200 acres in Varina to be sold on courthouse steps

Two hundred acres of fertile rural farmland in Varina with a stretch of waterfront on the James River will be auctioned off March 25, the result of a foreclosure of one of Richmond’s biggest builders.

In 2006, an entity called Randolph Estates LLC (perhaps the future name of the project) paid $2.5 million for the narrow 210-acre parcel. That entity was run by the heads of Richmond-based Prospect Homes, which is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Read more

Banks to take back houses/lots from builder

Banks are taking back almost 100 building lots and partially built houses belonging to Prospect Homes, a local builder that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in June.

The builder has not been paying interest on those loans, according to financial statements that must be filed with the bankruptcy court.

Most of the properties, which are located in suburban areas of the Richmond area, are worth about half as much as banks are owed, according to assessments in the bankruptcy court filing . Even in bankruptcy protection, the company is supposed to pay a host of banks a total of about $45,000 per month.  Prospect has not paid since at least August. Read more

Will turn of calendar signal new page for Richmond area?

It’s a bit too early to call the bottom.

But as a new fiscal year begins, “green shoots” might be sprouting through the cracks. The pace of large-scale layoffs has slowed. In May, there were 1,066 mass layoffs in the region. None were announced in June or so far in July. And most of the remaining companies seem stronger – at least profitable – than those that went belly-up in the past 12 months (Circuit City, LandAmerica and Qimonda).

It’s also possible those green shoots are a mirage. More than 50,000 in the region are unemployed, according to May data from the Department of Labor. That is enough to fill the Diamond more than four times over. Read more

Local builder files for bankruptcy protection

Prospect Homes, a local homebuilder for more than 25 years, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Tuesday.

The company, owned by President Joe Audi, owes creditors between $50 million and $100 million, according to the filing. More than 200 companies and individuals are owed money.

Many businesses listed as creditors were not surprised by the news, as checks had been late in arriving for at least six months. But several local business owners said they kept working with Prospect after Audi met with them, in part because they wanted future work and had known the company for decades. Read more