Panama Beach Realty

 On October 29, 2008 Laketown Wharf was referred to in Corus Bank's third quarter results.  They acknowledged taking possession of Laketown Wharf in September 2008.  The current balance on the project is a reported $96.5 million.  They have sold 61 condominiums to date.  Corus also made reference to an additional $10 million that will be necessary to finish the project.   There is also mention of an additional $5 million budgeted to furnish half of the unsold units to make them available for rent.  This gives us a clear indication of the banks intent.  We should see a completed and fully operation Laketown Wharf in the not so distant future.

Laketown Wharf is an interesting project to run the numbers on.  The first hurtle will be to navigate the bankruptcy and existing lawsuits.  It could be a while before we see the outcome of all of the existing contract holders and their 20% deposits on original preconstruction pricing.  It is also worth mentioning that Corus Bank has already taken one charge-off of $30.2 million on this project.  With over 700 condominium units owned by the bank in a challenging real estate market, the decisions made over the next few months could have long lasting ramifications.  The manner in which the marketing and sales are conducted should have a significant impact on the projects balance sheet when all is said and done.

Here is the paragraph of Corus Bank's third quarter results that referred to Laketown Wharf:

"Other Real Estate Owned ("OREO")
The remaining component of nonperforming assets is OREO, which consists of three properties as of September 30, 2008. The largest is a condominium project located in Panama City, Florida, which Corus possession of in September 2008. At the time Corus took possession, the outstanding loan balance of $96.5 million was transferred to OREO on the balance sheet. Prior to the transfer, Corus recorded a charge-off of $30.2 million. While certificates of occupancy have been received for the entire project and over 60 units been sold, management estimates that an additional $10 million will be necessary to complete all work on building. The Bank also intends to pay an additional $5 million to furnish approximately half of the unsold units and make them available for rent. The ultimate goal, however, is to sell all of the individual units."

The report can be accessed by visiting the following page on Corus' website: http://www.corusbank.com/acrobat/Q308.pdf

All information in this article was derived from Bay County Public Records and other public information.  This article is for informative purposes only.  Please verify any and all information above before using any of this information.