Historic home builder Levitt and Sons gained some new life on Monday as Judge Raymond B. Ray of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., gave interim approval for a $3.5 million loan from Wachovia Bank. The funds will allow the builder to continue construction that was halted in November when Levitt and Sons filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. At that point in time, the Fort Lauderdale-based company listed assets of $411 million and liabilities of approximately $499 million.
One stipulation of the loan is that the builder use any proceeds from home sales to repay Wachovia. Remaining proceeds from sales will be used to pay off the $233.7 million in debts owed to Wachovia, Key Bank, Regions Bank, AmTrust Bank, and Bank of America.
The deal will also allow Levitt and Sons to request an increase of the loan for up to $10 million. Final approval for the loan will be considered by the court on Jan. 23.
Calls to Levitt and Sons and its parent company, the Levitt Corp., had not been returned at press time.
The company’s claim-to-fame is the creation of New York’s Levittown, which was designed for troops returning home from World War II and was one of the nation’s first suburbs.
Learn more about markets featured in this article: Orlando, FL.
