| Transaction Description: JJay Brooks successfully arranged $172,300,000 of bridge financing for a portfolio of 36 properties spanning 17 states (from Louisiana to Alaska) that had been mired in complex litigation for several years. Assets included regional malls, office buildings, industrial properties and mobile home parks located in secondary and tertiary markets. Although the initial debt was being serviced, the litigation resulted by a loan maturity default during the recession when the capital markets where devastated and the existing lender would not negotiate an extension. Settlement of the litigation required certainty of close with a “drop-dead date” that would have resulted in significant borrower losses had the financing not closed. The final debt structure involved two unrelated lenders with multiple layers of senior and mezzanine debt, structured over five loans. Prepayment and yield maintenance flexibility was a critical component of the structure that allows the borrower to extract properties from the financing in the coming years. Generally speaking, the loans were priced with either a floating (with an interest rate cap) or fixed interest rate with six months to 24-months of yield maintenance. Leverage varied depending on the stability of the asset and the term was structured to provide adequate time to liquidate several assets and identify permanent debt for others. |
| Challenge: Numerous property specific complexities such as ground leases, environmental issues and major capital and tenant improvement projects required underwriting and loan structuring. The stigma associated with properties (and borrowers) involved with litigation associated with a default disqualifies many lenders from considering the financing described. The portfolio size, location and varied property types also create additional complexity and challenges. Certainty of close was mandatory. |
| Solution: GSP identified the lending platforms and professionals that could underwrite, appropriately price and structure the cash flows. The solutions required to solve all the challenges are too long to list although the financing required the cooperation and collaboration of an incredibly talented group of professionals on both the lender side and the borrower side of the financing. All parties came together to solve problems and pull from a depth of knowledge. |
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