Ziegler Closes $27,885,000 Financing For Ohio Living Communities

CHICAGO (PRWEB) October 06, 2020

Ziegler, a specialty investment bank, is pleased to announce the successful closing of Ohio Living Communities' Series 2020B Bonds.

Ohio Living was founded in 1922 and is an Ohio not-for-profit corporation whose purpose is providing older adults with health care, housing and related services. Ohio Living owns and operates twelve communities located throughout the state of Ohio, nine of which are full service Life Plan Communities offering skilled nursing care beds, assisted living units and independent living units. According to the 2019 LeadingAge Ziegler 200 publication, Ohio Living is the largest not-for-profit senior living provider in Ohio and the 18th largest not-for-profit senior living provider in the nation, based on the number of senior living units.

Ohio Living will use proceeds of the Series 2020B Bonds to construct a new independent living building on its Westminster-Thurber campus in Columbus, Ohio, to be known as Heritage Pointe. The building will be eleven above ground stories, with 56 units including 47 two-bedroom units and nine one-bedroom units, and underground parking. Common areas including lobby, and easy access hallways connecting to other portions of the campus will be on the first and second floors, and a large multipurpose gathering room will be on the top floor, along with two penthouse suites. The total project cost is approximately $39.2 million and Ohio Living plans to use $27.5 million of the Series 2020B Bonds for the Heritage Pointe project.

The Series 2020B Bonds consist of tax-exempt fixed interest rate serial term bonds with a final maturity in 2045. Proceeds of the Series 2020B Bonds will be used to: (i) finance a portion of project costs ($27.5 million) related to the Heritage Pointe project, (ii) finance approximately $2.5 million of other capital projects planned at Westminster-Thurber's campus, and (iii) fund a portion of the costs of issuance related to the financing. The Series 2020B Bonds did not include a debt service reserve fund.

Ohio Living developed its cost of capital target of 4% for the Heritage Pointe project in the pre-COVID, near all-time historically low interest rate environment from early 2020. Following a tremendous upward spike in interest rates once the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, Ziegler was able to price Ohio Living's bonds with an overall yield to maturity of 3.91%. The Series 2020B Bonds are Fitch "BBB" rated and received call provisions of 7 years at 103% declining to par in 10 years.

Bob Stillman, Chief Financial Officer of Ohio Living, stated, "For over two years, Ohio Living had been in various stages of developing and executing on plans to expand our independent living offering at the Ohio Living Westminster-Thurber campus, located in a vibrant area near downtown Columbus. This project was a replication of Goodale Landing, a very similar and successful project that Ziegler underwrote in 2013, which is also located on Westminster-Thurber's campus. With conceptual building design done, market assessed, pro-forma financial statements vetted and governance approved, we launched on the marketing campaign in late January 2020, with a target to have Ziegler enter the bond market in early spring 2020. Then, our collective worlds changed with the COVID-19 development. Strategically, we recalibrated our timing following guidance and careful market monitoring by Ziegler. We are very pleased with the results of the 2020B issuance, including the yield-to-maturity of 3.91% for new money associated with a "BBB" (stable) rated Fitch senior living organization, adding new bond investors, and structured with no debt service reserve fund. Tom Meyers and his supporting investment banking team including Jason Choi and Patrick Moran kept us moving forward productively for an extended period as we waited on the markets to settle, and Adam Buchanan and his sales team quickly entered the market, having thoroughly assessed investors' desires, with strategic pricing that served to quickly identify interested organizations. The execution was very well done as Ohio Living continued its longtime relationship with Ziegler."

Tom Meyers, Senior Managing Director, Ziegler Senior Living Finance stated, "Ziegler values its 30+ - year relationship with Ohio Living. Ohio Living has grown substantially over the years and is a model for a successful growing not-for-profit senior living organization. The Heritage Pointe Project will add additional stability to Ohio Living's continuum of services and will help further develop its already deep presence in Columbus. Ohio Living stayed very flexible throughout the course of the COVID-19 pandemic and was able to spring into action once the market stabilized for a successful outcome."

Ziegler is one of the nation's leading underwriters of financing for not-for-profit senior living providers. Ziegler offers creative, tailored solutions to its senior living clientele, including investment banking, financial risk management, merger and acquisition services, seed capital, FHA/HUD, capital and strategic planning as well as senior living research, education, and communication. For more information about Ziegler, please visit us at http://www.ziegler.com.

About Ziegler:
Ziegler is a privately held, national boutique investment bank, capital markets and proprietary
investments firm. It has a unique focus on healthcare, senior living and education sectors, as
well as general municipal and structured finance. Headquartered in Chicago with regional and
branch offices throughout the U.S., Ziegler provides its clients with capital raising, strategic advisory
services, fixed income sales, underwriting and trading as well as Ziegler Credit, Surveillance and Analytics. To learn more, visit http://www.ziegler.com.

Certain comments in this news release represent forward-looking statements made pursuant to the provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This client's experience may not be representative of the experience of other clients, nor is it indicative of future performance or success. The forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, in particular, the overall financial health of the securities industry, the strength of the healthcare sector of the U.S. economy and the municipal securities marketplace, the ability of the Company to underwrite and distribute securities, the market value of mutual fund portfolios and separate account portfolios advised by the Company, the volume of sales by its retail brokers, the outcome of pending litigation, and the ability to attract and retain qualified employees.

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