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Harborstone Credit Union of Washington State sold half its branches Feb. 19 in a sale-leaseback deal valued at $41.8 million including closing costs as it prepares to buy a bank for $70 million.
The deal was handled and announced by MountainSeed, an Atlanta-based consulting company for commercial real estate that specializes in sale-leaseback transactions with credit unions and community banks.
The news release said the deal involved the sale and 15-year lease on seven branches near Harborstone’s headquarters in Lakewood, Wash., 40 miles south of Seattle in Pierce County.
Harborstone ($2.1 billion in assets, 92,561 members) said in August 2023 it was planning to buy Seattle’s First Sound Bank, which then had $160 million in assets, for $22 million. The deal closed in May 2024.
In March 2024 it announced plans to buy SaviBank of Mount Vernon, Wash., for $70 million. In an Oct. 29 news release, SaviBank said it expected the deal to close in the spring of 2025. The bank announced it had lost $216,000 in the nine months ending Sept. 30.
SaviBank is based 60 miles north of Seattle in Skagit County, where it operates six branches. It also has two branches in Island County, one branch in Whatcom County and one branch in San Juan County. The Skagit, Whatcom, Island and San Juan counties region stretches north from Seattle to the Canadian border.
Geoff Bullock, Harborstone's president/CEO since October 2023, said the sale and leaseback of the branches allows it to “unlock capital that can be reinvested into initiatives that directly benefit our members.”
“Rather than keeping funds tied up in real estate, this strategy provides greater flexibility to adapt to evolving member needs while ensuring we maximize the value and resources available to support their financial well-being,” Bullock said.
NCUA data showed Harborstone had its headquarters and seven branches in Pierce County as of Sept. 30. The Pierce County branches are at Lakewood, Gig Harbor, Puyallup, Spanaway, Bonney Lake, Tacoma, Tacoma, Lacey and Joint Base Lewis McChord.
It also has six branches in King County, including one in Seattle, and one branch at Lacey in Thurston County. The credit union was founded in 1955 to serve the McChord Air Force Base.
The agreement includes an option for the credit union to extend the lease for an additional 15-year term.
Contact Jim DuPlessis at [email protected].
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