Fleetwood Enterprises Inc. has been granted more time to finalize an agreement with potential buyers.
Company officials said an agreement wasn’t imminent and would
not say who the potential buyers were, except that the company continues
to have discussions with several parties, according to the Press-Enterprise of Riverside, California.
The Riverside-based company, which filed for Chapter 11
bankruptcy protection March 10, sought more time in court documents
filed Friday (April 17).
Fleetwood said it needed to delay a final hearing about its
temporary financing plan “to finalize an agreement with prospective
buyers.” The company added that its ability to find buyers before the
final hearing could resolve issues others have had with Fleetwood’s
temporary $80 million financing plan with Bank of America.
In addition to being out of town when the original hearing was
scheduled to occur, the lawyer representing the case’s committee of
creditors mentioned the same reason as Fleetwood’s in his original
motion to delay the hearing.
The final hearing to approve Fleetwood’s financing plan has been rescheduled for April 29 at 1:30 p.m.
Jeff Kurowski, director of industry relations for the National
Recreation Vehicle Dealers Associations (RVDA), said dealers hope
someone will buy all or some of Fleetwood rather than risk the company
being liquidated.
“I would be surprised if someone came in to buy all of it,” he
said, since it would require deep pockets and an understanding that both
of Fleetwood’s divisions – manufactured housing and RVs – follow the
same cycles. When one is down, the other is, too, he said. “Someone
would have to have a pretty good stomach for risk.”
