Vancouver ends its sale of mini-bonds

Vancouver closed sales of its so-called mini-bonds Friday, wrapping up a successful experiment.

In total, Clark County residents purchased $1,296,500 of the available $1.5 million Vancouver Heritage Bonds. The proceeds will finance part of an $8.3 million Fort Vancouver West Barracks renovation project near Officers Row.

“This was the first time that the city of Vancouver has issued mini-bonds, and the results indicate there is a lot of interest from our citizens to invest in their local economy,” City Treasurer Carrie Lewellen said.

The bonds were available in denominations of $500, up to a $10,000 maximum per household, a much easier way to get in on the ground floor of the barracks improvements than traditional bond sales. In many cases, people were buying bonds for their children and grandchildren, Lewellen said.

At today’s interest rates, a $1,000 bond held for six years at a 3.64 percent interest rate would be worth $1,263 at maturity. A $1,000 bond held for 13 years at a 4.7 percent interest rate would be worth $1,871 at maturity.

“Given the current interest rate environment, and tax-exempt status of the bonds, the Heritage Bonds were a good alternative to other investments,” Lewellen said.

Lewellen said the remaining bonds, as well as an additional $3.5 million in bonds, will be available to the usual investors — banks, insurance companies and the like — beginning June 16. The regular bond sale requires a minimum investment of $5,000.

The city mailed confirmation letters and receipts to those who purchased Heritage Bonds, and investors should receive the physical bonds by Aug. 10 from US Bank. Investors should store their bonds in a safe place, and will need to return them to US Bank in order to receive payment once they’ve fully matured.