Sims Converts FFT Senior Communities Bonds From Fixed Rate to Variable Rate Mode With an Initial Weekly Rate of 0.30%

On May 13, 2010, Herbert J. Sims & Co. remarketed $16.575 million of F.F.T. Senior Communities' ("FFT") Series 2000B bonds, which were converted from a long-term interest rate mode to a weekly mode. Sponsored by the FF Thompson Health System, Inc., FFT owns and operates a Canandaigua, New York continuing care retirement community known as Ferris Hills at West Lake. The community consists of 84 independent living units and 48 enriched housing units. The start-up construction of the community was originally financed by Sims with $23.855 million of Series 2000 tax-exempt bonds. The bonds were enhanced with a 5-year KBC Bank N.V. letter of credit. In December 2001, $5.3 million of bonds were paid in full. In 2005, KBC Bank renewed the letter of credit on the outstanding Series 2000B bonds for another 5-year term ending May 13, 2010, and the outstanding bonds were remarketed with a 5-year term.

Unfunded Pension Liabilities Do Not Mean Insolvency

State and city pension funds are not insolvent. Pension funding for states and cities is under a microscope these days, with predictions that unfunded liabilities are going to lead to wide scale defaults and bankruptcies of municipal debt. These predictions are overblown, by people who have not followed state and city fiscal trends over decades, through 6 recessions, as I have. The following are some facts that informed investors need to know about public pension funding.

Sims Lowers Cost of Capital on $63.8 Million Bond Issue by Integrating $48 Million Tax-Exempt Advancing Bond Structure With Regional Bank

La Vida Llena operates Albuquerque’s only Lifecare CCRC and has grown to include 284 residential living units, 45 assisted living units, 44 nursing beds and 16 memory support units. In March 2009, Sims successfully defined and implemented a bridge financing structure to refinance higher cost fixed-rate bonds, eliminate restrictive covenants and provide the flexibility to implement a more optimal capital structure as future strategic plans were defined. The increase in flexibility and the elimination of the restrictive covenants enabled La Vida Llena to build cash reserves and lower debt service costs which were instrumental in obtaining an investment grade rating from Fitch. Upon completing the bridge financing in 2009, La Vida Llena was able to commence its Health Care repositioning project as well as initiate pre-sales of its 58-unit independent living expansion project in September 2009.