Lennar Dumps Thousands of Lots in FLorida - 8,300 To be Exact

Lennar has sold nearly 8,300 home sites in Pasco, Hillsborough, Polk, Sarasota, Lee, DeSoto and Brevard counties to Metro Development Group.
The purchase - which was completed on Friday for undisclosed terms - was part of "long-range acquisition strategies developed" by the company, said Rob Ahrens, spokesman for Tampa-based Metro Development. The deal increases Metro's land inventory by nearly 40 percent, and brings the company's total land holdings to 30,000 home sites.
"We have tremendous confidence in Florida and the resiliency of the state's residential real estate market," Ahrens said in a release. "We know that current concerns about homebuilding will be resolved in the coming months, and when they are, we plan to be a major player in providing finished home sites to builders who will need them."
The purchases include 3,905 home sites covering 1,700 acres at Epperson Ranch in Pasco County, 530 home sites on 140 acres at Waterleaf in Hillsborough County, 393 home sites on 94 acres at Leomas Landing in Polk County, and 98 home sites on 41 acres in Sarasota County.
Lennar (NYSE: LEN) was looking to convert many of its land holdings to cash in the midst of the slowdown in the housing market, Ahrens said.
Also Friday, Lennar partnered with Morgan Stanley Real Estate Fund II LP, an affiliate of Morgan Stanley & Co. (NYSE: MS), to form a new corporation, MSR Holding Co., according to documents filed by Lennar with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Lennar then sold more than 11,000 home sites from 32 communities located throughout the country to MSR for $525 million, half of the reported net book value of $1.3 billion.
MSR was designed to "acquire, develop, manage and sell residential real estate," according to documents filed with the SEC.
It was unclear if the 8,300 home sites sold to Metro Development the same day MSR was announced were related.
"The combined expertise and resources provided by the Lennar/Morgan Stanley team will allow us to maximize the value of this portfolio and provide a footprint to capitalize on inefficiencies in today's residential real estate market," said Stuart Miller, president and chief executive officer of Miami-based Lennar Corp., in the filing. "This transaction provides us with increased liquidity and flexibility at an opportune time."
Lennar had a homebuilding operating loss of $787.7 million in the third quarter, which resulted in an overall loss of $513.9 million, or $3.25 a share, on revenue of $2.3 billion, according to documents filed with the SEC. That was down from the $206.7 million, or $1.30 a share, the company earned on revenue of $3.9 billion for the same period in 2006.
Metro Development has offices in Orlando and Jacksonville, and last year generated sales of $200 million.
Lennar shares closed up 44 cents to $16.25. The 52-week high was $56.54 on Feb. 2. The 52-week low was $14 on Nov. 27.