Agencies give top rating to county

The bond rating agencies Standard & Poor’s, Fitch and Moody’s have each assigned their top AAA rating to Hamilton County as the county prepares to price its biggest general obligation bond issue ever next month.

Andrew Hoffman, a director of government bond ratings at Fitch, said the county will have a manageable debt level even after issuing $195 milllion or more of general obligation bonds to finance various capital projects in local schools, jails and other county projects. The bonds will also repay an outstanding revolving credit agreement of $55 million.

“Fitch views the county’s growth prospects as strong,” Hoffman said. “Fitch expects the county’s revenue performance to outpace growth in national GDP (gross domestic product), driven by continued strong tax base growth.”

In its rating, Fitch said the county’s population grew by 6 percent from 2010 o 2016 to approximately 358,000, and the local jobless rate remains below the U.S. average. The reappraisal of local property last year showed a 12 percent gain in value from four years earlier.

“County tax base values were notably resilient through the recession,” Fitch said in its report. “Home values continue to surge well beyond pre-recession highs, with growth expected to continue over the medium term, per Zillow Group forecasts.”