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We like to think that when we deposit a dollar at the bank, it goes into a big vault and we can pull out that same dollar at any time. But that¿s not how the U.S. banking system works. Banks take that money and invest it to make money themselves, so cash gets spread around. This, naturally, leads to a big risk: What happens if those investments go sour? Well, you¿d be out of luck. You can¿t get your dollar back.
The Federal Reserve doesn¿t like that scenario, so it prohibits banks from putting all the cash it has on deposit on the line. In fact, the Fed forces banks to keep a portion of their assets at the Federal Reserve itself, to make sure that some of your assets won¿t get squandered if the bank¿s bets go south. These are called ¿reserves,¿ (hence, Federal Reserve. Got it? Good), and usually amount to 10% of the total cash kept in checking accounts.
These reserves are never exactly 10%, and banks like to keep a little extra in reserve ¿ not, as you might think, to make you more comfortable that they¿re in good financial shape, but rather so they can take that excess and lend it to other banks and make money off it. (They¿re banks, they can¿t help themselves.) The rate at which they make these loans is called the Federal Funds rate, which is set by the Federal Reserve¿s Federal Open Market Committee.
When you hear people chattering about how the Fed cut or hiked interest rates, this is what they¿re talking about: the interest rate banks can charge for lending money from their reserves. This begs the question: If these are essentially loans between banks, why is the Fed Funds rate so important for the rest of the economy?
Well, simply put, because loans make the financial world go round. Bank A lends Bank B $10,000 at a Fed Funds rate of 5%. Bank B then lends out $10,000 to a small business at 7%. The small business then takes that money and expands the business and hires new workers. Now someone is employed, Bank B has made interest off the loan, and Bank A is the richer for making it all happen. It¿s perhaps overly simplistic, but you get the idea. When you want the economy to thrive, you make lending cheaper.
Of course, sometimes you don¿t want the economy to thrive. In fact, you might want it to cool down, mostly to avoid money flooding the system and causing inflation. In that case, the Fed raises interest rates, making it difficult to lend or borrow.
Home / Markets / Industries / Real Estate
Friday, May 16, 2008
Hovnanian Announces Debt Refinancing
Comtex
RED BANK, N.J., May 16, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ ----Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: HOV) announced today that it plans to issue an aggregate principal amount of up to $600.0 million of 5-year senior secured notes (the "Notes") in a private placement. The Company also expects to enter into an amendment to its revolving credit agreement which decreases total commitments thereunder to $300.0 million, increases the amount of collateral, and substantially eliminates maintenance covenants (the "New Revolving Credit Agreement"). The amendment has been approved by the Lenders subject to issuance of the Notes.
The Notes would be secured on a second-priority lien basis on substantially all the assets owned by the Company and guarantors of the Notes to the extent such assets secure obligations under the New Revolving Credit Agreement and certain other permitted indebtedness.
The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering of the Notes to repay amounts outstanding under its existing revolving credit agreement and for general corporate purposes.
The Notes would be offered within the United States only to "qualified institutional buyers" pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"). The Notes would also be offered outside the United States to non-U.S. investors. The Notes to be offered would not be registered under the Securities Act and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements. This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy such Notes in any jurisdiction in which such an offer or sale would be unlawful.
About Hovnanian Enterprises
Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc., founded in 1959 by Kevork S. Hovnanian, Chairman, is headquartered in Red Bank, New Jersey. The Company is one of the nation's largest homebuilders with operations in Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. The Company's homes are marketed and sold under the trade names K. Hovnanian Homes, Matzel & Mumford, Forecast Homes, Parkside Homes, Brighton Homes, Parkwood Builders, Windward Homes, Cambridge Homes, Town & Country Homes, Oster Homes, First Home Builders of Florida and CraftBuilt Homes. As the developer of K. Hovnanian's Four Seasons communities, the Company is also one of the nation's largest builders of active adult homes.
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements in this Press Release that are not historical facts should be considered as "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to, (1) changes in general and local economic and industry and business conditions, (2) adverse weather conditions and natural disasters, (3) changes in market conditions and seasonality of the Company's business, (4) changes in home prices and sales activity in the markets where the Company builds homes, (5) government regulation, including regulations concerning development of land, the home building, sales and customer financing processes, and the environment, (6) fluctuations in interest rates and the availability of mortgage financing, (7) shortages in, and price fluctuations of, raw materials and labor, (8) the availability and cost of suitable land and improved lots, (9) levels of competition, (10) availability of financing to the Company, (11) utility shortages and outages or rate fluctuations, (12) levels of indebtedness and restrictions on the Company's operations and activities imposed by the agreements governing the Company's outstanding indebtedness, (13) operations through joint ventures with third parties, (14) product liability litigation and warranty claims, (15) successful identification and integration of acquisitions, (16) significant influence of the Company's controlling stockholders, (17) geopolitical risks, terrorist acts and other acts of war and (18) other factors described in detail in the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended October 31, 2007.
SOURCE Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc.
http://www.khov.com
Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
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