Merger costs contribute to
loss at C.Brewer Homes

By Rob Perez
Star-Bulletin

Maui-based builder C. Brewer Homes Inc. reported a third-quarter loss of $945,000, with about 75 percent of that attributed to one-time charges. The loss amounted to 11 cents per share, compared with a profit of $82,000, or 1 cent a share, in the year-earlier period.

Before the special charges of $702,000, the Wailuku-based company yesterday said the loss was $243,000, or 3 cents per share. Revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 31 totaled $4.5 million, down 15 percent from a year ago.

The company said Hawaii's declining economy continues to hurt home sales. During the quarter, it sold 19 houses at an average price of $214,000 at its Kehalani development on Maui, compared with 23 homes at an average price of $226,000 a year earlier.

At Iao Parkside, the Maui townhouse joint venture half-owned by C. Brewer, three homes were sold, compared with 13 in the 1996 quarter. The average price was unchanged at $132,000.

The quarter's results included $455,000 from the sale of 26 acres on Kauai and the Big Island, reflecting the company's strategy of selling land to other developers. In the previous year's quarter, it had no revenue from land sales.

The after-tax special charges included costs related to the company's planned merger with Mauna Loa Macadamia Partners LP.