Sims Mortgage Funding Completes Metairie Manor Refinancing in Louisiana

Sims Mortgage Funding, Inc.

by Anthony Luzzi

From the Jersey Meadowlands to the Bayou – Sims Mortgage Funding Has It Covered!

Although it is headquartered in New Jersey, Sims Mortgage Funding seems to have a second home in Louisiana – we have closed close to $530 million in HUD-insured loans in the Pelican State. We returned there last month to complete a $10,814,900 refinancing for Metairie Manor, a 287-unit, Section 8 funded, affordable senior housing community owned and managed by affiliates of the Archdiocese of New Orleans.

The backstory? We originally refinanced Metairie Manor in 2012 when it paid off its HUD Section 202 Direct Loan; that refinancing produced about $250,000 in annual debt service savings that have been used to fund wellness and affordable nutrition programs, resident units deep-cleaning services, and enhanced transportation options. Interest rates for HUD-insured loans have dropped since the 2012 refinancing, so the Archdiocese brought us back to evaluate options to generate more debt service savings.

Our solution? We originated a new HUD-insured loan under the Section 222(a)7 program, an expedited review option that does not require an appraisal and has a pared-down application and underwriting format. This minimized the time it took us to develop the application and loan underwriting, and the time it took for HUD to review and approve the deal.

The result? The 223(a)(7) loan reduced the project’s interest rate by 33% and produced debt service savings of $118,000 annually. Moreover, in order to maximize annual debt service savings, we negotiated an extension of the loan term of almost 10 years. The additional savings from the new 223(a)(7) loan materially expands Metairie Manor’s capacity to provide services and programs to its residents, enhancing it already-solid reputation in the community. We also built approximately $700,000 into the new loan to supplement the existing Reserve for Replacements fund, so there is a stable platform to provide for Metairie’s physical needs in the future.

The takeaway? The new 223(a)(7) loan will enable Metairie Manor to expand its programs and services and increase its capital reserves – all to be accomplished without an increase in the existing Section 8 funding.

An encore? The Metairie Manor refinancing is the eleventh HUD-insured loan we have closed for the Archdiocese and its management affiliate, Christopher Homes, Inc.

For more information, please contact Andrew Patykula at [email protected].

Sims Mortgage Funding, Inc. originates, underwrites, and funds loans for Healthcare, Multifamily and Hospital projects. We have completed over $2 billion in HUD-insured transactions and are an approved LEAN (healthcare) and MAP (multifamily) lender.

Sims Mortgage Funding, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of HJ Sims.

Sunset Retirement Communities (May 2021)

Sunset Retirement Communities is a multi-campus not-for-profit senior living provider located in West Michigan. HJ Sims was engaged to identify the optimal capital structure for Sunset’s project financing while also reviewing their existing bank debt with two different banks.

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The Bethel Methodist Home

The Bethel Methodist Home Logo

The Bethel Methodist Home, d/b/a The Knolls, is a non-profit Continuing Care Retirement Community located on a 29-acre campus in Valhalla, New York in Westchester County. The Knolls offers a full continuum of care with independent living, assisted living and skilled nursing services on a single campus.

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Asbury Communities

Asbury Communities Partners with HJ Sims again to Streamline its Capital Structure with its Pennsylvania and Maryland Obligated Groups

“Asbury Communities once again chose HJ Sims to represent us for a refinancing in Pennsylvania and Maryland for our callable debt. The Sims team was able offer solutions for both refinancings that exceeded our expectations. One of the refinancings was a public deal that came to the market at a difficult time. Sims presented a strategy that worked better than anticipated, and we were able to refinance our debt on superior terms. I would highly recommend working with Sims as they listened to our objectives, formulated a great plan, and executed on it. We couldn’t be happier with the results.”
– Andrew Jeanneret, Chief Financial Officer, Asbury Communities, Inc.

For more information on how Asbury’s Maryland and Pennsylvania Obligated Groups, please contact:

(301) 424-9135

Melissa Messina

(203) 418-9015

Asbury Bethany Village – Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
Asbury Methodist Village – Gaithersburg, Maryland

Partnered Right®

Asbury Communities, Inc. (“Asbury”), owns and operates life plan communities in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Tennessee, as well as HUD Section 202 senior housing buildings, a foundation, and a for-profit technology consulting firm. All of the facilities that are included in its Pennsylvania and Maryland Obligated Groups are owned and operated by Asbury Atlantic, Inc. (“Atlantic”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Asbury Communities.

Pennsylvania Obligated Group

Asbury’s Pennsylvania Obligated Group (the “Pennsylvania Obligated Group”) consists of two communities – Bethany Village Retirement Center (“Bethany Village”) located in Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania and Springhill (“Springhill”) located in Erie, Pennsylvania, both life plan communities (LPCs). Bethany Village consists of two campuses with an aggregate of 400 independent living units, 100 assisted living units and a 69-bed skilled nursing center and related amenities. Springhill has 158 independent living units, 35 personal care units and an 80-bed skilled nursing facility.

Maryland Obligated Group

Asbury’s Maryland Obligated Group (the “Maryland Obligated Group”) consists of two communities – Asbury Methodist Village (“AMV”), a LPC located in Gaithersburg, Montgomery County, Maryland, and Asbury Solomons Island (“Solomons”), a LPC located in Solomons, Calvert County, Maryland. AMV provides a continuum of living through 826 independent living apartments, courtyard homes and villas, 133 assisted living suites and 257 comprehensive care beds located in a health care unit that includes a post-acute care unit and a memory support special care unit. Solomons has 300 independent living apartments and cottages, 24 assisted living suites and a health care center containing 48 licensed skilled and intermediate nursing care beds.

Sims recently served as underwriter to Asbury in 2018 for its Maryland Obligated Group’s Series 2018 Bonds; a financing that provided $7.5 million of new money bonds for capital expenditures, while also achieving over $8.3 million in net present value savings for the Maryland Obligated Group.

Structured Right®

Pennsylvania Obligated Group

In the summer of 2019, HJ Sims was engaged again by Asbury Communities to facilitate the refinancing of the Pennsylvania Obligated Group’s outstanding Series 2010 Bonds and the Maryland Obligated Group’s outstanding Series 2009B Bonds. Asbury Communities also sought Sims’ partnership in modifying the support agreement between Asbury Communities and the Pennsylvania Obligated Group and restating their existing Master Trust Indenture to align it with the modernized terms from the Maryland Obligated Group’s Series 2018 Refunding Bonds. Sims served as Underwriter of the Series 2018 Bonds, and worked closely again with management of Asbury to facilitate their objectives of minimizing overall interest expense while attaining level debt service and maximum flexibility

Maryland Obligated Group

For the Maryland Obligated Group, Sims facilitated a request for proposals process to select a bank partner and negotiated a tax-exempt bank loan used to refinance the Series 2009B Bonds, and finance $5,000,000 in capital expenditures reimbursements made by Maryland Obligated Group in the ordinary course of business.

Executed Right®

Pennsylvania Obligated Group

In order to meet the strategic financing objectives of Asbury, Sims suggested a short-term forward commitment to reduce or eliminate the effects of negative arbitrage from a current refunding occurring within 90 days of an optional redemption date. Sims priced the Pennsylvania Obligated Group’s Series 2019 Bonds on November 7, 2019, and set closing on December 31, 2019 to eliminate negative arbitrage through the first optional redemption date of the Series 2009B bonds on January 1, 2020. By doing so, the Pennsylvania Obligated Group avoided nearly $600,000 of negative arbitrage between the pricing date and closing date, reduced the overall borrowing, and maximized savings. The structure for the Pennsylvania Obligated Group also included semi-annual sinking fund installments, call provisions that took into account the impact of the elimination of advanced refunding bonds, and restated the underlying master trust indenture documentation and support agreements.

Maryland Obligated Group

As part of the Maryland Obligated Group’s bank financing negotiations, Sims was able to procure a 4 year, fully amortizing loan matching the maturity of the Series 2009B Bonds at a swap rate of 2.226% and a 7 year, fully amortizing loan for the reimbursement of capital expenditures at a swap rate of 2.309%. This financing also effectively defeased the final series of bonds that had been issued under the Maryland Obligated Group’s original operating support agreement, opening the door for the complete elimination of the operating support agreement if the Maryland Obligated Group wanted to do so.

Financed Right®

Pennsylvania Obligated Group

For the Pennsylvania Obligated Group, the aggregate $59,480,000 Series 2019 Bonds are projected to generate nearly $850,000 of debt service savings annually through 2041 and over $1.2 million annually from 2042 to 2045 for an aggregate net present value savings of $15 million over the life of the bonds.

Maryland Obligated Group

For the Maryland Obligated Group, notwithstanding the $5 million additional funds borrowed, the financing resulted in a mere approximate $20,000 increase in maximum annual debt service and achieved Maryland Obligated Group’s goals. The implemented financing structure allows Asbury to achieve its objectives of minimizing overall interest expense while sustaining and improving debt service coverage metrics and providing maximum flexibility.

For more information on how Asbury’s Maryland and Pennsylvania Obligated Groups were Financed Right® by HJ Sims, please contact:

(301) 424-9135

Melissa Messina

(203) 418-9015

Testimonials may not be representative of the experience of other clients. Past performance is no guarantee of future results

Jewish Home Family

Jewish Home Family is a private not-for-profit corporation operating an integrated healthcare delivery system principally serving the residents of Bergen County, New Jersey. Jewish Home at Rockleigh has been operating the 180-bed Russ Berrie Home for Jewish Living since 2001 on a park-like 16 acre campus in the Rockleigh Township of Bergen County, New Jersey.

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The Mary Wade Home

Mary Wade was founded in 1866 for the purpose of providing shelter to homeless and needy young women and their children and was incorporated in 1878 under the name “The Home for the Friendless.”

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