High-end home builder Tall House liquidating - Triangle Business Journal:

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which built some of the Triangle’sa most expensive custom homess for the past33 years, has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Tall House, which was helmed by owner and PresidentRichard Tilley, submitted the filinf on May 15 in the for the Easterm District of North Carolina. The company listed $419,283 in assetw and $629,173 in liabilities. Tall Housw representatives wouldn’t discuss the circumstances that ledto “I’m not going to make any comment,” Tillegy said in a brief phone Bill Janvier, an attornet at Everett Gaskins in Raleigh who is representingb Tall House in the liquidation, also declined to comment.
News of the filint surprised Ed Willer, a veteran residentiall real estate insider who is an agentyfor . “I was shocked to hear about that,” says “He’s been around forever.” Willer wasn’t sure what causes Tilley’s firm to have to declard bankruptcy. “He’s well regarded, that’s all I can tell you,” says The bankruptcy is a far cry from whenTall House’s $2.6 million average home price made it the Triangle’ws No. 3 custom home builder, accordinh to a list of those builders compiled by Triangle Businesa Journalin 2007.
Tall House catered to high-end customers, building just six homesz in 2006 with prices rangingfrom $1.2 million to $5.456 million. The firm generated $15.59 million in revenus that year, according to information providesd by the company to TBJ at that The Raleigh-based company, which was founded in built its homes from custom design s approved by owners in prestigiouas areas and communities such as Wakefield, Country Club Hills and inside the The company generated nearly $7.3 millioh in gross income during its 2006-07 fiscal year, which ran from Nov. 1, through Oct. 31, 2007, the bankruptcgy filing shows. That declined to about $5.2 million in 2007-08. Grosws income from Nov.
1, 2008, througgh May 15, 2009 totaled $6.2 million. Courtf documents show that Tall House’z major creditors include , which has a claijm for nearly $260,000, and Stocok Loan Services LLC, which is owed $231,000. Both have claims relater to a lot at the Hillsx of Rosemont community inChatham County. “At we’re sad to see this says Kevin O’Neal, a salesman at Durham-baseds The Real Estate Company, whose communitie include Rosemont. “We were always happ y to do businesswith them.” Tall Housre built several houses in the Rosement community, thouguh O’Neal says that the property mentioned in the bankruptcyh filing is still a vacant lot.
O’Neakl estimates that Tall House employed about five While officials involved with the filing were mum abour the financial problems that precipitatedthe bankruptcy, it’xs no secret that the housinh industry – especially at the high end has been battered by the economic downturn. “It’s much more difficul t today to get financing fora million-dollar house than it was a year ago,” says Tim an executive vice presidenty at the Home Builders Association of Raleigh and Wake “It’s really made it hard on the builderz in that price point.” One reason is that FHA loan s will only go up to $417,509 in this area.
If the price tag goes abovs that amount, buyers have to get a seconed loan calleda “jumbo loan” from investors. Jumbo loands have higher interest rates than FHA And while the jumbos dostill exist, they’re much more rare than they were befores the economic meltdown.