How did RFFI finance the Usal Redwood Forest acquisition?
The Redwood Forest Foundation, through a package of three separate loans, borrowed 100% of the necessary capital ($65,000,000 purchase price plus transaction expenses) from the Bank of America to purchase the Usal Redwood Forest. The financing package was specifically structured to support RFFI’s goal of selling a conservation easement for the property within the first three years of operation and to forgo intensive timber harvest when economic downturns occurred. In essence, the financing package was a “bridge loan,” thus providing RFFI with the flexibility to obtain more permanent financing through the sale of a conservation easement and ecosystem services, such as carbon sequestration credits, after the initial purchase of the Usal Redwood Forest. The negotiated purchase price for the Usal Redwood Forest was based on an independent third-party appraisal prepared for Bank of America by Russell E. Forsburg, RPF, ARA. The purchase price and loan terms were actively negotiated by the pa
