Ziegler has been on a roll lately, closing one bank bond financing after another for CCRC clients across the country. Its latest closing, working with Truist and Hancock Whitney, was for a not-for-profit CCRC in Fort Myers, Florida.
Founded in 1995, the community has grown over the years to include 333 independent living units, 44 IL villas, 44 assisted living units, 44 memory care units and a 64-bed/unit skilled nursing facility. It sits adjacent to HealthPark Medical Center and close to both Estero Bay Preserve State Park and Fort Myers Beach.
To replace outstanding debt, reimburse and fund certain capital expenditures and fund a debt service reserve fund, Ziegler initiated a bank solicitation search in late-February 2020 and was able to obtain attractive terms from multiple banks. Truist and Hancock Whitney emerged as the lenders, with both offering a 10-year commitment period and 30-year amortization.
The bonds totaled $107.72 million and averaged a 2.24% interest rate and $1.9 million in annual cash flow savings, which results in net present value savings over the 10-year term of $16.8 million, or 19.6% savings of refunded bonds. Rob Gall led the Ziegler team on the transaction.
