Howard Hughes Corp. has closed $1.3 billion in financing deals as the real estate developer says it's getting ready to navigate any economic challenges that could pop up, a move that comes in a year when U.S. corporations are expecting higher interest rates.

The deals, wrapped up over the past few months, include refinancings, new loans and construction borrowing for office, retail and residential projects spanning the country. The moves boost Howard Hughes' liquidity to more than $800 million with a balance sheet "well positioned heading into 2023," the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

The refinancings reduce the amount of debt Howard Hughes owes over the next two years to less than $155 million and lowers the company’s average weighted debt maturity to 7.5 years.

Howard Hughes, a publicly traded real estate investment trust specializing in master-planned communities, didn't disclose the interest rates on its new loans. But the refinancings could mean Howard Hughes will have higher interest payments because of an overall increase in borrowing costs since the Federal Reserve began raising rates last year. The Fed has boosted its short-term benchmark federal funds rate seven times since March 2022 as part of its strategy to fight inflation. The rate is now in a range of 4.25% to 4.5%.

The Fed has indicated those hikes may continue this year, leading many large corporations to borrow more out of fear that rates could spike even higher as well as to pay back money they already owe, according to Winnie Cisar, global head of strategy at CreditSights, a New York City-based corporate bond research firm.

“There’s always a certain percentage of debt that matures in any given year that will need to be refinanced,” Cisar said in a media interview last week with Marketplace.

Howard Hughes did not immediately respond to inquiries for more information about its recent financings.

Bank of America led a five-year $200 million term loan secured by Howard Hughes' retail properties at Ward Village in Honolulu. JPMorgan led a three-year $75 million term loan secured by 10-70 Corporate Center and One Mall North in Columbia, Maryland.

Howard Hughes, which has its headquarters at 9950 Woodloch Forest Drive in The Woodlands, Texas, about 30 miles north of downtown Houston, has closed on what it calls three pivotal construction loans over the past few months. The company closed a $264 million loan for the development of Ulana, the latest condominium tower at Ward Village in Honolulu that is 97.1% pre-sold.

The loan follows the company's August closing on a $392 million construction loan for the development of The Park Ward Village, the eighth residential tower at Ward Village that broke ground in October and is 91.9% pre-sold.

In the Phoenix area, horizontal development is expected to start at Floreo, a 3,000-acre project, after closing a $165 million facility. Floreo appears to be the new name of Trillium, which was unveiled in August 2022 as the first piece of a much larger development, a 37,000-acre "city of the future" planned for the Douglas Ranch property in Buckeye, Arizona.

And in the Houston area, Howard Hughes closed a $54 million loan for Wingspan, the company's first build-for-rent residential development. Construction started last year on Wingspan in Bridgeland in Cypress, Texas, which is about 30 miles northwest of downtown Houston. Plans for Wingspan include 263 homes for rent on 27 acres.

Also in the Houston area, Howard Hughes Corp. refinanced Creekside Park The Grove, a multifamily property in The Woodlands, with a $57 million non-recourse, 10-year loan.

Other refinancings included $193 million for two projects in Columbia, a master-planned city located between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Howard Hughes secured a $117 million loan for the 382-unit multifamily property called the Juniper and a $76 million loan for a 357,000-square-foot office building next door. Both loans replace existing construction loans on the properties that faced initial maturities this year.

Howard Hughes has been a major player in Columbia’s development. It has led the way in developing the city into three distinct villages — the Merriweather, Lakefront and Central districts — part of a concept designed by Columbia’s founder, James Rouse.

Rouse founded the city in 1966 as one of the first master-planned communities in the country, envisioning a municipality broken into several self-sufficient neighborhoods.

At full build-out, the three villages are expected to feature more than 14 million square feet of residential, office, hotel, retail, cultural and public spaces on 391 acres.

Most recently, the company broke ground on a $46 million medical center and completed a 472-unit apartment complex called Marlow.