• Trouble logging in? Send us a message with your username and/or email address for help.
New posts

gmarc

Beach Fanatic
Jan 19, 2009
506
65
its bad for existing ownerrs as it kills price even more.price down 40-60% are low

yes for people who want to buy its good.but buyers have had great prices for yrs
 

coondog

Beach Lover
Apr 27, 2009
153
29
St. Joe is finally marking their real estate to market as it has been over valued for years by prior management, whom paid themselves quite well over the past several years until they were forced out while insisting that all of the real estate was held at fair value, which it obviously was not. Hence, the SEC investigation and the Shareholder suits. The mark downs clearly are attributed to the River Camp and Windmark assets where there is virtually no activity, and likely a lot of their commerical land around the airport where they have only signed one deal in close to two years. Watersound West is selling well as the pricing here has come down to much more reasonable levels, and considering that it is located on the south side of 30-A, pricing here is attractive. One has to believe that they have significantly marked down the Watersound North development as there is little to no activity here as well, and the only way to jump start things here is to start a builder program like they have done at West, or bulk sale lots cheap to merchant builders. They are already giving away highly discounted memberships to the Watersound Beach Club, which will infuriate current members who paid $20,000 for their memberships (at a Club that Joe actually had promised to turn over to the homeowners in Watersound in thier preliminary applications to Walton County, but then reneged, which should come as no surprise to anyone used to dealing with Joe).
 

watersounder

Beach Comber
Aug 31, 2009
21
1
We bought our home in WaterSound North in 2008. We were "given" a beach club membership when we bought the house back then. At last count I think we have approx 16 homes occupied. Two homes and one lot sale last month. The pricey model went under contract a couple weeks ago. We love it there (no crowds but access to the beach club) and wish we didn't have to sell ours but we do.

We especially love when so many Sowal visitors come by to enjoy our park for soccer and community center for parties/weddings or to enjoy a wonderful day playing golf or bike riding. Most visitors first remark is how nice the development is and how lucky we are to have all the amenties to ourselves. All of use "North-ers" just nod our head and agree :)

St Joe will do what they have to do at this point in time. As soon as things change to benefit them they will be right back in the game again - charging a premium. I'm just happy we are currently the lowest priced house in the development!
 

mbo222

Beach Comber
Oct 23, 2009
29
4
We are finishing building in West now. I have tried to get a "deal" like above on the beach club for quite some time and had absolutely no luck. We talked to alot of JOE people and were told that they sold the memberships to the developer "at full price" and they can "resell" it as they see fit. Really ticked us off since we are supporting the area with a true custom home, but because we bought our lot from someone else we have to pay full price. How is that different than buying the lot from Huff? Unless of course it really did cost the developer 20k....hard to believe since they dumped lot prices to these developers by a ton (and devalued my land on appraisal).
 

SHELLY

SoWal Insider
Jun 13, 2005
5,770
802
Who the hell saw THIS coming??:wave:

I posted the following on the "Time to Buy Joe" thread in January 2011:

Then, come to find out I missed the "Mother of All Squeeze Plays" and JOE selling their soul to the devil by bringing Berkowitz and Fernandez on to the board of directors!

But, what I find most disturbing, is that our area has now become Fairholmes' Biyatch, and anyone who knows anything about this type of (in Fairholmes case) "non-Hedge Fund," they're all for wringing out every single, bloody dollar they can get to gain profit for themselves and their shareholders...good news for JOE stockholders(?) but discomforting as to the future direction of this area.

Berkowitz--who was named Morningstar's "Domestic Fund Manager of the Decade" in January 2010, hosed the hound when he went all in on financial stocks and set about estranging :cool: the JOE management and crowning himself King JOE. He took his eye off the ball and his fund lost 32% over the last year. His fund is bleeding red ink and with clients baling out of his fund he's gotta raise cash any way he can...his dumping of JOE land is certainly not surprising to me--he'll take cash from anyone...a McDonalds in 30A's future?--quite possible.
 
Last edited:

Abby Prentiss

Beach Fanatic
May 17, 2007
577
123
The St. Joe Co. is changing its strategy.


The WaterSound-based company plans to cut $190 million from its upscale planned community projects in Northwest Florida, putting an end to the “build it and they will come” strategy they have had in place the past few years.


The company’s board of directors adopted a revamped real estate investment strategy focusing on reducing future capital outlays and employing “new risk-adjusted investment return criteria.” Plans to cut their losses and restructure their infrastructure and sell undeveloped properties in “bulk” at lower discounted prices are also in the works, the company announced in a government filing.


St. Joe, with numerous upscale developments in Bay, Walton and Gulf counties, among other places in Florida, has freely admitted it overestimated the housing downturn.


But, it’s unclear what the immediate effects will be on developments already under way, such as Breakfast Point in Panama City Beach. Citing unnamed sources, the Wall Street Journal reported the company likely would “put on hold” development at WaterSound and WaterColor. Commercial real estate developments, such as at VentureCrossings adjacent to the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, are not expected to be as heavily affected by the strategy change.


Company officials said Monday they were in a “quiet period” and would not comment further on the company’s status before February’s earnings report is released.


As the company stated in a Nov. 3 news release, the new management team led by Park Brady, who assumed the role of CEO in October, and Patrick Bienvenue, who joined the company as its executive vice in president in September, commenced a review of all of the company’s assets and projects.


“In 2011, the new board directed management to reduce expenses. We have met that goal and, as a result, we currently expect to have positive operating cash flow in 2012, excluding discretionary capital expenditures. The next request of our board was the evaluation of our assets and development of a strategy to reduce future capital outlays. ... We believe this new strategy will fulfill that request,” Brady said in a news release Friday.


The company said it would record a fourth-quarter impairment charge of $325 million to $375 million to reposition certain assets for sale. The company expected to finalize its estimates in February.


St. Joe owns about 573,000 acres of land concentrated primarily in Northwest Florida and has significant residential and commercial land-use entitlements in hand or in process. The company has been attempting to transform itself into a developer of high-end homes and resorts. The company’s roots are in the timber and paper industries.


Early last year, St. Joe Co. stock had been trading at more than $30 a share and had drifted to a love of $12.72 a share, according to the company. Monday afternoon the stock was trading at just over $16 a share.


The Florida developer reported in November its third-quarter loss narrowed on lower expenses, though revenue declined 1.5 percent.






Read more: http://www.newsherald.com/articles/joe-100034-refocuses-strategy.html#ixzz1l7x00gxm
 

STL Don

Beach Fanatic
Mar 7, 2005
324
17
What did you think of this shot at the end of the Wall Street Journal article: " The company began developing luxury master-planned communities in the area, which is often derided for its deep southern feel and muggy climate."
 
What did you think of this shot at the end of the Wall Street Journal article: " The company began developing luxury master-planned communities in the area, which is often derided for its deep southern feel and muggy climate."
It's the NYC attitude. When we and our daughter visited Columbia University in NYC when she was deciding on colleges, the Columbia tour guide (a student) referred to Atlanta as being "in the country" and literally asked us if we had indoor plumbing. I told him to f himself. It made me very angry. Our daughter had already been accepted, so they couldn't renege on her acceptance.
 

beachmouse

Beach Fanatic
Dec 5, 2004
3,504
741
Bluewater Bay, FL
http://www.tampabay.com/news/busine...e-declares-huge-loss-shrinks-strategy/1217378

On Monday, St. Joe's financial report included a $328 million loss in the fourth quarter, accounting for nearly all of the 2011 loss. Brady said St. Joe will continue to invest in some of its current projects "where the investments meet our risk-adjusted return criteria in line with our new real estate investment strategy."

He said spending will be focused on the company's Venture Crossings at the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport north of Panama City, on a home community called Breakfast Point in Bay County, and on RiverTown, a 4,170-acre master-planned community in St. Johns County not far from Jacksonville.
 
New posts


Sign Up for SoWal Newsletter