Irvine-based homebuilder California Coastal Communities Inc. said it has lined up $182 million in financing from a New York hedge fund that could help the company emerge from bankruptcy protection.
The financing, spread among three loans, would be used to replace the builder’s existing secured debt, the company said on Wednesday.
Court records show the investor to be Luxor Capital Group LP, a New York-based hedge fund.
Luxor also invested in Freedom Communications Inc., operator of the Orange County Register, when the Irvine-based company emerged from bankruptcy protection in April.
California Coastal, whose Hearthside Homes division is handling development of Huntington Beach’s Brightwater project near the Bolsa Chica wetlands, filed for bankruptcy protection in October.
At the time of the bankruptcy filing, the company owned $82 million tied to a revolving credit line and another $100 million on another loan.
The new financing, if approved by the bankruptcy court, will provide a more certain exit from bankruptcy without the risk of litigation, company officials said.
“With the cloud of bankruptcy being removed, we expect the pace of home sales at Brightwater to improve,” Chief Executive Raymond Pacini said in a statement.
More than 50 of the 356 homes at Brightwater have been sold to homebuyers, while another 17 model homes were sold to an investor, according to the company.
