Essex Property Trust Declares Quarterly Distributions

PALO ALTO, CA--(Marketwire - December 11, 2009) - Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE: ESS), a real estate investment trust (REIT) that invests in apartment communities located in highly desirable, supply-constrained markets, announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $1.03 per common share, payable January 15, 2010 to shareholders of record as of January 4, 2010.

The Board of Directors declared quarterly distributions of $0.48828 and $0.30469 per share on its 7.8125% Series F Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares and its 4.875% Series G Cumulative Convertible Preferred shares, respectively. Distributions for the 7.8125% Series F Cumulative Redeemable Preferred shares are payable on March 1, 2010 to shareholders of record as of February 12, 2010. Distributions for the 4.875% Series G Cumulative Convertible Preferred shares are payable on February 1, 2010 to shareholders of record as of January 4, 2010.

Essex Property Trust, Inc., located in Palo Alto, California and traded on the New York Stock Exchange (ESS), is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties in selected West Coast communities. Essex currently has ownership interests in 133 multifamily properties (27,221 units), and has 466 units in various stages of development. Additional information about Essex can be found on the Company's web site at www.essexpropertytrust.com.

Contact Information: NICOLE CHRISTIAN (650) 849-1649