NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Sept. 24, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- American Healthcare Investors and Griffin Capital Corporation, the co-sponsors of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II, Inc., announced today the acquisition of three medical office buildings located in Knoxville, Tenn. and Desoto, Texas by the REIT for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $59.6 million.

Currently, the REIT's portfolio totals 113 buildings valued at approximately $985 million, based on purchase price, diversified across 26 states. Since Jan. 1, 2012, the portfolio has grown by approximately 125 percent, based on purchase price, while maintaining leverage of 31.2 percent (total debt divided by total assets), as of June 30, 2012, among the lowest in the non-traded REIT industry, according to independent research provided by Blue Vault Partners, LLC.

"We continue to source attractive acquisition opportunities, which we believe provide greater scale and diversification to the portfolio of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II," said Danny Prosky, a principal of American Healthcare Investors and president and chief operating officer of the REIT. "We have more than doubled the size of the REIT's portfolio since the beginning of the year."

Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II's most recent acquisitions include:

East Tennessee Medical Office Building Portfolio – Knoxville, Tenn.

The East Tennessee Medical Office Building Portfolio consists of two single-tenant, two-story medical office buildings totaling approximately 167,000 square feet located on the campus of the Provision Health Alliance, a comprehensive clinical outpatient healthcare center in Knoxville, Tenn. The Provision campus is strategically located in the midst of a thriving healthcare corridor within short distance of six hospitals and approximately 2,200 hospital beds, including Parkwest Medical Center, Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, East Tennessee Children's Hospital, the University of Tennessee Medical Center, Turkey Creek Medical Center and Physician's Regional Medical Center. Completed in 2009, the East Tennessee Medical Office Building Portfolio is 100 percent master leased to Provision Healthcare through 2024.

East Tennessee Medical Office Building Portfolio was acquired from an unaffiliated third party represented by E. Hunter Beebe of Healthcare Real Estate Capital LLC. Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II financed the acquisition using $50.0 million in borrowings under its unsecured line of credit with Bank of America, N.A., and the remaining using cash on hand.

DeSoto Medical Office Building – DeSoto, Texas

DeSoto Medical Office Building is a single-story building constructed in 2011 consisting of approximately 30,000 square feet in the Dallas-suburb of DeSoto, Texas. The medical office building is currently 100 percent leased to four tenants, the largest of which is Texas Health Resources, through November 2018.

DeSoto Medical Office Building was acquired from Caddis Partners, an unaffiliated third party represented by Cain Brothers. Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II financed the acquisition using $5.5 million in borrowings under its unsecured line of credit with Bank of America, N.A., and the remaining using cash on hand.

As of June 30, 2012, the Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II property portfolio was 96.1 percent leased with a weighted average remaining lease term of approximately nine years.

About American Healthcare Investors LLC

American Healthcare Investors is an investment management firm that specializes in the acquisition and management of healthcare-related real estate, including medical office buildings, skilled nursing facilities, assisted living facilities and hospitals. The company was founded by nationally recognized real estate investment executives Jeff Hanson, Danny Prosky and Mathieu Streiff, who have completed in excess of $15 billion in aggregate acquisition and disposition transactions during their careers, approximately $5.5 billion of which has been healthcare-related real estate transactions. American Healthcare Investors is committed to providing investors with access to the potential benefits that healthcare-related real estate ownership can provide. For more information regarding American Healthcare Investors, please visit www.AmericanHealthcareInvestors.com.

The American Healthcare Investors logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=14402

About Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II, Inc.

Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II, Inc. is a real estate investment trust organized to invest in a diversified portfolio of real estate properties, focusing primarily on medical office buildings and healthcare-related facilities. The REIT is co-sponsored by American Healthcare Investors and Griffin Capital Corporation. For more information regarding Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II, please visit www.HealthcareREIT2.com.

The Griffin-American Healthcare REIT II logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=13622

About Griffin Capital Corporation

Griffin Capital Corporation ("Griffin Capital") is a privately-owned real estate company headquartered in Los Angeles. Led by senior executives each with more than two decades of real estate experience collectively encompassing over $14.0 billion of transaction value and more than 400 transactions, Griffin Capital and its affiliates have acquired or constructed over 17 million square feet of space since 1996. Griffin Capital and its affiliates currently own and manage a portfolio consisting of over 11.1 million square feet of space, located in 27 states and representing over $1.7 billion in asset value.  Additional information about Griffin Capital is available at www.griffincapital.com.