Realogy Debt Soars as Company Seeks Loan

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=adsbb2pVdp5s Realogy Debt Soars as Company Seeks Loan for Icahn Debt Swap By Pierre Paulden Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Realogy Corp.’s debt soared as the owner of Century 21 and Coldwell Banker said it’s seeking $325 million of second-lien term loans to swap for bonds held by Icahn Partners LP and that it may exchange other debt for equity in... [more]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=adsbb2pVdp5s Realogy Debt Soars as Company Seeks Loan for Icahn Debt Swap By Pierre Paulden Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Realogy Corp.’s debt soared as the owner of Century 21 and Coldwell Banker said it’s seeking $325 million of second-lien term loans to swap for bonds held by Icahn Partners LP and that it may exchange other debt for equity in the company. The company’s $1.7 billion of 10.5 percent notes dues in 2014 rose 8.9 cents to 81 cents on the dollar in New York as of 9:48 a.m., according to Trace, the bond-price reporting system of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. Realogy, which said it expects to report a third-quarter net loss of $20 million to $25 million, is seeking to trim debt costs to avoid breaking the terms of its loans. Leon Black’s Apollo Management LP bought the Parsippany, New Jersey-based realtor for $6.6 billion in April 2007 amid the worst U.S. housing slump since the 1930s. JPMorgan Chase & Co. will arrange the new loan, which will also repay existing bank debt, Realogy said today in a regulatory filing. Icahn Partners will swap 70 percent of $311 million of so-called pay-in-kind toggle bonds due in 2014 for $150 million of the new loan, the company said, adding “there can be no assurance” it will raise the debt. The $550 million of 11 percent toggle notes due 2014 rose 10.5 cents to 71 cents on the dollar as of 9:30 a.m., according to Trace. The notes, which pay in kind at 11.75 percent, fell to 11 cents on the dollar in March, Trace data show. Realogy also has started discussions with other bondholders to swap their debt for equity and new debt, according to the filing. The company said it’s talking with holders of its 10.5 percent notes due in 2014, the toggle dues due in 2014 and its 12.375 percent senior subordinated notes due 2015. “We have explored and continue to explore various possible financing alternatives,” Realogy said in today’s filing. Mark Panus, a company spokesman, declined to comment beyond the filing. Billionaire Carl Icahn sued Realogy last year, claiming a prior debt exchange plan was a fraudulent transfer of money only delaying its inevitable failure. [less]