Front Yard Residential Enters Definitive Agreement to be Acquired by Amherst Residential for $12.50 Per Share in Cash

Transaction Valued at Approximately $2.3 Billion

AUSTIN, Texas and CHRISTIANSTED, U.S. Virgin Islands, Feb. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Amherst Residential, LLC (“Amherst Residential”), a privately-owned, vertically-integrated real estate firm, and Front Yard Residential Corporation (“Front Yard” or the “Company”) (NYSE: RESI), two industry leading providers of high-quality and affordable rental homes, announced today that the companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement, whereby Amherst Residential will acquire Front Yard in a transaction valued at approximately $2.3 billion, including debt to be assumed or refinanced.

Under the terms of the agreement, Front Yard shareholders will receive $12.50 in cash per share. The per share purchase price represents a premium of approximately 14.2% over the per share closing price of Front Yard’s common stock on May 20, 2019, the day prior to the public announcement of Front Yard’s decision to initiate a formal process to explore strategic alternatives.

“This transaction meaningfully advances our effort to improve the experience of residents and investors in single-family rental properties,” said Sean Dobson, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, Amherst Holdings, LLC. “With our expanded scale, additional team members in local markets and the collective experience of both teams, we believe this combination provides a powerful platform that is well positioned to serve the broad constituency focused on affordable, safe, attractive housing.”

“We are excited to join forces with Amherst in a transaction that we believe is in the best interests of our shareholders, employees and residents,” said George Ellison, Front Yard’s Chief Executive Officer. “The transaction will deliver the certainty of immediate cash to our shareholders at a premium, and I am confident our platform and residents will benefit from being part of a larger, vertically-integrated organization. We look forward to completing this transaction and ensuring a seamless transition.”

“This strategic acquisition grows our ability to optimize the ownership and utilization of U.S. single-family real estate. By combining with Front Yard, our increased scale will allow us to further enhance the services we provide to both individual consumers as well as our investment partners,” said Drew Flahive, President of Amherst Residential. “We know the Front Yard team well and are pleased to welcome them as we continue to execute our differentiated single-family real estate strategies.”