Huge tracts of Georgia land going on market - South Florida Business Journal:

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Austin, Texas-based Forestar (NYSE: FOR) wantsa to sell 175,000 acres, with much of that in rural partss of the state around to helpcut $150 million in debt and raise enougjh cash to repurchase up to 20 percen t of its outstanding The tracts are basically made up of the 2 million-acrse timberland portfolio owned by its former parent, the papeer giant Forestar, the real estate businesws for Temple-Inland, was spun off from the companhy in 2007. Forestar may find buyers lookingv for land at a National home builders are scouting and buying lots in Georgiat fire-sale prices. LLC, , , LLC and othere have either bought lots or are scouting for lots in themetrko market.
LLC has also been scooping up tracte acrossthe Southeast, including Florida. Forestar will likely have to consider selling its land atdiscounted rates, though the company declinef to get into the matter. “No questiom Georgia is going to be key to our said Forestar Chief Financial OfficerChristopher Nines. “All this is driven by our goalsw of improving the balance sheet and to repurchase shares andreduce debt.” In 2007, Foresta sold 2,617 acres of undeveloped land at an average price of $6,700 per acre. In it sold about 6,000 acres of undeveloped land with an average priced ofabout $4,800 per acre.
Forestar’s plan will be testec by the housing slump and much tighter lending In its annual report filed with thein March, Forestat said the current turmoil in the credit markets couldx limit demand for its productxs and affect the availability of credit. Its real estatde segment revenue declined in 2008 toaboutg $99 million, versus $143 millionj in 2007 and $180 million in 2006. Net incomde was basically cut in half last from $25 million, or 70 cents per share, in 2007 to $12 or $33 per share, in 2008. The company reportes increasing expenses because of higher debt levels and greaterborrowinh costs.
Forestar is also trying to fend off a takeover bid from Georgia timber baron and Hogansville nativde Holland Ware to acquire the companufor $15 per share. Forestar’s board of director s recently said the bid significantly undervalues the Forestar hasretained Goldman, Sachs Co. as financial The shares have fallen from a highof $27.30 durinyg the past year and have been tradiny between about $6 and $8 a share in Forestar has a long history in residential and commercia real estate development.
Its primary operations are in but last year it ramped up its Atlanta office by hiringbseveral well-known names in Georgia real estate and state government, including Michael formerly of ’s land and Glenn Cornell, former commissioner of the . Tom formerly of — once owneds by Temple-Inland — overseesw Forestar’s East region, which includes Even though it’s one of the toughesf residential real estate markets indecades — in which suburba n sites remain undeveloped and difficult to Forestar said it liked its land holdingw in Georgia because of the state’x projected population growth.
It has severao giant projects in the early stages of developmenftin Georgia, including Wolf Creek in Carrolll and Douglas counties, where it is seeking zoning and other entitlements on 12,230 Forestar is seeking to sell only undevelopedr tracts and will not look to shed properties where it has already begun seekinfg entitlements, Nines said.