operating income

   $ 18,553     $ 7,046     $ 2,239

Add:

                      

Depreciation and amortization

     2,476       2,226       2,228

Equity income from unconsolidated Subsidiaries

     555       361       591
    


 


 

EBITDA

   $ 21,584     $ 9,633     $ 5,058
    


 


 

Global Investment Management

                      

Operating income

   $ 14,849     $ 9,460     $ 9,232

Add:

                      

Depreciation and amortization

     2,817       2,421       2,183

Equity income from unconsolidated subsidiaries

     9,151       6,137       1,634
    


 


 

EBITDA

   $ 26,817     $ 18,018     $ 13,049
    


 


 

 

Year Ended December 31, 2004 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2003

 

The Americas

 

Revenue increased by $504.8 million, or 43.7%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. The overall increase was primarily driven by the combination of the Insignia

 

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Acquisition and organic market share growth, particularly in our real estate services area of our advisory services line of business. As a result of the Insignia Acquisition, in the current year we generated higher transaction revenues particularly relative to leasing activity, primarily in the New York area, as well as increased property management fees. Organic growth was fueled by the continued improvement of general economic conditions, which led to an increase in lease transaction revenue. Organic sales transaction revenue growth was robust due to favorably low interest rates and investors’ increased allocation of funds to real estate, while the anticipation of higher interest rates resulted in higher loan origination fees primarily during the first part of the year.

 

Cost of services increased by $315.2 million, or 51.7%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. The increase was primarily due to higher commission expense, bonus accruals, insurance and benefits, producer retention and broker draw amortization as a result of the overall increase in revenue as well as due to the Insignia Acquisition. The producer retention expense, which represents amounts paid to the top real estate advisory services professionals of Insignia that we retained at the time of the acquisition, is being amortized through cost of services over the respective lives of their underlying employment agreements. The broker draw amortization of $4.7 million includes a $1.4 million adjustment to correct the amortization taken for the period from the date of the Insignia Acquisition through December 31, 2003. It also reflects the pattern in which the economic benefits of the broker draw asset acquired in the Insignia Acquisition are consumed, the fair value of which was refined during the three months ended March 31, 2004. The remaining net broker draw asset of $1.9 million will be amortized on a straight-line basis over the first seven months of 2005. Both the producer retention and the broker draw amortization are considered integration costs associated with the Insignia Acquisition and together amounted to $8.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2004. Cost of services as a percentage of revenue increased from 52.8% for the year ended December 31, 2003 to 55.7% for the year ended December 31, 2004, primarily driven by producers reaching higher commission tranches as a result of higher revenue production as well as the producer retention and broker draw amortization recorded in 2004 and the new mix of compensation structures as a result of compensation plans adopted in the Insignia Acquisition.

 

Operating, administrative and other expenses increased $130.8 million, or 29.8%. The increase was primarily driven by higher costs as a result of the Insignia Acquisition as well as higher payroll-related expenses, including bonuses and insurance and benefits. Additionally, we incurred higher marketing expenses, net legal costs, professional fees, including $5.5 million related to Sarbanes-Oxley compliance work and $5.1 million of charges for the write-down of investments. The investment write-downs are primarily related to the write-off of our investments in Workplace IQ, Ltd. and KB Opportunity Investors in their entirety. The write-off of our investment in Workplace IQ, Ltd. resulted from a period of negative operating cash flows brought about by unanticipated product delays during 2004 as well as the restructuring and recapitalization of this entity in 2004, which caused a significant decline in our ownership percentage and preference in equity distributions. The write-off of our investment in KB Opportunity Investors was based on recent projections which indicated that this investment would no longer produce positive cash flows. We also incurred one-time costs as a result of our initial public offering, including compensation expense of $15.0 million related to bonus payments made to several of our non–executive real estate advisory services employees as a result of provisions in their employment agreements. Additionally, in 2003 total operating expenses were reduced by substantial net foreign currency transaction gains resulting from a weaker U.S. dollar while in the current year we experienced only moderate net foreign currency transaction gains. The lower net foreign currency transaction gains experienced in the current year were as a result of the U.S. dollar weakening at a slower pace as compared to the prior year, particularly relative to the Australian and New Zealand dollars. Additionally, net foreign currency transaction gains were offset in the current year by $1.8 million of expense incurred related to option agreements entered into, which expired on December 29, 2004.

 

EMEA

 

Revenue increased by $161.0 million, or 53.9%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003, primarily driven by increased revenue as a result of the Insignia Acquisition as

 

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well as organic growth. This was evidenced by higher sales and lease transaction revenue, particularly in London and Paris, as well as increased appraisal, consultation and management fees, predominantly in the United Kingdom. Foreign currency translation had a $46.6 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Cost of services increased $70.4 million, or 51.8%, as a result of higher producer compensation expense as well as increased payroll-related costs, including bonuses and insurance and benefits, particularly in the United Kingdom and France, mainly due to higher revenue. Also included in producer compensation expense were integration costs of $2.4 million, representing the amortization of bonuses paid to the top producers in the United Kingdom, which are being amortized over the respective lives of their underlying employment agreements. Foreign currency translation had a $20.9 million negative impact on cost of services during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Operating, administrative and other expenses increased by $70.7 million, or 51.7%, mainly driven by higher payroll-related expenses, including bonuses and insurance and benefits, as well as higher marketing expenses, particularly in the United Kingdom and France, primarily due to the Insignia Acquisition and consistent with the higher overall revenue. Also, expenses in the United Kingdom were higher due to increased occupancy expense as a result of our relocation to a new facility in London in the fourth quarter of 2003 as well as $12.8 million of charges related to idle facilities and a sublease termination in the United Kingdom. Foreign currency translation had a $20.8 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Asia Pacific

 

Revenue increased by $43.5 million, or 40.5%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. The increase was primarily driven by an overall increase in revenue in Australia, Japan and China, primarily resulting from our successful efforts to increase market share in the region. Foreign currency translation had a $12.2 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Cost of services increased by $21.7 million, or 42.6%, mainly attributable to higher producer compensation expense due to increased headcount in Australia and Japan resulting from our efforts to increase our market share in the region, in addition to higher commissions as a result of higher transaction revenue. Foreign currency translation had a $6.0 million negative impact on cost of services for the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Operating, administrative and other expenses increased by $10.6 million, or 22.5%, primarily due to higher payroll-related costs, including bonuses, mainly driven by the increased headcount and improved overall performance in the region. A new long-term incentive plan with a four year term was started in Australia and New Zealand in 2004 as the former long-term incentive plan ended in 2003. Despite improved performance, compensation expense for Australia and New Zealand was lower for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003 as a result of higher accruals for the former long-term incentive plan in the prior year. These accruals are typically higher in the last few years of a long-term incentive plan as measured performance is more heavily weighted in the latter stages of a plan. Also contributing to the increase in operating expenses were higher marketing expenses, particularly in Australia and China, which was consistent with higher revenue generation. Foreign currency translation had a $4.5 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Global Investment Management

 

Revenue increased by $25.6 million, or 37.5%, for the year ended December 31, 2004 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2003. The increase was primarily driven by higher revenues in Europe largely due to the growth of our business in the United Kingdom, which was partially attributable to the Insignia Acquisition, as well as higher incentive fees in Japan resulting from the strong market for publicly traded REITS. Foreign currency translation had a $4.4 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

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Operating, administrative and other expenses increased by $19.5 million, or 34.5%, primarily due to higher payroll-related costs, including bonuses, mainly resulting from the revenue growth. Additionally, higher bad debt expense in Japan related to the write-off on an uncollectible receivable during the current year also contributed to the increase. Foreign currency translation had a $3.1 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2004.

 

Year Ended December 31, 2003 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2002

 

The Americas

 

Revenue increased by $294.4 million, or 34.2%, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002 primarily driven by the expansion of our market share in our real estate services business line through our acquisition of Insignia, particularly in the leasing industry in the New York area. Additionally, the improvement of general economic conditions in the United States led to an increase in volume of transactions resulting in significantly higher sales transaction revenue as well as increased lease transaction revenue and appraisal fees.

 

Cost of services increased by $170.8 million, or 38.9%, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002 primarily due to higher commission expense, bonus accruals and producer retention expense as a result of the Insignia Acquisition as well as the higher sales and lease transaction revenue. The producer retention expense represents bonuses paid to the top advisory services professionals of Insignia that we retained at the time of the acquisition that is being amortized through cost of services over the respective lives of the underlying employment agreements. The producer retention expense is considered an integration cost associated with the Insignia Acquisition and amounted to $1.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Operating, administrative and other expenses increased $102.8 million, or 30.6%, mainly caused by higher costs as a result of the Insignia Acquisition, including integration expenses of $9.1 million, increased bonuses and payroll related costs mainly resulting from improved operating performance, and a nonrecurring legal settlement in the United States. Included in the 2003 bonus was an accrual for a one-time performance award of approximately $6.9 million. These increases were partially offset by net foreign currency transaction gains resulting from the weakened U.S. dollar, a trend that we experienced in 2003 and 2002.

 

EMEA

 

Revenue increased by $127.5 million, or 74.5%, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002, primarily driven by increased revenue as a result of the Insignia Acquisition as evidenced by higher sales and lease transaction revenue as well as increased consultation and appraisal fees, predominantly in the United Kingdom and France. Foreign currency translation had a $34.1 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Cost of services increased $65.6 million, or 93.2%, as a result of higher producer compensation expense and bonuses as well as increased payroll-related costs, including insurance expense, throughout Europe and pension expense in the United Kingdom, primarily due to the Insignia Acquisition. Also included in producer compensation expense for 2003 were integration costs of $1.2 million, representing the amortization of bonuses paid to the top producers in the United Kingdom, which is being amortized over the respective lives of the underlying employment agreements. Foreign currency translation had a $15.1 million negative impact on cost of services during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Operating, administrative and other expenses increased by $54.7 million, or 66.8%, mainly driven by increased costs as a result of the Insignia Acquisition, including integration expenses of $1.8 million, as well as higher bonus, payroll related and consulting expenses. Additionally, occupancy expense was higher in the United Kingdom as a result of our relocation to a new facility. Lastly, foreign currency translation had a $14.9 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

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Asia Pacific

 

Revenue increased by $26.6 million, or 32.8%, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002. The increase was primarily driven by an overall increase in revenue in Australia and New Zealand, primarily resulting from our incremental efforts to increase our market share in the region as well as due to our organic growth. Foreign currency translation had a $12.9 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Cost of services increased by $13.0 million, or 34.2%, mainly attributable to increased transaction revenue as well as higher producer compensation expense due to increased headcount in Australia and New Zealand resulting from our incremental efforts to increase our market share in this region. Foreign currency translation had a $6.1 million negative impact on cost of services for the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Operating, administrative and other expenses increased by $8.3 million, or 21.5%, primarily due to an increased accrual for long-term incentives as well as higher payroll related costs in Australia and New Zealand. The long-term incentive plan term ended in 2003 with payout of approximately $7.8 million anticipated in early 2004. Foreign currency translation also had a $5.1 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Global Investment Management

 

Revenue increased by $11.3 million, or 19.7%, for the year ended December 31, 2003 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2002. The increase was primarily driven by higher incentive fees earned in the United States as well as increased revenue in the United Kingdom, which was partially attributable to the Insignia Acquisition. Foreign currency translation had a $2.4 million positive impact on total revenue during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Operating, administrative and other expenses increased by $10.8 million, or 23.6%, primarily due to higher payroll-related costs, including bonuses, primarily driven by revenue growth. Foreign currency translation had a $1.9 million negative impact on total operating expenses during the year ended December 31, 2003.

 

Liquidity and Capital Resources

 

We believe that we can satisfy our working capital requirements and funding of investments with internally generated cash flow and, as necessary, borrowings under the revolving credit facility of our amended and restated credit agreement described below. Included in the capital requirements that we expect to be able to fund during 2005 is approximately $36.0 million of anticipated capital expenditures. The capital expenditures for 2005 are primarily comprised of information technology costs, which are driven largely by computer replacement costs as well as costs associated with upgrading various servers and systems, and leasehold improvements.

 

During 2001 and 2003, we required substantial amounts of new equity and debt financing to fund our acquisitions of CB Richard Ellis Services and Insignia. Absent extraordinary transactions such as these, we historically have not needed sources of financing other than our internally generated cash flow and our revolving credit facility to fund our working capital, capital expenditure and investment requirements. As a result, our management anticipates that our cash flow from operations and revolving credit facility will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash requirements for the foreseeable future, but at a minimum for the next twelve months.

 

From time to time, we consider potential strategic acquisitions. Our management believes that any future significant acquisitions that we make most likely would require us to obtain additional debt or equity financing. In the past, we have been able to obtain such financing for other material transactions on terms that our management believed to be reasonable. However, it is possible that we may not be able to find acquisition financing on favorable terms in the future, if we decide to make any material acquisitions.

 

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Our current long-term liquidity needs, other than those related to ordinary course obligations and commitments such as operating leases, generally are comprised of two parts. The first is the repayment of the outstanding principal amounts of our long-term indebtednes