Sims Successfully Closes $93 Million Tax Exempt Bond Financing for New Life Plan Community; Places 20% of Issue with Private Client Investors

FAIRFIELD, Conn., July 17, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- HJ Sims (Sims), a privately held investment bank and wealth management firm founded in 1935, is pleased to announce the successful completion of a $93,000,000 financing in June 2017 for The Prospect-Woodward Home. Proceeds will be used to develop Hillside Village, a new Life Plan Community to be located in Keene, NH. Sims sold approximately $18,000,000 or 20% of the bond issue to individual investors by leveraging its extensive private client network despite restrictions required by the issuer.

The Prospect-Woodward Home is a nonprofit corporation which presently operates an assisted living facility in Keene and traces its roots to 1874. There are no existing Life Plan Communities in the market and The Prospect-Woodward Home board wanted to provide a local community so seniors can remain in Keene.

Eighty percent of the independent living apartments were reserved at the time of bond closing. Sims created three series of Entrance Fee Principal Redemption Bonds^sm to capture initial entrance fees from new residents and to reduce debt quickly.

The bond issuer, New Hampshire Health and Education Facilities Authority, has a policy of restricting sale of below-investment-grade bonds to qualified institutional buyers and accredited investors in minimum denominations of $100,000. Nonetheless, Sims was able to leverage its extensive network of individual investors to place approximately $18 million of the $93 million bond issue—almost 20%.

Sims used this success, information related to recently priced issues and favorable market conditions to establish interest rates lower than initial assumptions.

In June 2017, Sims closed the bond issue with rates ranging from 3.50%-6.375%. Through Entrance Fee Principal Redemption Bonds^sm, a product that is proprietary to Sims, 40% of the bonds are expected to be redeemed within three years.

"Helping a 145-year-old senior housing organization move from being small and inefficient into a new 48-acre campus with a large Life Plan Community, $56 million of construction and a $93 million project financing is no easy task. HJ Sims was with us every step of the way from early dreams in 2011 to the reality of a groundbreaking in 2017. They took the time to understand all the components needed to make this happen. They helped us greatly as we created and implemented the project development plan and did a great job of executing the financing at below than expected interest rates. Sims exceeded our expectations and have now helped create another century of service through the creation of Hillside Village," said Edward J. Kelly, CEO KRI – Development Consultant to The Prospect-Woodward Home.

For more about Financed Right® solutions, please contact Andrew Nesi at 203-418-9057 | [email protected].

ABOUT HJ SIMS: Founded in 1935 on Wall Street, HJ Sims is a privately held investment bank and wealth management firm with $2.2 billion of assets under management. HJ Sims is one of the country's oldest underwriters of tax-exempt and taxable bonds, having raised $22 billion for projects throughout the US. The firm is headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, with investment banking, private client wealth management and trading nation-wide. Pershing LLC, a subsidiary of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, is custodian of all client assets. HJ Sims is not affiliated with Hillside Village. www.hjsims.com/ourstory. Investments involve risk, including the possible fluctuation of principal. Member FINRA, SIPC. Follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn.

SOURCE HJ Sims

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