The following is a free writing prospectus. The information in this free writing prospectus is preliminary and is subject to change.
PRELIMINARY TERM SHEET |
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$[1,333,315,000] (Approximate) |
Deutsche Alt-A SecuritiesMortgage Loan Trust Series 2007-2 |
ACE Securities Corp. (Depositor) |
Deutsche Alt-A Securities Mortgage Loan Trust, Series 2007-2 (Issuing Entity) |
August 23, 2007
The depositor has filed a registration statement (including a prospectus) with the SEC for the offering to which this free writing prospectus relates. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus in that registration statement and other documents the issuer has filed with the SEC for more complete information about the depositor and the issuing entity and this offering. You may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC Web site atwww.sec.gov. Alternatively, the depositor, any underwriter or any dealer participating in the offering will arrange to send you the prospectus if you request it by calling Deutsche Bank toll-free at 1-800-503-4611. This free writing prospectus is not required to contain all information that is required to be included in the base prospectus and the prospectus supplement. The information in this free writing prospectus is pr eliminary and is subject to change. The information in this free writing prospectus, if conveyed prior to the time of your commitment to purchase, supersedes information contained in any prior similar free writing prospectus relating to these securities. THIS FREE WRITING PROSPECTUS IS NOT AN OFFER TO SELL OR A SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY THESE SECURITIES IN ANY STATE WHERE SUCH OFFER, SOLICITATION OR SALE IS NOT PERMITTED. The information in this free writing prospectus may be based on preliminary assumptions about the pool assets and the structure. Any such assumptions are subject to change.
Deutsche Alt-A Securities
Mortgage Loan Trust, Series 2007-2
The analysis in this report is based on information provided by ACE Securities Corp. (the “Depositor”). Investors are urged to read the base prospectus and the prospectus supplement and other relevant documents filed or to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission because they contain important information. Such documents may be obtained without charge at the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov. Once available, the base prospectus and prospectus supplement may be obtained without charge by contacting Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. (“DBSI”) toll free at 1-800-503-4611. This free writing prospectus is not required to contain all information that is required to be included in the base prospectus and the prospectus supplement (collectively, the “Prospectus”). The information in this free writing prospectus is preliminary and is subject to ch ange. The information in this free writing prospectus, if conveyed prior to the time of your commitment to purchase, supersedes information contained in any prior similar free writing prospectus relating to these securities. This free writing prospectus is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy these securities in any state where such offer, solicitation or sale is not permitted. You should consult your own counsel, accountant, and other advisors as to the legal, tax, business, financial and related aspects of a purchase of these securities.
The attached information contains certain tables and other statistical analyses (the “Computational Materials”) which have been prepared by DBSI in reliance upon information furnished by the Depositor. Numerous assumptions were used in preparing the Computational Materials that may or may not be reflected herein. As such, no assurance can be given as to whether the Computational Materials and/or the assumptions upon which they are based reflect present market conditions or future market performance. These Computational Materials should not be construed as either projections or predictions or as legal, tax, financial or accounting advice. Any weighted average lives, yields and principal payment periods shown in the Computational Materials are based on prepayment assumptions, and changes in such prepayment assumptions may dramatically affect such weighted average lives, yiel ds and principal payment periods. In addition, it is possible that prepayments on the underlying assets will occur at rates slower or faster than the rates shown in the attached Computational Materials. Furthermore, unless otherwise provided, the Computational Materials assume no losses on the underlying assets and no interest shortfalls. The specific characteristics of the securities may differ from those shown in the Computational Materials by a permitted variance of +/- 10% prior to issuance. Neither DBSI nor any of its affiliates makes any representation or warranty as to the actual rate or timing of payments on any of the underlying assets or the payments or yield on the securities.
This free writing prospectus is being delivered to you solely to provide you with information about the offering of the asset-backed securities referred to in this free writing prospectus and to solicit an indication of your interest in purchasing such securities, when, as and if issued. Any such indication of interest will not constitute a contractual commitment by you to purchase any of the securities. You may withdraw your indication of interest at any time.
The asset-backed securities referred to in this free writing prospectus are being offered when, as and if issued. Our obligation to sell securities to you is conditioned on the securities having the characteristics described in this free writing prospectus. If that condition is not satisfied, we will notify you, and none of the issuing entity, the depositor nor DBSI will have any obligation to you to deliver all or any portion of the securities which you have committed to purchase, and there will be no liability between us as a consequence of the non-delivery.
An investor or potential investor in the certificates (and each employee, representative, or other agent of such person or entity) may disclose to any and all persons, without limitation, the tax treatment and tax structure of the transaction (as defined in United States Treasury Regulation Section 1.6011-4) and all related materials of any kind, including opinions or other tax analyses, that are provided to such person or entity. However, such person or entity may not disclose any other information relating to this transaction unless such information is related to such tax treatment and tax structure.
THIS INFORMATION IS FURNISHED TO YOU SOLELY BY DBSI AND NOT BY THE ISSUING ENTITY OR THE DEPOSITOR OF THE SECURITIES OR ANY OF THEIR AFFILIATES. DBSI IS ACTING AS UNDERWRITER AND NOT ACTING AS AGENT FOR THE ISSUER IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION.
FREE WRITING PROSPECTUS DATED: August 23, 2007
Deutsche Alt-A Securities
Mortgage Loan Trust, Series 2007-2
$[1,333,315,000](Approximate)
Subject to an aggregate permitted variance of +/-5%
All Terms and Conditions are subject to change
Structure Overview(1)
Class | Approximate | Type | WAL | Principal | Pmt (days) | Interest Basis | Initial Pass-Through Rate | Expected | |
Offered |
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I-A-1 | $[377,000,000] | Super Senior / Floating Rate | [1.83] | [Sep 07 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(4) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
I-A-2 | [175,915,000] | Senior Support / Floating Rate | [6.13] | [Sep 07 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(4) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
I-X-1 | (5) | Senior / Interest Only | NA | NA | 24 | 30/360 | (5) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
I-X-2 | (6) | Senior / Interest Only | NA | NA | 24 | 30/360 | (6) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
II-A-1 | [612,176,000] | Super Senior / Floating Rate | [2.83] | [Sep 07 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(4) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
II-A-2 | [68,020,000] | Senior Support / Floating Rate | [7.90] | [Sep 07 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(4) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
II-X-1 | (7) | Senior / Interest Only | NA | NA | 24 | 30/360 | (7) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
II-X-2 | (8) | Senior / Interest Only | NA | NA | 24 | 30/360 | (8) | [AAA/Aaa] | |
M-1 | [21,813,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.98] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [AA+/Aa1] | |
M-2 | [19,768,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.98] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [AA+/Aa2] | |
M-3 | [12,270,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.98] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [AA+/Aa3] | |
M-4 | [10,225,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.97] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [AA/A1] | |
M-5 | [9,543,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.97] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [AA-/A2] | |
M-6 | [9,543,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.97] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [A+/A3] | |
M-7 | [9,543,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.97] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [A-/Baa1] | |
M-8 | [7,499,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | [4.96] | [Sep 10 – Feb 15] | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [BBB/Baa2] | |
Total Offered: | $[1,333,315,000] |
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M-9 | [4,772,000] | Subordinate / Floating Rate | Not Offered | 0 | ACT/360 | [ ]%(9) | [____/____] |
(1) The Structure is preliminary and subject to change. |
(2) All WALs and Principal Windows shown are to pricing speed. |
(3) Two out of three Rating Agencies will rate the offered certificates. |
Structure Overview (Cont.)
(4) The pass-through rate for the Class I-A-1, Class I-A-2, Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates will be a variable rate equal to the lesser of (i) One-Month LIBOR plus their respective margin, and (ii) the related Net WAC Pass-Through Rate. If the Optional Termination is not exercised on the first possible date, the margin for each of the Class I-A-1, Class I-A-2, Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates will increase to two times their respective original margin. The Class I-A-1, Class I-A-2, Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates will have the benefit of the Certificate Swap Agreement I and the Certificate Swap Agreement II, in each case, as further described below. |
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(5) The Class I-X-1 Certificates will be interest only certificates and will bear interest on a notional balance equal to the aggregate stated principal balance of the Fixed Rate Loans (as defined below) in Loan Group I, and initially equal to $[_______]. The pass-through rate for the Class I-X-1 Certificates will be a per annum rate equal to, for the Interest Accrual Period for any Distribution Date (i) on or prior to the Distribution Date in [August 2017] , [0.65%] per annum and (ii) after the Distribution Date in [August 2017], [1.65 %] per annum. Interest on the Class I-X-1 Certificates will be paid solely from interest collections on the Fixed Rate Loans (defined below) in Loan Group I. The Class I-X-1 Certificates will have the benefit of the Certificate Swap Agreement I and the Certificate Swap Agreement II, in each case, as further described below |
(6) The Class I-X-2 Certificates will be interest only certificates and will bear interest on a notional balance equal to the aggregate stated principal balance of the 10-Year Hybrid ARMs (as defined below) in Loan Group I, and initially equal to $[_______]. The pass-through rate for the Class I-X-2 Certificates will be a per annum rate equal to, for the Interest Accrual Period for any Distribution Date (i) on or prior to the Distribution Date in [August 2017] , [0.65%] per annum and (ii) after the Distribution Date in [August 2017], [1.65 %] per annum. Interest on the Class I-X-2 Certificates will be paid solely from interest collections on the 10-Year Hybrid ARMs (as defined below) in Loan Group I. The Class I-X-2 Certificates will have the benefit of the Certificate Swap Agreement I and the Certificate Swap Agreement II, in each case, as further described below.. |
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(7) The Class II-X-1 Certificates will be interest only certificates and will bear interest on a notional balance equal to the aggregate stated principal balance of the Fixed Rate Loans (as defined below) in Loan Group II, and initially equal to $[_______]. The pass-through rate for the Class II-X-1 Certificates will be a per annum rate equal to, for the Interest Accrual Period for any Distribution Date (i) on or prior to the Distribution Date in [August 2017] , [0.65%] per annum and (ii) after the Distribution Date in [August 2017], [1.65 %] per annum. Interest on the Class II-X-1 Certificates will be paid solely from interest collections on the Fixed Rate Loans (defined below) in Loan Group II. The Class II-X-1 Certificates will have the benefit of the Certificate Swap Agreement I and the Certificate Swap Agreement II, in each case, as further described below |
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(8) The Class II-X-2 Certificates will be interest only certificates and will bear interest on a notional balance equal to the aggregate stated principal balance of the 10-Year Hybrid ARMs (as defined below) in Loan Group II, and initially equal to $[_______]. The pass-through rate for the Class II-X-2 Certificates will be a per annum rate equal to, for the Interest Accrual Period for any Distribution Date (i) on or prior to the Distribution Date in [August 2017] , [0.65%] per annum and (ii) after the Distribution Date in [August 2017], [1.65 %] per annum. Interest on the Class II-X-2 Certificates will be paid solely from interest collections on the 10-Year Hybrid ARMs (as defined below) in Loan Group II. The Class II-X-2 Certificates will have the benefit of the Certificate Swap Agreement I and the Certificate Swap Agreement II, in each case, as further described below |
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(9) The pass-through rates for the Mezzanine Certificates will be a variable rate equal to the least of (i) One-Month LIBOR plus their respective margins, (ii) the related Net WAC Pass-Through Rate and (iii) [10.50%] per annum. If the Optional Termination is not exercised on the first possible date, their margins will increase to 1.5 times their respective original margins. The Mezzanine Certificates will have the benefit of the Certificate Swap Agreement I and the Certificate Swap Agreement II, in each case, as further described below. |
Transaction Overview |
Certificates: | n The Class I-A-1, Class I-A-2, Class I-X-1, Class I-X-2, Class II-A-1, Class II-A-2, Class II-X-1, Class II-X-2, Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8, Class M-9, Class CE, Class R and Class P Certificates.. |
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Offered Certificates: | n The Certificates, other than the Class M-9, Class CE, Class R and Class P Certificates. |
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Non Offered Certificates: | n The Class M-9, Class CE, Class R and Class P Certificates |
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Group I Senior Certificates: | n The Class I-A-1, Class I-A-2, Class I-X-1 and Class I-X-2 Certificates. |
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Group II Senior Certificates: | n The Class II-A-1, Class II-A-2, Class II-X-1 and Class II-X-2 Certificates. |
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Senior Certificates: | n The Group I Senior Certificates and Group II Senior Certificates. |
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Mezzanine Certificates: | n The Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates. |
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Subordinate Certificates: | n The Mezzanine Certificates and the Class CE Certificates. |
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Interest Only Certificates: | n The Class I-X-1, Class I-X-2, Class II-X-1 and Class II-X-2 Certificates |
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LIBOR Certificates: | n The Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) and the Mezzanine Certificates. |
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Pricing Speed: | n 100% PPC (100% PPC with regard to the Fixed Rate Loans equals 2% CPR growing to 20% CPR over 10 months and 20% CPR thereafter; 100% PPC with regard to the Adjustable Rate Loans equals 2% CPR growing to 25% CPR over 12 months, 25% CPR until month 61, 55% CPR until month 66 and constant at 35% CPR from month 67 onwards). |
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Depositor: | n ACE Securities Corp. |
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Master Servicer and Securities Administrator: | n Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. |
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Servicers: | n Countrywide Home Loans Servicing LP (“Countrywide Servicing”),GMAC Mortgage, LLC (“GMACM”) and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (“Wells Fargo”) with respect to approximately 41.12%, 26.60% and 16.16% of the total principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the Cut-Off Date, respectively. The remainder of the Mortgage Loans are serviced by various servicers, each of which services less than 10.00% of the Mortgage Loans by aggregate principal balance as of the Cut-Off Date. See Exhibit A to this Free Writing Prospectus for a description of GMACM and Countrywide Servicing as servicers. |
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Originators: | n The Originators of the Mortgage Loans are Countrywide Home Loans, Inc. (“Countrywide”), and MortgageIT, Inc. (“MIT”), with respect to approximately 41.03% and 29.28% of the total principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the Cut-Off Date, respectively. The remainder of the Mortgage Loans were originated by various originators, each of which originated less than 10.00% of the Mortgage Loans by aggregate principal balance as of the Cut-Off Date. See Exhibit B to this Free Writing Prospectus for a description of Countrywide and MIT as originators. |
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Trustee: | n US Bank, National Association |
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Certificate Swap I Provider: | n TBD |
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Certificate Swap II Provider: | n TBD |
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Cut-off Date: | n August 1, 2007. |
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Closing Date: | n On or around August [31], 2007. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Pricing Date: | n Week of August [20], 2007. |
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Interest Accrual Period: | n The interest accrual period with respect to the LIBOR Certificates and any Distribution Date will be the period beginning with the previous Distribution Date (or in the case of the first Distribution Date, the Closing Date) and ending on the day prior to such Distribution Date (calculated on an actual/360 day basis). The Interest Accrual Period with respect to the Interest Only Certificates and any Distribution Date will be the calendar month prior to the month of such Distribution Date (calculated on a 30/360 basis). |
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Credit Risk Manager: | n Clayton Fixed Income Services Inc. |
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Legal Structure: | n REMIC |
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Distribution Dates: | n 25th day of each month, or next business day, commencing in September 2007. |
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Registration: | n The Offered Certificates will be made available in book-entry form through DTC. |
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ERISA: | n The Offered Certificates are expected to be eligible for purchase by or with assets of employee benefit plans subject to Title I of ERISA or section 4975 of the Code, subject to certain conditions. Prior to the termination of the swap agreements, any class of Offered Certificates that is entitled to receive payments under either of those agreements, as applicable, may not be acquired or held by a person investing assets of any such plan investor, unless such acquisition or holding is eligible for the exemptive relief under an administrative or statutory exemption. Prospective investors should consult legal counsel as to whether the purchase and holding of the Offered Certificates could give rise to a transaction prohibited or not otherwise permissible under ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or other similar laws. |
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SMMEA: | n [The Senior Certificates and the Class M-1, Class M-2 Class M-3, Class M-4 and Class M-5 Certificates will constitute “mortgage related securities” for purposes of SMMEA for so long as such certificates are rated in one of the two highest rating categories by Moody’s or Standard & Poor’s or another nationally recognized statistical rating organization. Investors should consult legal counsel in determining the extent to which the Offered Certificates constitute legal investments for them.] |
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Credit Enhancement: | 1) Excess Interest 2) Overcollateralization (“OC”) 3) Subordination |
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Advances: | n Each Servicer will collect monthly payments of principal and interest on the Mortgage Loans serviced by such Servicer and will be obligated to make advances of delinquent monthly principal and interest payments to the extent such amounts are deemed recoverable. If any Servicer fails to make any such advance, the Master Servicer will be required to do so subject to its determination of recoverability. The Servicers and the Master Servicer are entitled to be reimbursed for these advances, and therefore these advances are not a form of credit enhancement. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Collateral: | n The Mortgage Loans are divided into two groups (the “Group I Mortgage Loans” and the “Group II Mortgage Loans”; also referred to as “Loan Group I” and “Loan Group II”) n The aggregate Principal Balances as of the Cut-off Date of the Mortgage Loans in the aggregate, the Group I Mortgage Loans and the Group II Mortgage Loans are approximately $[1,363,307,337], $[611,293,973] and $[752,013,364], respectively, in each case subject to a 5% variance. n The Mortgage Loans will consist of primarily 30-year conventional, fixed rate and adjustable rate mortgage loans secured by first liens on one- to four-family residential properties. The Mortgage Loans will include fixed rate loans ([36.20]%) (“Fixed Rate Loans”), and One-Year LIBOR ([48.39]%), Six-Month LIBOR ([15.09]%) and One-Year CMT ([0.32]%) indexed mortgage loans with initial rate adjustments occurring six months (“6-Month ARMs”), two years (“2-Year Hybrid ARMs”), three years (“3-Year Hybrid ARMs”), five years (“5-Year Hybrid ARMs”), seven years (“7-Year Hybrid ARMs”), and ten years (“10-Year Hybrid ARMs”, and together with the 6-Month ARMs, 2-Year Hybrid ARMS, 3-Year Hybrid ARMS, 5-Year Hybrid ARMS and 7-Year Hybrid ARMs, the “Adjustable Rate Loans”) after the date of origination. NOTE: The information related to the Mortgage Loans described herein reflects preliminary information. The characteristics of the pool of mortgage loans may vary from those reflected herein and the aggregate stated principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the Closing Date may be greater than or less than the aggregate stated principal balance of the Mortgage Loans presented herein by up to 5%. Consequently, the initial class certificate balance of the Certificates may vary up to 5% from the amounts shown herein. |
Compensating Interest: | n Each Servicer will be required each month to cover interest shortfalls as a result of voluntary prepayments on Mortgage Loans serviced by such Servicer generally up to the monthly Servicing Fee payable to such Servicer. If any Servicer fails to make any required Compensating Interest payment, the Master Servicer will be required to do so for such Distribution Date. |
Optional Termination: | n The master servicer may, at its option and subject to certain conditions, purchase the mortgage loans (and any properties acquired in respect of the mortgage loans) when the total outstanding principal balance of the mortgage loans (and the fair market value of any properties acquired in respect of the mortgage loans) on any distribution date is less than or equal to 10% of the aggregate outstanding principal balance of the mortgage loans as of the cut-off date. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Interest Remittance Amount: | n For any Distribution Date and any Loan Group, as more fully described in the Pooling and Servicing Agreement, will equal the sum of the following amounts: (1)all interest received by or on behalf of each servicer with respect to the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group by the Determination Date for such Distribution Date and not previously distributed; (2)all Advances in respect of interest made by a servicer and/or the master servicer with respect to Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group for that Distribution Date; (3)any amounts paid as Compensating Interest on the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group by a servicer and/or the master servicer for that Distribution Date; (4)the interest portions of the total amount deposited in the Distribution Account in connection with the repurchase of any Mortgage Loan in that Loan Group by the depositor or the sponsor; and (5)the interest portions of the total amount deposited in the Distribution Account related to that Loan Group in connection with the optional termination of the trust fund; minus the sum of the following amounts: (1)all scheduled payments of interest collected on the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group but due on a date after the related Due Date; (2)all interest paid by the mortgagors in connection with partial principal prepayments received with respect to the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group after the related Prepayment Period; (3)all interest paid by the mortgagors in connection with prepayments in full received with respect to the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group after the related Prepayment Period; (4)all amounts (other than Advances in respect of principal) related to that Loan Group reimbursable to a servicer pursuant to the terms of the related Servicing Agreement or to the master servicer, the securities administrator, the trustee or the custodians pursuant to the terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreement or the Custodial Agreements; and (5)any fees payable to the servicers, the master servicer, the credit risk manager and any premiums payable in connection with any lender paid primary mortgage insurance policies for the related Due Period related to that Loan Group. |
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Group I Interest Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, the Interest Remittance Amount for Loan Group I. |
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Group II Interest Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, the Interest Remittance Amount for Loan Group II. |
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Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, is the sum of the Interest Remittance Amount for Loan Group I and Loan Group II for such Distribution Date. |
Fixed Rate Loan Interest Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Loan Group and any Distribution Date, the portion of the Interest Remittance Amount for that Loan Group that is derived from Fixed Rate Loans in that Loan Group. |
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10-Year Hybrid ARM Interest Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Loan Group and any Distribution Date, the portion of the Interest Remittance Amount for that Loan Group that is derived from 10-Year Hybrid ARMs in that Loan Group. |
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Administration Fee Rate: | n The Administration Fee Rate with respect to each Mortgage Loan will be equal to the sum of (i) the servicing fee rate, (ii) the rate at which the fee payable to the Credit Risk Manager is calculated and (iii) the rate at which the premium payable in connection with any lender paid primary mortgage insurance policy is calculated, if applicable. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Fixed Rate Loan Fraction: | n With respect to any Distribution Date and any Loan Group, a fraction, the numerator of which is the stated principal balance of the Fixed Rate Loans in that Loan Group as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period), and the denominator of which is the stated principal balance of all of the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period) |
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10-Year Hybrid ARM Fraction: | n With respect to any Distribution Date and any Loan Group, a fraction, the numerator of which is the stated principal balance of the 10-Year Hybrid ARMs in that Loan Group as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period), and the denominator of which is the stated principal balance of all of the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period) |
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Administration Fee: | n The Administration Fee with respect to each Mortgage Loan and any Distribution Date, will be equal to the product of one-twelfth of (x) the Administration Fee Rate for such Mortgage Loan multiplied by (y) the principal balance of that Mortgage Loan as of the last day of the immediately preceding due period (or as of the Cut-off Date with respect to the first Distribution Date), after giving effect to principal prepayments received during the related prepayment period. |
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Group I Allocation Percentage: | n For any Distribution Date, the aggregate principal balance of the Group I Mortgage Loans divided by the aggregate principal balance of all of the Mortgage Loans, in each case, as of the last day of the immediately preceding due period (or as of the Cut-off Date with respect to the first Distribution Date), after giving effect to principal prepayments received during the related Prepayment Period. |
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Group II Allocation Percentage: | n For any Distribution Date, the aggregate principal balance of the Group II Mortgage Loans divided by the aggregate principal balance of all of the Mortgage Loans, in each case, as of the last day of the immediately preceding due period (or as of the Cut-off Date with respect to the first Distribution Date), after giving effect to principal prepayments received during the related Prepayment Period. |
Net Mortgage Rate: | n The Net Mortgage Rate for each Mortgage Loan will be equal to the mortgage interest rate thereon less the Administration Fee Rate. | |||
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Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Net WAC Pass-Through Rate (cont.): | n With respect to any Distribution Date, the Net WAC Pass-Through Rate for each Class of LIBOR Certificates will be as follows: n With respect to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates, a per annum rate (subject to adjustment based on the actual number of days elapsed in the related Interest Accrual Period) equal to the product of (i) 12 and (ii) a fraction, expressed as a percentage, (A) the numerator of which is the excess, if any, of (a) the amount of interest which accrued on the Group I Mortgage Loans in the prior calendar month minus the aggregate Administration Fees for the Group I Mortgage Loans for such Distribution Date, over (b) the sum of (1) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment and Swap Termination Payment (which was not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap I Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap I Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group I Allocation Percentage, (2) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment and Swap Termination Payment (which was not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap II Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap II Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group I Allocation Percentage and (3) the aggregate amount of interest accrued on the Class I-X-1 and Class I-X-2 Certificates during the related Interest Accrual Period and (B) the denominator of which is the aggregate principal balance of the Group I Mortgage Loans as of the last day of the immediately preceding due period (or as of the Cut-off Date with respect to the first Distribution Date), after giving effect to principal prepayments received during the related Prepayment Period; n With respect to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates, a per annum rate (subject to adjustment based on the actual number of days elapsed in the related Interest Accrual Period) equal to the product of (i) 12 and (ii) a fraction, expressed as a percentage, (A) the numerator of which is the excess, if any, of (a) the amount of interest which accrued on the Group II Mortgage Loans in the prior calendar month minus the aggregate Administration Fees for the Group II Mortgage Loans for such Distribution Date, over (b) the sum of (1) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment and Swap Termination Payment (which was not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap I Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap I Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group II Allocation Percentage, (2) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment and Swap Termination Payment (which was not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap II Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap II Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group II Allocation Percentage and (3) the aggregate amount of interest accrued on the Class II-X-1 and Class II-X-2 Certificates during the related Interest Accrual Period and (B) the denominator of which is the aggregate principal balance of the Group II Mortgage Loans as of the last day of the immediately preceding due period (or as of the Cut-off Date with respect to the first Distribution Date), after giving effect to principal prepayments received during the related Prepayment Period; n With respect to any Class of Mezzanine Certificates, the weighted average (weighted, with respect to clause (x) and (y), on the basis of the Group Subordinate Component for Loan Group I and Loan Group II, respectively) of: |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Net WAC Pass-Through Rate (cont.): | (x) a per annum rate (subject to adjustment based on the actual number of days elapsed in the related Interest Accrual Period) equal to the product of (i) 12 and (ii) a fraction, expressed as a percentage, (A) the numerator of which is the excess, if any, of (a) the amount of interest which accrued on the Group I Mortgage Loans in the prior calendar month minus the aggregate Administration Fees for the Group I Mortgage Loans for such Distribution Date, over (b) the sum of (1) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment and Swap Termination Payment (which was not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap I Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap I Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group I Allocation Percentage, (2) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment and Swap Termination Payment ( which was not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap II Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap II Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group I Allocation Percentage and (3) the aggregate amount of interest accrued on the Class I-X-1 and Class I-X-2 Certificates during the related Interest Accrual Period and (B) the denominator of which is the aggregate principal balance of the Group I Mortgage Loans as of the last day of the immediately preceding due period (or as of the Cut-off Date with respect to the first Distribution Date), after giving effect to principal prepayments received during the related Prepayment Period; and
(y) a per annum rate (subject to adjustment based on the actual number of days elapsed in the related Interest Accrual Period) equal to the product of (i) 12 and (ii) a fraction, expressed as a percentage, (A) the numerator of which is the excess, if any, of (a) the amount of interest which accrued on the Group II Mortgage Loans in the prior calendar month minus the aggregate Administration Fees for the Group II Mortgage Loans for such Distribution Date, over (b) the sum of (1) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment and Swap Termination Payment (which was not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap I Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap I Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group II Allocation Percentage, (2) the product of (x) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment and Swap Termination Payment (which was not caused by a Swap Prov ider Trigger Event, as defined in the Certificate Swap II Agreement) payable to the Certificate Swap II Provider for such Distribution Date and (y) the Group II Allocation Percentage and (3) the aggregate amount of interest accrued on the Class II-X-1 and Class II-X-2 Certificates during the related Interest Accrual Period and (B) the denominator of which is the aggregate principal balance of the Group II Mortgage Loans as of the last day of the immediately preceding due period (or as of the Cut-off Date with respect to the first Distribution Date), after giving effect to principal prepayments received during the related Prepayment Period. |
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Group Subordinate Component: | n For any Distribution Date and Loan Group I, is the excess, if any, of (i) the then outstanding aggregate principal balance of the Group I Loans over (ii) the then outstanding aggregate Class Principal Balance of the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates. For any Distribution Date and Loan Group II, the Group Subordinate Component is the excess, if any, of (i) the then outstanding aggregate principal balance of the Group II Loans over (ii) the then outstanding aggregate Class Principal Balance of the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates.. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount: | n With respect to any class of LIBOR Certificates and any Distribution Date on which the related Pass-Through Rate is limited to the applicable Net WAC Pass-Through Rate, the Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount is an amount equal to the sum of (i) the excess of (x) the amount of interest such class would have been entitled to receive on such Distribution Date if the related Net WAC Pass-Through Rate had not been applicable to such class on such Distribution Date over (y) the amount of interest accrued on such class on such Distribution Date at the related Net WAC Pass-Through Rate plus (ii) the related Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount for such class for any previous Distribution Date not previously distributed, together with interest thereon at a rate equal to the related Pass-Through Rate for such class for the most recently ended Interest Accrual Period determined without taking into account the related Net WAC Pass-Through Rate. |
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Interest Distribution Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date and any class of Senior Certificates, interest accrued during the related Interest Accrual Period on the related Certificate Principal Balance of that class of certificates immediately prior to the Distribution Date at the Pass-Through Rate for that class of certificates reduced (to an amount not less than zero), by such class’ allocable share, if any, of (i) Prepayment Interest Shortfalls on Mortgage Loans in the related Loan Group to the extent not covered by Compensating Interest paid by the master servicer or the servicers, (ii) Relief Act Interest Shortfalls on Mortgage Loans in the related Loan Group and (iii) the interest portion of Realized Losses incurred on the Mortgage Loans in the related Loan Group. n With respect to any Distribution Date and any class of Mezzanine Certificates, interest accrued during the related Interest Accrual Period on the related Certificate Principal Balance of that class of certificates immediately prior to the Distribution Date at the Pass-Through Rate for that class of certificates reduced (to an amount not less than zero), by such class’ allocable share, if any, of (i) Prepayment Interest Shortfalls on all of the Mortgage Loans to the extent not covered by Compensating Interest paid by the master servicer or the servicers, (ii) Relief Act Interest Shortfalls on all of the Mortgage Loans and (iii) the interest portion of Realized Losses incurred on all of the Mortgage Loans. |
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Interest Carry Forward Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date and any class of certificates will be equal to the amount, if any, by which the Interest Distribution Amount for that class of certificates for the immediately preceding Distribution Date exceeded the actual amount distributed to such class of certificates in respect of interest on the immediately preceding Distribution Date, together with any Interest Carry Forward Amount with respect to such class of certificates remaining unpaid from previous Distribution Dates, plus interest accrued thereon at the related Pass-Through Rate for the most recently ended Interest Accrual Period. |
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Senior Interest Distribution Amount: | n With respect to any class of Senior Certificates and any Distribution Date, the sum of the Interest Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date for such class and the Interest Carry Forward Amount for such Distribution Date for such class. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Principal Remittance Amount: | n For any Distribution Date and any Loan Group, as more fully described in the Pooling and Servicing Agreement, will equal the sum of the following amounts: (1) the total amount of all principal received by or on behalf of each servicer with respect to the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group by the Determination Date for such Distribution Date and not previously distributed (including liquidation proceeds, condemnation proceeds, insurance proceeds and subsequent recoveries); (2) all Advances in respect of principal made by a servicer and/or the master servicer with respect to Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group for that Distribution Date; (3) the principal portions of the total amount deposited in the Distribution Account in connection with the repurchase of any Mortgage Loan in that Loan Group by the depositor or the sponsor; and (4) the principal portions of the total amount deposited in the Distribution Account with respect to that Loan Group in connection with the optional termination of the trust fund; minus, the sum of the following amounts: (1) all scheduled payments of principal collected on the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group but due on a date after the related Due Date; (2) all partial principal prepayments received with respect to the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group after the related Prepayment Period, excluding all interest paid by the mortgagors in connection with such partial principal prepayments; (3) all prepayments in full received with respect to the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group after the related Prepayment Period, excluding all interest paid by the mortgagors in connection with such prepayments in full; (4) liquidation proceeds, insurance proceeds, condemnation proceeds and subsequent recoveries received on the Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group after the related Prepayment Period; (5) all Advances in respect of principal with respect to Mortgage Loans in that Loan Group reimbursable to a servicer pursuant to the terms of the related Servicing Agreement or to the master servicer, the securities administrator or the trustee pursuant to the terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreement; and (6) all other amounts reimbursable to a servicer pursuant to the terms of the related Servicing Agreement or to the master servicer, the securities administrator, the trustee or the custodians pursuant to the terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreement or the Custodial Agreement for the related Due Period with respect to that Loan Group to the extent not reimbursed from the Interest Remittance Amount for that Loan Group for the related Due Period. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Group I Principal Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, the Principal Remittance Amount for Loan Group I. |
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Group II Principal Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, the Principal Remittance Amount for Loan Group II. |
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Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, is the sum of the Principal Remittance Amount for Loan Group I and Loan Group II for such Distribution Date. |
Principal Distribution Amount: | n The Principal Distribution Amount for any Distribution Date will equal (i) the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount for such Distribution Date plus (ii) any Overcollateralization Increase Amount for such Distribution Date minus (iii) the amount of any Overcollateralization Reduction Amount for such Distribution Date and any amounts payable or reimbursable to the servicers, the trustee, the custodian, the master servicer or the securities administrator prior to distributions being made on the Certificates. In no event will the Principal Distribution Amount with respect to any Distribution Date be less than zero or greater than the then outstanding aggregate Certificate Principal Balance of the Senior Certificates and Mezzanine Certificates. |
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Group I Principal Distribution Amount: | n The Group I Principal Distribution Amount with respect to each Distribution Date is equal to the product of (i) the Principal Distribution Amount and (ii) a fraction, the numerator of which is the Group I Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date and the denominator of which is the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date. |
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Group II Principal Distribution Amount: | n The Group II Principal Distribution Amount with respect to each Distribution Date is equal to the product of (i) the Principal Distribution Amount and (ii) a fraction, the numerator of which is the Group II Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date and the denominator of which is the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date. |
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Senior Principal Distribution Amount: | n For any Distribution Date, will equal the excess of: (1) the aggregate Certificate Principal Balance of the Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) immediately prior to such Distribution Date, over (2) the lesser of (A) the product of (i) [80.90]% on any Distribution Date on or after the Stepdown Date and (ii) the aggregate Stated Principal Balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period) and (B) the excess, if any, of the aggregate Stated Principal Balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period) over the OC Floor. |
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Group I Senior Principal Distribution Amount: | n The Group I Senior Principal Distribution Amount with respect to each Distribution Date is equal to the product of (i) the Senior Principal Distribution Amount and (ii) a fraction, the numerator of which is the Group I Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date and the denominator of which is the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date. |
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Group II Senior Principal Distribution Amount: | n The Group II Senior Principal Distribution Amount with respect to each Distribution Date is equal to the product of (i) the Senior Principal Distribution Amount and (ii) a fraction, the numerator of which is the Group II Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date and the denominator of which is the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Mezzanine Principal Distribution Amount: | n For any class of Mezzanine Certificates and Distribution Date, will equal the excess of: (1) the sum of: (a) the aggregate Certificate Principal Balance of the Senior Certificates (after taking into account the distribution of the Senior Principal Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date), (b) the aggregate Certificate Principal Balance of any class(es) of Mezzanine Certificates that are senior to the subject class (in each case, after taking into account the distribution of the applicable Mezzanine Principal Distribution Amount(s) for such more senior class(es) of Mezzanine Certificates for such Distribution Date), and (c) the Certificate Principal Balance of such class of Mezzanine Certificates immediately prior to the subject Distribution Date, over (2) the lesser of (a) the product of (x) 100% minus the applicable Stepdown Target Subordination Percentage for the subject class of Mezzanine Certificates for that Distribution Date and (y) the aggregate Stated Principal Balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period) and (b) the aggregate Stated Principal Balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the due date in the month of that Distribution Date (after giving effect to unscheduled principal collections received in the related prepayment period) minus the OC Floor; provided, however, that if such class of Mezzanine Certificates is the only class of Mezzanine Certificates outstanding on such Distribution Date, that class will be entitled to receive the entire remaining Principal Remittance Amount until its Certificate Principal Balance is reduced to zero. |
Overcollateralization Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date following the Closing Date will be an amount by which (x) the sum of the aggregate outstanding principal balance of the Mortgage Loans exceeds (y) the sum of the Certificate Principal Balances of the Senior Certificates, the Mezzanine Certificates and the Class P Certificates after taking into account all payments of principal on such Distribution Date |
Required Overcollateralization Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, (a) if such Distribution Date is prior to the Stepdown Date, [____]% of the aggregate outstanding principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the Cut-Off Date, or (b) if such Distribution Date is on or after the Stepdown Date, the greater of (i) [____]% of the aggregate outstanding principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the last day of the related Due Period (after giving effect to scheduled payments of principal due during the related Due Period, to the extent received or advanced, and unscheduled collections of principal received during the related Prepayment Period, and after reduction for Realized Losses on the Mortgage Loans incurred during the related Prepayment Period) and (ii) the OC Floor. If a Trigger Event is in effect on any Distribution Date, the Required Overcollateralization Amount will be the same as the Required Overcollateralization Amount for the previ ous Distribution Date. |
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Overcollateralization Increase Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date will be the lesser of (i) the Net Monthly Excess Cashflow for such Distribution Date and (ii) the amount, if any, by which the Required Overcollateralization Amount for such Distribution Date exceeds the Overcollateralization Amount for such Distribution Date (assuming that 100% of the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount is applied as a principal payment on such Distribution Date and without giving effect to any other distributions on the Certificates in reduction of their respective Certificate Principal Balances on such Distribution Date). |
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Overcollateralization Reduction Amount: | n For any Distribution Date, the lesser of (a) the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (b) the excess, if any, of (i) the Overcollateralization Amount for such Distribution Date (assuming that 100% of the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount is applied as a principal payment on such Distribution Date and without giving effect to any other distributions on the Certificates in reduction of their respective Certificate Principal Balances on such Distribution Date) over (ii) the Required Overcollateralization Amount for such Distribution Date. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Stepdown Date: | n The earlier of (i) the first Distribution Date after the Distribution Date on which the aggregate Certificate Principal Balance of the Senior Certificates has been reduced to zero and (ii) the later to occur of (x) the Distribution Date occurring in [September 2010] and (y) the first Distribution Date on which the Credit Enhancement Percentage of the Senior Certificates (calculated for this purpose only after taking into account distributions of principal on the Mortgage Loans, but prior to any distribution of the Principal Distribution Amount to the holders of the Certificates) is equal to or greater than approximately [19.10]%. |
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OC Floor: | n An amount equal to [0.35]% of the aggregate Stated Principal Balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the Cut-off Date. |
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Credit Enhancement Percentage: | n The Credit Enhancement Percentage for any class of Senior Certificates or Mezzanine Certificates and any Distribution Date is the percentage obtained by dividing (x) the aggregate Certificate Principal Balance of the class or classes subordinate thereto and the Overcollateralization Amount by (y) the aggregate principal balance of the Mortgage Loans, calculated after giving effect to scheduled payments of principal due during the related due period, to the extent received or advanced and unscheduled collections of principal received during the related prepayment period and distribution of the Principal Distribution Amount to the holders of the Senior Certificates and Mezzanine Certificates then entitled to distributions of principal on such Distribution Date. |
| Class | (M / S) | Initial CE % | CE % On/After Step Down Date |
| Senior Certificates | [Aaa/AAA] | [9.55]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-1 | [AA+/Aa1] | [7.95]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-2 | [AA+/Aa2] | [6.50]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-3 | [AA+/Aa3] | [5.60]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-4 | [AA/A1] | [4.85]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-5 | [AA-/A2] | [4.15]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-6 | [A+/A3] | [3.45]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-7 | [A-/Baa1] | [2.75]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-8 | [BBB/Baa2] | [2.20]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
| M-9 | Not Offered Hereby | [1.85]% | 2.00 x Initial CE % |
Trigger Event: | n A Trigger Event is in effect if either a Delinquency Trigger Event or a Cumulative Loss Trigger Event is in effect. |
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Delinquency Trigger Event: | n A Delinquency Trigger Event is in effect with respect to any Distribution Date on or after the Stepdown Date if the percentage obtained by dividing (i) the principal amount of Mortgage Loans delinquent 60 days or more (including Mortgage Loans in foreclosure, bankruptcy and REO) by (ii) the aggregate principal balance of the Mortgage Loans, in each case as of the last day of the previous calendar month exceeds [___]%of the Credit Enhancement Percentage of the Senior Certificates with respect to the prior Distribution Date. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Cumulative Loss Trigger Event: | n A Cumulative Loss Trigger Event is in effect with respect to any Distribution Date on or after the Stepdown Date if the aggregate amount of Realized Losses on the Mortgage Loans from (and including) the Cut-off Date to (and including) the related due date (reduced by the aggregate amount of subsequent recoveries received from the Cut-off Date through the prepayment period related to that due date) divided by the sum of the aggregate Scheduled Principal Balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the Cut-off Date, exceeds the applicable percentage, for such Distribution Date, of the aggregate Stated Principal Balance of the Mortgage Loans, as set forth below: |
| Distribution Date Occurring in: | ||||
| September 2009 to August 2010 | [ ]%, plus 1/12th of [ ]% for each month thereafter | |||
| September 2010 to August 2011 | [ ]%, plus 1/12th of [ ]% for each month thereafter | |||
| September 2011 to August 2012 | [ ]%, plus 1/12th of [ ]% for each month thereafter | |||
| September 2012 to August 2013 | [ ]%, plus 1/12th of [ ]% each month thereafter | |||
| September 2013 and thereafter | [ ]% | |||
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Net Monthly Excess Cashflow: | n For any Distribution Date will be equal to the sum of (i) any Overcollateralization Reduction Amount and (ii) the excess of (x) the Available Distribution Amount for that Distribution Date over (y) the sum for that Distribution Date of the aggregate of (a) the Senior Interest Distribution Amounts payable to the Senior Certificates, (b) the aggregate of the Interest Distribution Amounts payable to the holders of the Mezzanine Certificates, (c) the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount, (d) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment or Swap Termination Payment owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider and (e) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment or Swap Termination Payment owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider. |
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Available Distribution Amount: | n With respect to any Distribution Date, the sum of the Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount and Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount for such Distribution Date. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Priority of Distributions: | n Commencing in September 2007, the securities administrator will make distributions to certificateholders on each Distribution Date from funds on deposit in the Distribution Account as set forth below |
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Interest Distributions: | n On each Distribution Date, the Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount will be distributed in the following order of priority: I. First, the Group I Interest Remittance Amount and Group II Interest Remittance Amount will be distributed, concurrently, as follows: A. The Group I Interest Remittance Amount will be distributed, as follows: 1. First, concurrently, (x) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap I Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate I Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider and (ii) the Group I Allocation Percentage and (y) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap II Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate II Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider and (ii) the Group I Allocation Percentage; 2. Second, concurrently, to the holders of the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date to the extent of the remaining Group I Interest Remittance Amount, pro rata based on the entitlement of each such class of certificates; 3. Third, concurrently, to the holders of the Class I-X-1 Certificates and Class I-X-2 Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date, pro rata based on the entitlement of each such class of certificates; provided, that (I) with respect to Class I-X-1 Certificates, such payments shall not exceed an amount equal to the excess, if any, of (i) the Fixed Rate Loan Interest Remittance Amount for Loan Group I over (ii) the product of (a) any amounts distributed to the Certificate Swap Provider I and the Certificate Swap Provider II pursuant to clauses (I)(A)(1) and (2) above and (b) the Fixed Rate Loan Fraction for Loan Group I for such Distribution Date and (II) with respect to Class I-X-2 Certificates, such payments shall not exceed an amount equal to the excess, if any, of (i) the 10-Year Hybrid ARM Interest Remittance Amount for Loan Group I over (ii) the product of (a) any amounts distributed to the Cert ificate Swap Provider I and the Certificate Swap Provider II pursuant to clauses (I)(A)(1) and (2) above and (b) the 10-Year Hybrid ARM Fraction for such Distribution Date; and 4. Fourth, concurrently, to the holders of the Group II Senior Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date, to the extent not paid from the Group II Interest Remittance Amount, and to the extent of the remaining Group I Interest Remittance Amount, pro rata based on the entitlement of each such class of certificates; |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Interest Distributions (cont.): | B. The Group II Interest Remittance Amount will be distributed, as follows: 1. First, concurrently, (x) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap I Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate I Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider and (ii) the Group II Allocation Percentage and (y) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap II Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate II Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider and (ii) the Group II Allocation Percentage; 2. Second, concurrently, to the holders of the Class II-X-1 Certificates and Class II-X-2 Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date, pro rata based on the entitlement of each such class of certificates; provided, that (I) with respect to Class II-X-1 Certificates, such payments shall not exceed an amount equal to the excess, if any, of (i) the Fixed Rate Loan Interest Remittance Amount for Loan Group II over (ii) the product of (a) any amounts distributed to the Certificate Swap Provider I and the Certificate Swap Provider II pursuant to clause (I)(B)(1) above and (b) the Fixed Rate Loan Fraction for Loan Group II for such Distribution Date and (II) with respect to Class II-X-2 Certificates, such payments shall not exceed an amount equal to the excess, if any, of (i) the 10-Year Hybrid ARM Interest Remittance Amount for Loan Group II over (ii) the product of (a) any amounts distributed to th e Certificate Swap Provider I and the Certificate Swap Provider II pursuant to clause (I)(B)(1) above and (b) the 10-Year Hybrid ARM Fraction for such Distribution Date; 3. Third, concurrently, to the holders of the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date to the extent of the remaining Group II Interest Remittance Amount, pro rata based on the entitlement of each such class of certificates; and 4. Fourth, concurrently, to the holders of the Group I Senior Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount for such Distribution Date, to the extent not paid from the Group I Interest Remittance Amount, and to the extent of the remaining Group II Interest Remittance Amount, pro rata based on the entitlement of each such class of certificates; II. Second, sequentially, to the holders of the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, the related Interest Distribution Amount allocable to each such class to the extent of the Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount for such Distribution Date remaining after distributions of interest to the Senior Certificates and to any class of Mezzanine Certificates with a higher payment priority. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Principal Distributions: | n Holders of each class of Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) and Mezzanine Certificates will be entitled to receive on each Distribution Date, to the extent of the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount for that Distribution Date, a distribution allocable to principal in the manner set forth below. (A) On each Distribution Date (i) prior to the Stepdown Date or (ii) on which a Trigger Event is in effect, an amount up to the Principal Distribution Amount for that Distribution Date will be distributed in the following amounts and order of priority: I. First, the Group I Principal Remittance Amount and the Group II Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed, concurrently, as follows: A. The Group I Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed, in an amount up to the Group I Principal Distribution Amount, as follows: 1. First, concurrently, (x) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap I Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate I Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group I Allocation Percentage and (y) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap II Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate II Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group I Allocation Percentage; 2. Second, sequentially, to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates, in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; and 3. Third, sequentially, to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates (after any payments to such classes of certificates from the Group II Principal Remittance Amount), in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; B. The Group II Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed in an amount up to the Group II Principal Distribution Amount, as follows: 1. First, concurrently, (x) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap I Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate I Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group II Allocation Percentage and (y) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap II Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate II Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group II Allocation Percentage; |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Principal Distributions (cont.): | 2. Second, sequentially, to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates, in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; and 3. Third, sequentially, to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates (after any payments to such classes of certificates from the Group I Principal Remittance Amount), in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; II. Second, the remaining Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed, in an amount up to the Principal Distribution Amount remaining after clause (I), sequentially, to the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero. (B) On each Distribution Date (i) on or after the Stepdown Date and (ii) on which a Trigger Event is not in effect, an amount up to the Principal Distribution Amount for that Distribution Date will be distributed in the following amounts and order of priority: I. First, the Group I Principal Remittance Amount and the Group II Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed, concurrently, as follows: A. The Group I Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed, in an amount up to the Group I Senior Principal Distribution Amount, as follows: 1. First, concurrently, (x) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap I Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate I Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group I Allocation Percentage and (y) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap II Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate II Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group I Allocation Percentage; 2. Second, sequentially, to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates, in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; and 3. Third, sequentially, to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates (after any payments to such classes of certificates from the Group II Principal Remittance Amount), in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Principal Distributions (cont.): | B. The Group II Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed in an amount up to the Group II Senior Principal Distribution Amount, as follows: 1. First, concurrently, (x) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap I Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate I Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group II Allocation Percentage and (y) to the Supplemental Interest Trust for payment to the Certificate Swap II Provider, the product of (i) any Net Securities Administrator Certificate II Swap Payment or Swap Termination Payment (not caused by a Swap Provider Trigger Event) owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider to the extent remaining unpaid after distributions of Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount on such Distribution Date and (ii) the Group II Allocation Percentage;
2. Second, sequentially, to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates, in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; and 3. Third, sequentially, to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates (after any payments to such classes of certificates from the Group I Principal Remittance Amount), in that order, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero; II. Second, the remaining Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount will be distributed, in an amount up to the Principal Distribution Amount remaining after clause (I), sequentially, to the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, in an amount up to their respective Mezzanine Principal Distribution Amounts, until their respective Certificate Principal Balances are reduced to zero. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Distribution of Net Monthly Excess Cashflow: | n On each Distribution Date following (i) distributions of the Aggregate Interest Principal Remittance Amount and (ii) distributions of the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount, the Net Monthly Excess Cashflow will be distributed as follows: 1. First, to the classes of Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) and Mezzanine Certificates then entitled to receive distributions in respect of principal, in an amount equal to the Overcollateralization Increase Amount for such Distribution Date, distributable as part of the Principal Distribution Amount for that Distribution Date in accordance with the priorities set forth under “–Principal Distributions” above; 2. Second, sequentially, to the holders of the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, the related Interest Distribution Amount remaining unpaid and Interest Carry Forward Amount for each such class for such Distribution Date; 3. Third, concurrently, (a) to the Group I Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) and (b) to the Group II Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) pro rata (based, with respect to clause (a) and (b), on the aggregate Allocated Realized Loss Amount with respect to such classes of certificates), as follows: (a) sequentially, to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates, in that order, up to the Allocated Realized Loss Amount related to each such class of certificates for such Distribution Date; and (b) sequentially, to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates, in that order, up to the Allocated Realized Loss Amount related to each such class of certificates for such Distribution Date; 4. Fourth, sequentially, to the holders of the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, in each case up to the Allocated Realized Loss Amount for each such class of certificates and such Distribution Date; 5. Fifth, to the reserve fund (the “Reserve Fund”) established in accordance with the terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreement, the amount by which the Net WAC Rate Carryover Amounts, if any, with respect to the LIBOR Certificates exceeds the amount in the Reserve Fund that was not distributed on prior Distribution Dates; 6. Sixth, to the Supplemental Interest Trust, up to an amount equal to any Swap Termination Payments resulting from any Swap Provider Trigger Event owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider and the Certificate Swap II Provider pursuant to the Certificate Swap I Agreement or the Certificate Swap II Agreeement, respectively; and 7. Seventh, to the holders of the Class CE, Class P and Class R Certificates as provided in the Pooling and Servicing Agreement. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Distribution of Reserve Fund Deposits: | n On each Distribution Date after the required distributions to the Certificate Swap I Provider, the Certificate Swap II Provider and the holders of the Certificates as described under “—Interest Distributions”, “—Principal Distributions,” and “Distribution of the Net Monthly Excess Cashflow” above, the securities administrator will withdraw from the Reserve Fund the amounts on deposit therein and distribute such amounts to the LIBOR Certificates in respect of any Net WAC Rate Carryover Amounts in the following manner and order of priority:first, concurrently, to the Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates), pro rata, up to the related Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount remaining unpaid for such Distribution Date for each such class; andsecond, sequentially, to the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, the related Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount remaining unpaid for such Distribution Date for each such class. |
|
|
Realized Loss: | n The “Realized Loss” with respect to any Distribution Date and any Mortgage Loan that became a Liquidated Loan during the related Prepayment Period will be the sum of (i) the principal balance of such Mortgage Loan remaining outstanding (after all recoveries of principal have been applied thereto) and the principal portion of Advances made by the related servicer with respect to such Mortgage Loan which have been reimbursed from Liquidation Proceeds, and (ii) the accrued interest on such Mortgage Loan remaining unpaid and the interest portion of Advances made by the related servicer with respect to such Mortgage Loan which have been reimbursed from Liquidation Proceeds. The amounts set forth in clause (i) are the principal portion of Realized Losses and the amounts set forth in clause (ii) are the interest portion of Realized Losses. With respect to any Mortgage Loan that is not a Liquidated Loan, the a mount of any Bankruptcy Loss incurred with respect to such Mortgage Loan as of the related Due Date will be treated as a Realized Loss |
Allocation of Losses: | n Realized Losses on the Mortgage Loans for any Distribution Date willfirst, cause a reduction in Net Monthly Excess Cashflow for that Distribution Date,second, reduce any available Net Certificate Swap I Provider Payments and Swap Termination Payments from the Certificate Swap I Provider for that Distribution Date and any available Net Certificate Swap II Provider Payments and Swap Termination Payments from the Certificate Swap II Provider for that Distribution Daet, andthird, cause a reduction in the Overcollateralization Amount until it is reduced to zero. . n Thereafter, Realized Losses on the Mortgage Loans will be allocated, first, to the most junior class of Mezzanine Certificates outstanding beginning with the Class M-9 Certificates, until the Certificate Principal Balance of each class of the Mezzanine Certificates has been reduced to zero. n Thereafter, (i) Realized Losses on the Group I Mortgage Loans will be allocated first to the Class I-A-2 Certificates until its Certificate Principal Balance has been reduced to zero and second to the Class I-A-1 Certificates until its Certificate Principal Balance has been reduced to zero and (ii) Realized Losses on the Group II Mortgage Loans will be allocated first to the Class II-A-2 Certificates until its Certificate Principal Balance has been reduced to zero and second to the Class II-A-1 Certificates until its Certificate Principal Balance has been reduced to zero. |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Certificate Swap I Agreement: | n The Senior Certificates, Mezzanine Certificates and Class CE Certificates will have the benefit of an interest rate swap agreement (the “Certificate Swap I Agreement”). On or prior to the Closing Date, the trustee will enter into the Certificate Swap I Agreement with theCertificateSwap I Provider. The Supplemental Interest Trust will hold the Certificate Swap I Agreement between the trustee, on behalf of the Supplemental Interest Trust, and the Certificate Swap I Provider. The Certificate Swap I Agreement and any payments made by the Certificate Swap I Provider thereunder will be assets of the Supplemental Interest Trust and will not be assets of any REMIC. n Pursuant to the Certificate Swap I Agreement, on each Distribution Date, commencing in [______________] and terminating immediately following the Distribution Date in [______________], (i) the securities administrator (on behalf of the Supplemental Interest Trust and from funds available in the Certificate Swap I Account) will be obligated to pay to the Certificate Swap I Provider an amount equal to the product of (a) [______________]% per annum, (b) the notional amount set forth in the Certificate Swap I Agreement (and as indicated on the attached Preliminary Certificate Swap I Schedule) and (c) a fraction, the numerator of which is 30 (or, for the first Distribution Date, the actual number of days elapsed from the Closing Date to but excluding the first Distribution Date calculated on a 30/360 basis) and the denominator of which is 360 (the “Securities Administrator Certificate S wap I Payment”). The amount payable by the Certificate Swap I Provider to the Supplemental Interest Trust for the benefit of the certificateholders will be a floating amount equal to the product of (x) one-month LIBOR (as calculated pursuant to the Certificate Swap I Agreement), (y) the notional amount set forth in the Certificate Swap I Agreement (and as indicated on the attached Preliminary Certificate Swap I Schedule) and (z) a fraction, the numerator of which is the actual number of days elapsed from the previous Distribution Date to but excluding the current Distribution Date (or, for the first Distribution Date, the actual number of days elapsed from the Closing Date to but excluding the first Distribution Date), and the denominator of which is 360 (the “Certificate Swap I Provider Payment”). n On the first business day prior to each Distribution Date, to the extent that the Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment exceeds the Certificate Swap I Provider Payment (a “Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment”), the securities administrator will be required to deposit the Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment into the Certificate Swap I Account and remit such Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment to the Certificate Swap I Provider. On the first business day prior to each Distribution Date, to the extent that the Certificate Swap I Provider Payment exceeds the Securities Administrator Certificate Swap I Payment (a “Net Certificate Swap I Provider Payment”), the Certificate Swap I Provider will be required to deposit into the Certificate Swap I Account the Net Certificate Swap I Provi der Payment for distribution to the Senior Certificates, Mezzanine Certificates and Class CE Certificates in accordance with the priority of payments described below. n On each Distribution Date following (i) distributions of the Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount, (ii) distributions of the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount and (iii) the distribution of the Net Monthly Excess Cashflow, the securities administrator will withdraw any amounts in the Certificate Swap I Account to the extent required and distribute such amounts in the following order of priority: 1. First, to the Certificate Swap I Provider, any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap Payment owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider pursuant to the Certificate Swap I Agreement for such Distribution Date; 2. Second, to the Certificate Swap I Provider, any Swap Termination Payment owed to the Certificate Swap I Provider not due to a Swap I Provider Trigger Event; |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Certificate Swap I Agreement (cont.): | 3. Third, concurrently, to each class of Senior Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount remaining unpaid after the distributions of the Interest Funds, on a pro rata basis based on such respective remaining Senior Interest Distribution Amounts; 4. Fourth, sequentially, to the holders of the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, the related Interest Distribution Amount and Interest Carry Forward Amount, to the extent remaining unpaid after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 5. Fifth, concurrently, (a) to the Group I Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) and (b) to the Group II Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) pro rata (based, with respect to clause (a) and (b), on the aggregate Allocated Realized Loss Amount with respect to such classes of certificates remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above), as follows: (a) sequentially, to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates, in that order, up to the Allocated Realized Loss Amount related to each such class of certificates for such Distribution Date remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; and (b) sequentially, to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates, in that order, up to the Allocated Realized Loss Amount related to each such class of certificates for such Distribution Date remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 6. Sixth, sequentially, to the holders of the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, the Allocated Realized Loss Amount for each such class of certificates and such Distribution Date remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 7. Seventh, to the holders of the class or classes of Certificates then entitled to receive distributions in respect of principal, in an amount necessary to restore or maintain the Required Overcollateralization Amount as part of the Principal Distribution Amount for that Distribution Date in accordance with the priorities set forth under “Distributions of Principal” above, after taking into account all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 8. Eighth, to pay the Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date to the LIBOR Certificates, pro rata based on the amount of Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount; and 9. Ninth, any amounts remaining to the Class CE Certificates. Upon early termination of the Certificate Swap I Agreement for various events of default and termination events specified in the Certificate Swap I Agreement, the Supplemental Interest Trust or the Certificate Swap I Provider may be liable to make a termination payment (a ‘‘Swap Termination Payment’’) to the other party (regardless of which party caused the termination). The Swap Termination Payment will be computed in accordance with the procedures set forth in the Certificate Swap I Agreement. In the event that the Securities Administrator as the Supplemental Interest Trust Trustee, on behalf of the Supplemental Interest Trust, is required to make a Swap Termination Payment, that payment will be paid on the related Distribution Date, and on any subsequent Distribution Dates until paid in full, generally, prior to distributions to Certificateholders |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Certificate Swap II Agreement: | n The Senior Certificates, Mezzanine Certificates and Class CE Certificates will have the benefit of an interest rate swap agreement (the “Certificate Swap II Agreement”). On or prior to the Closing Date, the trustee will enter into the Certificate Swap II Agreement with theCertificateSwap II Provider. The Supplemental Interest Trust will hold the Certificate Swap II Agreement between the trustee, on behalf of the Supplemental Interest Trust, and the Certificate Swap II Provider. The Certificate Swap II Agreement and any payments made by the Certificate Swap II Provider thereunder will be assets of the Supplemental Interest Trust and will not be assets of any REMIC. n Pursuant to the Certificate Swap II Agreement, on each Distribution Date, commencing in [______________] and terminating immediately following the Distribution Date in [______________], (i) the securities administrator (on behalf of the Supplemental Interest Trust and from funds available in the Certificate Swap II Account) will be obligated to pay to the Certificate Swap II Provider an amount equal to the product of (a) [______________]% per annum, (b) the notional amount set forth in the Certificate Swap II Agreement (and as indicated on the attached Preliminary Certificate Swap II Schedule) and (c) a fraction, the numerator of which is 30 (or, for the first Distribution Date, the actual number of days elapsed from the Closing Date to but excluding the first Distribution Date calculated on a 30/360 basis) and the denominator of which is 360 (the “Securities Administrator Certific ate Swap II Payment”). The amount payable by the Certificate Swap II Provider to the Supplemental Interest Trust for the benefit of the certificateholders will be a floating amount equal to the product of (x) one-month LIBOR (as calculated pursuant to the Certificate Swap II Agreement), (y) the notional amount set forth in the Certificate Swap II Agreement (and as indicated on the attached Preliminary Certificate Swap II Schedule) and (z) a fraction, the numerator of which is the actual number of days elapsed from the previous Distribution Date to but excluding the current Distribution Date (or, for the first Distribution Date, the actual number of days elapsed from the Closing Date to but excluding the first Distribution Date), and the denominator of which is 360 (the “Certificate Swap II Provider Payment”). n On the first business day prior to each Distribution Date, to the extent that the Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment exceeds the Certificate Swap II Provider Payment (a “Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment”), the securities administrator will be required to deposit the Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment into the Certificate Swap II Account and remit such Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment to the Certificate Swap II Provider. On the first business day prior to each Distribution Date, to the extent that the Certificate Swap II Provider Payment exceeds the Securities Administrator Certificate Swap II Payment (a “Net Certificate Swap II Provider Payment”), the Certificate Swap II Provider will be required to deposit into the Certificate Swap II Account the Net Certificate Swap II Provider Payment for distribution to the Senior Certificates, Mezzanine Certificates and Class CE Certificates in accordance with the priority of payments described below. n On each Distribution Date following (i) distributions of the Aggregate Interest Remittance Amount, (ii) distributions of the Aggregate Principal Remittance Amount, (iii) the distribution of the Net Monthly Excess Cashflow and (iv) withdrawals from the Certificate Swap I Account, the securities administrator will withdraw any amounts in the Certificate Swap II Account to the extent required and distribute such amounts in the following order of priority: 1. First, to the Certificate Swap II Provider, any Net Securities Administrator Certificate Swap Payment owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider pursuant to the Certificate Swap II Agreement for such Distribution Date; 2. Second, to the Certificate Swap II Provider, any Swap Termination Payment owed to the Certificate Swap II Provider not due to a Swap II Provider Trigger Event; |
Transaction Overview (Cont.) |
Certificate Swap II Agreement (cont.): | 3. Third, concurrently, to each class of Senior Certificates, the related Senior Interest Distribution Amount remaining unpaid after the distributions of the Interest Funds, on a pro rata basis based on such respective remaining Senior Interest Distribution Amounts; 4. Fourth, sequentially, to the holders of the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, the related Interest Distribution Amount and Interest Carry Forward Amount, to the extent remaining unpaid after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 5. Fifth, concurrently, (a) to the Group I Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) and (b) to the Group II Senior Certificates (other than the Interest Only Certificates) pro rata (based, with respect to clause (a) and (b), on the aggregate Allocated Realized Loss Amount with respect to such classes of certificates remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above), as follows: (a) sequentially, to the Class I-A-1 and Class I-A-2 Certificates, in that order, up to the Allocated Realized Loss Amount related to each such class of certificates for such Distribution Date remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; and (b) sequentially, to the Class II-A-1 and Class II-A-2 Certificates, in that order, up to the Allocated Realized Loss Amount related to each such class of certificates for such Distribution Date remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 6. Sixth, sequentially, to the holders of the Class M-1, Class M-2, Class M-3, Class M-4, Class M-5, Class M-6, Class M-7, Class M-8 and Class M-9 Certificates, in that order, the Allocated Realized Loss Amount for each such class of certificates and such Distribution Date remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 7. Seventh, to the holders of the class or classes of Certificates then entitled to receive distributions in respect of principal, in an amount necessary to restore or maintain the Required Overcollateralization Amount as part of the Principal Distribution Amount for that Distribution Date in accordance with the priorities set forth under “Distributions of Principal” above, after taking into account all prior distributions on such Distribution Date, as described in the first sentence of this paragraph above; 8. Eighth, to pay the Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount remaining undistributed after all prior distributions on such Distribution Date to the LIBOR Certificates, pro rata based on the amount of Net WAC Rate Carryover Amount; and 9. Ninth, any amounts remaining to the Class CE Certificates. n Upon early termination of the Certificate Swap II Agreement for various events of default and termination events specified in the Certificate Swap II Agreement, the Supplemental Interest Trust or the Certificate Swap II Provider may be liable to make a termination payment (a ‘‘Swap Termination Payment’’) to the other party (regardless of which party caused the termination). The Swap Termination Payment will be computed in accordance with the procedures set forth in the Certificate Swap II Agreement. In the event that the Securities Administrator as the Supplemental Interest Trust Trustee, on behalf of the Supplemental Interest Trust, is required to make a Swap Termination Payment, that payment will be paid on the related Distribution Date, and on any subsequent Distribution Dates until paid in full, generally, prior to distributions to Certificateholders |
Preliminary Certificate Swap I Schedule*
Distribution Date | Notional Schedule ($) | Distribution Date | Notional Schedule ($) |
9/25/2007 |
| 1/25/2011 |
|
10/25/2007 |
| 2/25/2011 |
|
11/25/2007 |
| 3/25/2011 |
|
12/25/2007 |
| 4/25/2011 |
|
1/25/2008 |
| 5/25/2011 |
|
2/25/2008 |
| 6/25/2011 |
|
3/25/2008 |
| 7/25/2011 |
|
4/25/2008 |
| 8/25/2011 |
|
5/25/2008 |
| 9/25/2011 |
|
6/25/2008 |
| 10/25/2011 |
|
7/25/2008 |
| 11/25/2011 |
|
8/25/2008 |
| 12/25/2011 |
|
9/25/2008 |
| 1/25/2012 |
|
10/25/2008 |
| 2/25/2012 |
|
11/25/2008 |
| 3/25/2012 |
|
12/25/2008 |
| 4/25/2012 |
|
1/25/2009 |
| 5/25/2012 |
|
2/25/2009 |
| 6/25/2012 |
|
3/25/2009 |
| 7/25/2012 |
|
4/25/2009 |
| 8/25/2012 |
|
5/25/2009 |
| 9/25/2012 |
|
6/25/2009 |
|
|
|
7/25/2009 |
|
|
|
8/25/2009 |
|
|
|
9/25/2009 |
|
|
|
10/25/2009 |
|
|
|
11/25/2009 |
|
|
|
12/25/2009 |
|
|
|
1/25/2010 |
|
|
|
2/25/2010 |
|
|
|
3/25/2010 |
|
|
|
4/25/2010 |
|
|
|
5/25/2010 |
|
|
|
6/25/2010 |
|
|
|
7/25/2010 |
|
|
|
8/25/2010 |
|
|
|
9/25/2010 |
|
|
|
10/25/2010 |
|
|
|
11/25/2010 |
|
|
|
12/25/2010 |
|
|
|
* This Schedule is preliminary and subject to change
Preliminary Certificate Swap II Schedule*
Distribution Date | Notional Schedule ($) | Distribution Date | Notional Schedule ($) |
9/25/2012 |
| 6/25/2014 |
|
10/25/2012 |
| 7/25/2014 |
|
11/25/2012 |
| 8/25/2014 |
|
12/25/2012 |
| 9/25/2014 |
|
1/25/2013 |
| 10/25/2014 |
|
2/25/2013 |
| 11/25/2014 |
|
3/25/2013 |
| 12/25/2014 |
|
4/25/2013 |
| 1/25/2015 |
|
5/25/2013 |
| 2/25/2015 |
|
6/25/2013 |
| 3/25/2015 |
|
7/25/2013 |
| 4/25/2015 |
|
8/25/2013 |
| 5/25/2015 |
|
9/25/2013 |
| 6/25/2015 |
|
10/25/2013 |
| 7/25/2015 |
|
11/25/2013 |
| 8/25/2015 |
|
12/25/2013 |
| 9/25/2015 |
|
1/25/2014 |
| 10/25/2015 |
|
2/25/2014 |
| 11/25/2015 |
|
3/25/2014 |
| 12/25/2015 |
|
4/25/2014 |
| 1/25/2016 |
|
5/25/2014 |
|
|
|
* This Schedule is preliminary and subject to change
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE CALL:
Deutsche Bank Securities | |
|
|
MBS Trading |
|
Adam Yarnold | 212-250-2669 |
Kumarjit Bhattacharyya | 212-250-2669 |
|
|
MBS Banking |
|
Susan Valenti | 212-250-3455 |
Karan Mehta | 212-250-0869 |
Kathie Peng | 212-250-7259 |
Ayesha Chatterjee | 212-250-8297 |
|
|
MBS Structuring |
|
Nirav Mody | +91(22)6766-6062 |
Manvendra Chiranjiv | +91(22)6711-3271 |
Vishal JC | +91(22)6711-3270 |
Vikash Jaiswal | +91(22)6766-6038 |
|
|
MBS Analytics |
|
Alex Lee | 212-250-7826 |
Fan Huang | 212-250-5470 |
EXHIBIT A
Servicers disclosure
The Servicers servicing 20% or more of the Mortgage Loans are Countrywide Home Loans Servicing LP with respect to approximately 41.12% of the total principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the cut-off date and GMAC Mortgage, LLC with respect to approximately 26.60% of the total principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the cut-off date.
Countrywide Home Loans Servicing LP
The principal executive offices of Countrywide Home Loans Servicing LP (“Countrywide Servicing”) are located at 7105 Corporate Drive, Plano, Texas 75024. Countrywide Servicing is a Texas limited partnership directly owned by Countrywide GP, Inc. and Countrywide LP, Inc., each a Nevada corporation and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of Countrywide Home Loans. Countrywide GP, Inc. owns a 0.1% interest in Countrywide Servicing and is the general partner. Countrywide LP, Inc. owns a 99.9% interest in Countrywide Servicing and is a limited partner.
Countrywide Home Loans established Countrywide Servicing in February 2000 to service mortgage loans originated by Countrywide Home Loans that would otherwise have been serviced by Countrywide Home Loans. In January and February, 2001, Countrywide Home Loans transferred to Countrywide Servicing all of its rights and obligations relating to mortgage loans serviced on behalf of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, respectively. In October 2001, Countrywide Home Loans transferred to Countrywide Servicing all of its rights and obligations relating to the bulk of its non-agency loan servicing portfolio (other than the servicing of home equity lines of credit), including with respect to those mortgage loans (other than home equity lines of credit) formerly serviced by Countrywide Home Loans and securitized by certain of its affiliates. While Countrywide Home Loans expects to continue to directly servic e a portion of its loan portfolio, it is expected that the servicing rights for most newly originated Countrywide Home Loans mortgage loans will be transferred to Countrywide Servicing upon sale or securitization of the related mortgage loans. Countrywide Servicing is engaged in the business of servicing mortgage loans and will not originate or acquire loans, an activity that will continue to be performed by Countrywide Home Loans. In addition to acquiring mortgage servicing rights from Countrywide Home Loans, it is expected that Countrywide Servicing will service mortgage loans for non-Countrywide Home Loans affiliated parties as well as subservice mortgage loans on behalf of other master servicers.
In connection with the establishment of Countrywide Servicing, certain employees of Countrywide Home Loans became employees of Countrywide Servicing. Countrywide Servicing has engaged Countrywide Home Loans as a subservicer to perform certain loan servicing activities on its behalf.
Countrywide Servicing is an approved mortgage loan servicer for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Ginnie Mae, HUD and VA and is licensed to service mortgage loans in each state where a license is required. Its loan servicing activities are guaranteed by Countrywide Financial and/or Countrywide Home Loans when required by the owner of the mortgage loans.
Countrywide Home Loans
Countrywide Home Loans is a New York corporation and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of Countrywide Financial Corporation, a Delaware corporation (“Countrywide Financial”). The principal executive offices of Countrywide Home Loans are located at 4500 Park Granada, Calabasas, California 91302. Countrywide Home Loans is engaged primarily in the mortgage banking business, and as part of that business, originates, purchases, sells and services mortgage loans. Countrywide Home Loans originates mortgage loans through a retail branch system and through mortgage loan brokers and correspondents nationwide. Mortgage loans originated by Countrywide Home Loans are principally first-lien, fixed or adjustable rate mortgage loans secured by single-family residences.
Except as otherwise indicated, reference in the remainder of this prospectus supplement to “Countrywide Home Loans” should be read to include Countrywide Home Loans and its consolidated subsidiaries, including Countrywide Servicing. Countrywide Home Loans services substantially all of the mortgage loans it originates or acquires. In addition, Countrywide Home Loans has purchased in bulk the rights to service mortgage loans originated by other lenders. Countrywide Home Loans has in the past and may in the future sell to mortgage bankers and other institutions a portion of its portfolio of loan servicing rights. As of December 31, 2002, December 31, 2003, December 31, 2004, December 31, 2005, December 31, 2006 and June 30, 2007, Countrywide Home Loans provided servicing for mortgage loans with an aggregate principal balance of approximately $452.405 billion, $644.855 billion, $838.322 billion, $1,111.090 billion, $1,298.394 billion and $1,415.472 billion, respectively, substantially all of which were being serviced for unaffiliated persons.
Mortgage Loan Production
The following table sets forth, by number and dollar amount of mortgage loans, the residential mortgage loan production of Countrywide Financial for the periods indicated.
| Consolidated Mortgage Loan Production | ||||||||||
| Years Ended December 31, |
| |||||||||
| Six Months | ||||||||||
| Ended | ||||||||||
| June 30, | ||||||||||
|
| 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | ||||
|
| (Dollars in millions, except average loan amount) |
| ||||||||
| Conventional Conforming Loans Number of Loans | 993,538 | 1,509,925 | 826,914 | 776,479 | 723,933 | 524,469 | ||||
| Volume of Loans | $ 149,072 | $ 234,526 | $ 134,762 | $ 159,561 | $ 149,095 | $ 105,505 | ||||
| Percent of Total Dollar Volume | 59.2% | 53.9% | 37.1% | 32.2% | 32.2% | 43.0% | ||||
| Conventional Non-conforming Loans Number of Loans | 283,536 | 562,389 | 529,192 | 866,476 | 730,511 | 299,575 | ||||
| Volume of Loans | $ 62,665 | $ 138,006 | $ 144,663 | $ 235,614 | $ 211,841 | $ 95,661 | ||||
| Percent of Total Dollar Volume | 24.9% | 31.7% | 39.9% | 47.6% | 45.8% | 39.0% | ||||
| FHA/VA Loans Number of Loans | 157,626 | 196,063 | 105,562 | 80,555 | 89,753 | 58,275 | ||||
| Volume of Loans | $ 19,093 | $ 24,402 | $ 13,247 | $ 10,714 | $ 13,093 | $ 9,224 | ||||
| Percent of Total Dollar Volume | 7.6% | 5.6% | 3.6% | 2.2% | 2.8% | 3.8% | ||||
| Prime Home Equity Loans Number of Loans | 316,049 | 453,817 | 587,046 | 728,252 | 716,353 | 324,775 | ||||
| Volume of Loans | $ 11,650 | $ 18,103 | $ 30,893 | $ 44,850 | $ 47,876 | $ 21,135 | ||||
| Percent of Total Dollar Volume | 4.6% | 4.2% | 8.5% | 9.1% | 10.4% | 8.6% | ||||
| Nonprime Mortgage Loans Number of Loans | 63,195 | 124,205 | 250,030 | 278,112 | 245,881 | 73,202 | ||||
| Volume of Loans | $ 9,421 | $ 19,827 | $ 39,441 | $ 44,637 | $ 40,596 | $ 13,602 | ||||
| Percent of Total Dollar Volume | 3.7% | 4.6% | 10.9% | 9.0% | 8.8% | 5.6% | ||||
| Total Loans Number of Loans | 1,813,944 | 2,846,399 | 2,298,744 | 2,729,874 | 2,506,431 | 1,280,296 | ||||
| Volume of Loans | $ 251,901 | $ 434,864 | $ 363,006 | $ 495,376 | $ 462,501 | $ 245,127 | ||||
| Average Loan Amount | $ 139,000 | $ 153,000 | $ 158,000 | $ 181,000 | $ 185,000 | $ 191,000 | ||||
| Non-Purchase Transactions(1) | 66% | 72% | 51% | 53% | 55% | 60% | ||||
| Adjustable-Rate Loans(1) | 14% | 21% | 52% | 53% | 46% | 31% |
(1)
Percentage of total mortgage loan production (excluding commercial real estate loans) based on dollar volume.
Loan Servicing
Countrywide Servicing has established standard policies for the servicing and collection of mortgages. Servicing includes, but is not limited to:
(a)
collecting, aggregating and remitting mortgage loan payments;
(b)
accounting for principal and interest;
(c)
holding escrow (impound) funds for payment of taxes and insurance;
(d)
making inspections as required of the mortgaged properties;
(e)
preparation of tax related information in connection with the mortgage loans;
(f)
supervision of delinquent mortgage loans;
(g)
loss mitigation efforts;
(h)
foreclosure proceedings and, if applicable, the disposition of mortgaged properties; and
(i)
generally administering the mortgage loans, for which it receives servicing fees.
Billing statements with respect to mortgage loans are mailed monthly by Countrywide Servicing. The statement details all debits and credits and specifies the payment due. Notice of changes in the applicable loan rate are provided by Countrywide Servicing to the mortgagor with these statements.
Collection Procedures
When a mortgagor fails to make a payment on a mortgage loan, Countrywide Servicing attempts to cause the deficiency to be cured by corresponding with the mortgagor. In most cases, deficiencies are cured promptly. Pursuant to Countrywide Servicing’s servicing procedures, Countrywide Servicing generally mails to the mortgagor a notice of intent to foreclose after the loan becomes 61 days past due (three payments due but not received) and, generally within 59 days thereafter, if the loan remains delinquent, institutes appropriate legal action to foreclose on the mortgaged property. Foreclosure proceedings may be terminated if the delinquency is cured. Mortgage loans to borrowers in bankruptcy proceedings may be restructured in accordance with law and with a view to maximizing recovery of the loans, including any deficiencies.
Once foreclosure is initiated by Countrywide Servicing, a foreclosure tracking system is used to monitor the progress of the proceedings. The system includes state specific parameters to monitor whether proceedings are progressing within the time frame typical for the state in which the mortgaged property is located. During the foreclosure proceeding, Countrywide Servicing determines the amount of the foreclosure bid and whether to liquidate the mortgage loan.
If foreclosed, the mortgaged property is sold at a public or private sale and may be purchased by Countrywide Servicing. After foreclosure, Countrywide Servicing may liquidate the mortgaged property and charge-off the loan balance which was not recovered through liquidation proceeds.
Servicing and charge-off policies and collection practices with respect to mortgage loans may change over time in accordance with, among other things, Countrywide Servicing’s business judgment, changes in the servicing portfolio and applicable laws and regulations.
Certain static pool data with respect to the delinquency, cumulative loss and prepayment data for Countrywide Home Loans is available online at
http://www.countrywidedealsdata.com/?CWDD=01200708.
GMAC Mortgage, LLC
General
GMAC Mortgage, LLC is a Delaware limited liability company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of GMAC Residential Holding Company, LLC, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Residential Capital, LLC ("ResCap"). ResCap is a wholly-owned subsidiary of GMAC Mortgage Group, LLC, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of GMAC LLC ("GMAC").
GMAC Mortgage, LLC began acquiring, originating and servicing residential mortgage loans in 1985 through its acquisition of Colonial Mortgage Service Company, which was formed in 1926, and the loan administration, servicing operations and portfolio of Norwest Mortgage, which entered the residential mortgage loan business in 1906. These businesses formed the original basis of what is now GMAC Mortgage, LLC.
GMAC Mortgage, LLC maintains its executive and principal offices at 1100 Virginia Drive, Fort Washington, Pennsylvania 19034. Its telephone number is (215) 682 1000.
The diagram below illustrates the ownership structure among the parties affiliated with GMAC Mortgage, LLC.
Servicing Activities
GMAC Mortgage, LLC generally retains the servicing rights with respect to loans it sells or securitizes, and also occasionally purchases mortgage servicing rights from other servicers or acts as a subservicer of mortgage loans (and does not hold the corresponding mortgage servicing right asset).
As of the six months ended June 30, 2007, GMAC Mortgage, LLC acted as primary servicer and owned the corresponding servicing rights on approximately 2,271,474 of residential mortgage loans having an aggregate unpaid principal balance of approximately $284 billion, and GMAC Mortgage, LLC acted as subservicer (and did not own the corresponding servicing rights) on approximately 334,864 loans having an aggregate unpaid principal balance of over $70.5 billion.
The following tables set forth the dollar amount of mortgage loans serviced by GMAC Mortgage, LLC for the periods indicated, and the number of such loans for the same period. GMAC Mortgage, LLC was the servicer of a residential mortgage loan portfolio of approximately $153.6 billion, $13.9 billion, $17.6 billion and $7.0 billion during the year ended December 31, 2003 backed by prime conforming mortgage loans, prime non-conforming mortgage loans, government mortgage loans and second-lien mortgage loans, respectively. GMAC Mortgage, LLC was the servicer of a residential mortgage loan portfolio of approximately $211.5 billion, $32.0 billion, $18.2 billion and $22.8 billion during the six months ended June 30, 2007 backed by prime conforming mortgage loans, prime non-conforming mortgage loans, government mortgage loans and second-lien mortgage loans, respectively. The percentag es shown under “Percentage Change from Prior Year” represent the ratio of (a) the difference between the current and prior year volume over (b) the prior year volume.
GMAC MORTGAGE, LLC PRIMARY SERVICING PORTFOLIO
($ IN MILLIONS)
| For the Six Months Ended June 30, | For the Year Ended December 31, | |||
| 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 |
Prime conforming mortgage loans |
|
|
|
|
|
No. of Loans | 1,485,410 | 1,455,919 | 1,392,870 | 1,323,249 | 1,308,284 |
Dollar Amount of Loans | $211,462 | $203,894 | $186,364 | $165,521 | $153,601 |
Percentage Change | 3.71% | 9.41% | 12.59% | 7.76% | 2.11% |
Prime non-conforming mortgage loans |
|
|
|
|
|
No. of Loans…………………… | 68,062 | 67,462 | 69,488 | 53,119 | 34,041 |
Dollar Amount of Loans………. | $32,035 | $32,220 | $32,385 | $23,604 | $13,937 |
Percentage Change | (0.57)% | (0.51)% | 37.20% | 69.36% | 11.12% |
Government mortgage loans |
|
|
|
|
|
No. of Loans……………………. | 175,588 | 181,563 | 181,679 | 191,844 | 191,023 |
Dollar Amount of Loans………. | $18,166 | $18,843 | $18,098 | $18,328 | $17,594 |
Percentage Change | (3.59)% | 4.12% | (1.25)% | 4.17% | (16.91)% |
Second-lien mortgage loans |
|
|
|
|
|
No. of Loans…………………… | 542,414 | 514,085 | 392,261 | 350,334 | 282,128 |
Dollar Amount of Loans………. | $22,778 | $20,998 | $13,034 | $10,374 | $7,023 |
Percentage Change | 8.48% | 61.10% | 25.64% | 47.71% | 5.36% |
Total mortgage loans serviced |
|
|
|
|
|
No. of Loans…………………… | 2,271,474 | 2,219,029 | 2,036,298 | 1,918,546 | 1,815,476 |
Dollar Amount of Loans………. | 284,441 | $275,955 | $249,881 | $217,827 | $192,155 |
Percentage Change | 3.08% | 10.43% | 14.72% | 13.36% | 0.71% |
Billing and Payment Procedures. As servicer, GMAC Mortgage, LLC collects and remits mortgage loan payments, responds to borrower inquiries, accounts for principal and interest, holds custodial and escrow funds for payment of property taxes and insurance premiums, counsels or otherwise works with delinquent borrowers, supervises foreclosures and property dispositions and generally administers the loans. GMAC Mortgage, LLC sends monthly invoices or annual coupon books to borrowers to prompt the collection of the outstanding payments. Borrowers may elect for monthly payments to be deducted automatically from bank accounts on the same day every month or may take advantage of on demand electronic payments made over the internet or via phone.
EXHIBIT B
Originators disclosure
The Originators originating 20% or more of the Mortgage Loans are Countrywide Home Loans, Inc. with respect to approximately 41.03% of the total principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the cut-off date, MortgageIT, Inc. with respect to approximately 29.28% of the total principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the cut-off date, and certain other Originators, none of which originated 20% or more of the total principal balance of the Mortgage Loans as of the cut-off date.
Countrywide Home Loans, Inc.
Note: Loan-to-Value Ratio as used in “Underwriting Standards” below has the following meaning:
The “Loan-to-Value Ratio” of a mortgage loan at any given time is a fraction, expressed as a percentage, the numerator of which is the principal balance of the related mortgage loan at the date of determination and the denominator of which is
·
in the case of a purchase, the lesser of the selling price of the mortgaged property or its appraised value at the time of sale or
·
in the case of a refinance, the appraised value of the mortgaged property at the time of the refinance, except in the case of a mortgage loan underwritten pursuant to Countrywide Home Loans’ Streamlined Documentation Program as described under [“—Underwriting Standards—General”].
With respect to mortgage loans originated pursuant to Countrywide Home Loans’ Streamlined Documentation Program,
·
if the loan-to-value ratio at the time of the origination of the mortgage loan being refinanced was 80% or less and the loan amount of the new loan being originated is $650,000 or less, then the “Loan-to-Value Ratio” will be the ratio of the principal amount of the new mortgage loan being originated divided by the appraised value of the related mortgaged property at the time of the origination of the Mortgage Loan being refinanced, as reconfirmed by Countrywide Home Loans using an automated property valuation system; or
·
if the loan-to-value ratio at the time of the origination of the mortgage loan being refinanced was greater than 80% or the loan amount of the new loan being originated is greater than $650,000, then the “Loan-to-Value Ratio” will be the ratio of the principal amount of the new mortgage loan being originated divided by the appraised value of the related mortgaged property as determined by an appraisal obtained by Countrywide Home Loans at the time of the origination of the new mortgage loan. See [“—Underwriting Standards—General” in this prospectus supplement.]
No assurance can be given that the value of any mortgaged property has remained or will remain at the level that existed on the appraisal or sales date. If residential real estate values generally or in a particular geographic area decline, the Loan-to-Value Ratios might not be a reliable indicator of the rates of delinquencies, foreclosures and losses that could occur with respect to the mortgage loans.
Underwriting Standards
General
Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., a New York corporation (“Countrywide Home Loans”), has been originating mortgage loans since 1969. Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting standards are applied in accordance with applicable federal and state laws and regulations.
As part of its evaluation of potential borrowers, Countrywide Home Loans generally requires a description of income. If required by its underwriting guidelines, Countrywide Home Loans obtains employment verification providing current and historical income information and/or a telephonic employment confirmation. Such employment verification may be obtained, either through analysis of the prospective borrower’s recent pay stub and/or W-2 forms for the most recent two years, relevant portions of the most recent two years’ tax returns, or from the prospective borrower’s employer, wherein the employer reports the length of employment and current salary with that organization. Self-employed prospective borrowers generally are required to submit relevant portions of their federal tax returns for the past two years.
In assessing a prospective borrower’s creditworthiness, Countrywide Home Loans may use FICO Credit Scores. “FICO Credit Scores” are statistical credit scores designed to assess a borrower’s creditworthiness and likelihood to default on a consumer obligation over a two-year period based on a borrower’s credit history. FICO Credit Scores were not developed to predict the likelihood of default on mortgage loans and, accordingly, may not be indicative of the ability of a borrower to repay its mortgage loan. FICO Credit Scores range from approximately 250 to approximately 900, with higher scores indicating an individual with a more favorable credit history compared to an individual with a lower score. Under Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting guidelines, borrowers possessing higher FICO Credit Scores, which indicate a more favorable credit his tory and who give Countrywide Home Loans the right to obtain the tax returns they filed for the preceding two years, may be eligible for Countrywide Home Loans’ processing program (the “Preferred Processing Program”).
Periodically the data used by Countrywide Home Loans to complete the underwriting analysis may be obtained by a third party, particularly for mortgage loans originated through a loan correspondent or mortgage broker. In those instances, the initial determination as to whether a mortgage loan complies with Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting guidelines may be made by an independent company hired to perform underwriting services on behalf of Countrywide Home Loans, the loan correspondent or mortgage broker. In addition, Countrywide Home Loans may acquire mortgage loans from approved correspondent lenders under a program pursuant to which Countrywide Home Loans delegates to the correspondent the obligation to underwrite the mortgage loans to Countrywide Home Loans’ standards. Under these circumstances, the underwriting of a mortgage loan may not have been reviewed by Countrywide Home Loans be fore acquisition of the mortgage loan and the correspondent represents that Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting standards have been met. After purchasing mortgage loans under those circumstances, Countrywide Home Loans conducts a quality control review of a sample of the mortgage loans. The number of loans reviewed in the quality control process varies based on a variety of factors, including Countrywide Home Loans’ prior experience with the correspondent lender and the results of the quality control review process itself.
Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting standards are applied by or on behalf of Countrywide Home Loans to evaluate the prospective borrower’s credit standing and repayment ability and the value and adequacy of the mortgaged property as collateral. Under those standards, a prospective borrower must generally demonstrate that the ratio of the borrower’s monthly housing expenses (including principal and interest on the proposed mortgage loan and, as applicable, the related monthly portion of property taxes, hazard insurance and mortgage insurance) to the borrower’s monthly gross income and the ratio of total monthly debt to the monthly gross income (the “debt-to-income” ratios) are within acceptable limits. If the prospective borrower has applied for an interest-only Six-Month LIBOR Loan, the interest component of the monthly mortgage expense is calculated based upon th e initial interest rate plus 2%. If the prospective borrower has applied for a 3/1 Mortgage Loan or 3/27 Mortgage Loan and the Loan-to-Value Ratio is less than or equal to 75%, the interest component of the monthly mortgage expense is calculated based on the initial loan interest rate; if the Loan-to-Value Ratio exceeds 75%, the interest component of the monthly mortgage expense calculation is based on the initial loan interest rate plus 2%. If the prospective borrower has applied for a 5/1 Mortgage Loan, a 5/25 Mortgage Loan, a 7/1 Mortgage Loan, a 7/23 Mortgage Loan, a 10/1 Mortgage Loan or a 10/20 Mortgage Loan, the interest component of the monthly mortgage expense is calculated based on the initial loan interest rate. If the prospective borrower has applied for a Negative Amortization Loan, the interest component of the monthly housing expense calculation is based upon the greater of 4.25% and the fully indexed mortgage note rate at the time of loan application. If the prospective borr ower has applied for a Hybrid Negative Amortization Loan, the monthly housing expense calculation is based upon an interest only payment at the initial note rate. The maximum acceptable debt-to-income ratio, which is determined on a loan-by-loan basis varies depending on a number of underwriting criteria, including the Loan-to-Value Ratio, loan purpose, loan amount and credit history of the borrower. In addition to meeting the debt-to-income ratio guidelines, each prospective borrower is required to have sufficient cash resources to pay the down payment and closing costs. Exceptions to Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting guidelines may be made if compensating factors are demonstrated by a prospective borrower. Additionally, Countrywide Home Loans does permit its adjustable rate mortgage loans, hybrid adjustable rate mortgage loans and negative amortization mortgage loans to be assumed by a purchaser of the related mortgaged property, so long as the mortgage loan is in its adjustable rate period ( except for a 3/1 Mortgage Loan, which may be assumed during the fixed rate period) and the related purchaser meets Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting standards that are then in effect.
Countrywide Home Loans may provide secondary financing to a borrower contemporaneously with the origination of a mortgage loan, subject to the following limitations: the Loan-to-Value Ratio of the senior (i.e., first) lien may not exceed 80% and the combined Loan-to-Value Ratio may not exceed 100%. Countrywide Home Loans’ underwriting guidelines do not prohibit or otherwise restrict a borrower from obtaining secondary financing from lenders other than Countrywide Home Loans, whether at origination of the mortgage loan or thereafter.
The nature of the information that a borrower is required to disclose and whether the information is verified depends, in part, on the documentation program used in the origination process. In general under the Full Documentation Loan Program (the “Full Documentation Program”), each prospective borrower is required to complete an application which includes information with respect to the applicant’s assets, liabilities, income, credit history, employment history and other personal information. Self-employed individuals are generally required to submit their two most recent federal income tax returns. Under the Full Documentation Program, the underwriter verifies the information contained in the application relating to employment, income, assets and mortgages.
A prospective borrower may be eligible for a loan approval process that limits or eliminates Countrywide Home Loans’ standard disclosure or verification requirements or both. Countrywide Home Loans offers the following documentation programs as alternatives to its Full Documentation Program: an Alternative Documentation Loan Program (the “Alternative Documentation Program”), a Reduced Documentation Loan Program (the “Reduced Documentation Program”), a CLUES Plus Documentation Loan Program (the “CLUES Plus Documentation Program”), a No Income/No Asset Documentation Loan Program (the “No Income/No Asset Documentation Program”), a Stated Income/Stated Asset Documentation Loan Program (the “Stated Income/Stated Asset Documentation Program”) and a Streamlined Documentation Loa n Program (the “Streamlined Documentation Program”).
For all mortgage loans originated or acquired by Countrywide Home Loans, Countrywide Home Loans obtains a credit report relating to the applicant from a credit reporting company. The credit report typically contains information relating to such matters as credit history with local and national merchants and lenders, installment debt payments and any record of defaults, bankruptcy, dispossession, suits or judgments. All adverse information in the credit report is required to be explained by the prospective borrower to the satisfaction of the lending officer.
Except with respect to the mortgage loans originated pursuant to its Streamlined Documentation Program, whose values were confirmed with a Fannie Mae proprietary automated valuation model, Countrywide Home Loans obtains appraisals from independent appraisers or appraisal services for properties that are to secure mortgage loans. The appraisers inspect and appraise the proposed mortgaged property and verify that the property is in acceptable condition. Following each appraisal, the appraiser prepares a report which includes a market data analysis based on recent sales of comparable homes in the area and, when deemed appropriate, a replacement cost analysis based on the current cost of constructing a similar home. All appraisals are required to conform to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac appraisal standards then in effect.
Countrywide Home Loans requires title insurance on all of its mortgage loans secured by first liens on real property. Countrywide Home Loans also requires that fire and extended coverage casualty insurance be maintained on the mortgaged property in an amount at least equal to the principal balance of the related single-family mortgage loan or the replacement cost of the mortgaged property, whichever is less.
In addition to Countrywide Home Loans’ standard underwriting guidelines (the “Standard Underwriting Guidelines”), which are consistent in many respects with the guidelines applied to mortgage loans purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Countrywide Home Loans uses underwriting guidelines featuring expanded criteria (the “Expanded Underwriting Guidelines”). The Standard Underwriting Guidelines and the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines are described further under the next two headings.
Standard Underwriting Guidelines
Countrywide Home Loans’ Standard Underwriting Guidelines for mortgage loans with non-conforming original principal balances generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination of up to 95% for purchase money or rate and term refinance mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $400,000, up to 90% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $650,000, up to 75% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $1,000,000, up to 65% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $1,500,000, and up to 60% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $2,000,000.
For cash-out refinance mortgage loans, Countrywide Home Loans’ Standard Underwriting Guidelines for mortgage loans with non-conforming original principal balances generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination of up to 75% and original principal balances ranging up to $650,000. The maximum “cash-out” amount permitted is $200,000 and is based in part on the original Loan-to-Value Ratio of the related mortgage loan. As used in this prospectus supplement, a refinance mortgage loan is classified as a cash-out refinance mortgage loan by Countrywide Home Loans if the borrower retains an amount greater than the lesser of 2% of the entire amount of the proceeds from the refinancing of the existing loan or $2,000.
Countrywide Home Loans’ Standard Underwriting Guidelines for conforming balance mortgage loans generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination on owner occupied properties of up to 95% on 1 unit properties with principal balances up to $417,000 ($625,500 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 2 unit properties with principal balances up to $533,850 ($800,775 in Alaska and Hawaii) and up to 80% on 3 unit properties with principal balances of up to $645,300 ($967,950 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 4 unit properties with principal balances of up to $801,950 ($1,202,925 in Alaska and Hawaii). On second homes, Countrywide Home Loans’ Standard Underwriting Guidelines for conforming balance mortgage loans generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination of up to 95% on 1 unit properties with principal balances up to $417,000 ($625,500 in Alaska and Hawaii). Countrywide Home Loans’ Standard U nderwriting Guidelines for conforming balance mortgage loans generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination on investment properties of up to 90% on 1 unit properties with principal balances up to $417,000 ($625,500 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 2 unit properties with principal balances up to $533,850 ($800,775 in Alaska and Hawaii) and up to 75% on 3 unit properties with principal balances of up to $645,300 ($967,950 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 4 unit properties with principal balances of up to $801,950 ($1,202,925 in Alaska and Hawaii).
Under its Standard Underwriting Guidelines, Countrywide Home Loans generally permits a debt-to-income ratio based on the borrower’s monthly housing expenses of up to 33% and a debt-to-income ratio based on the borrower’s total monthly debt of up to 38%.
In connection with the Standard Underwriting Guidelines, Countrywide Home Loans originates or acquires mortgage loans under the Full Documentation Program, the Alternative Documentation Program, the Reduced Documentation Program, the CLUES Plus Documentation Program or the Streamlined Documentation Program.
The Alternative Documentation Program permits a borrower to provide W-2 forms instead of tax returns covering the most recent two years, permits bank statements in lieu of verification of deposits and permits alternative methods of employment verification.
Under the Reduced Documentation Program, some underwriting documentation concerning income, employment and asset verification is waived. Countrywide Home Loans obtains from a prospective borrower either a verification of deposit or bank statements for the two-month period immediately before the date of the mortgage loan application or verbal verification of employment. Since information relating to a prospective borrower’s income and employment is not verified, the borrower’s debt-to-income ratios are calculated based on the information provided by the borrower in the mortgage loan application. The maximum Loan-to-Value Ratio ranges up to 95%.
The CLUES Plus Documentation Program permits the verification of employment by alternative means, if necessary, including verbal verification of employment or reviewing paycheck stubs covering the pay period immediately prior to the date of the mortgage loan application. To verify the borrower’s assets and the sufficiency of the borrower’s funds for closing, Countrywide Home Loans obtains deposit or bank account statements from each prospective borrower for the month immediately prior to the date of the mortgage loan application. Under the CLUES Plus Documentation Program, the maximum Loan-to-Value Ratio is 75% and property values may be based on appraisals comprising only interior and exterior inspections. Cash-out refinances and investor properties are not permitted under the CLUES Plus Documentation Program.
The Streamlined Documentation Program is available for borrowers who are refinancing an existing mortgage loan that was originated or acquired by Countrywide Home Loans provided that, among other things, the mortgage loan has not been more than 30 days delinquent in payment during the previous twelve-month period. Under the Streamlined Documentation Program, appraisals are obtained only if the loan amount of the loan being refinanced had a Loan-to-Value Ratio at the time of origination in excess of 80% or if the loan amount of the new loan being originated is greater than $650,000. In addition, under the Streamlined Documentation Program, a credit report is obtained but only a limited credit review is conducted, no income or asset verification is required, and telephonic verification of employment is permitted. The maximum Loan-to-Value Ratio under the Streamlined Documentation Program ranges up to 9 5%.
Expanded Underwriting Guidelines
Mortgage loans which are underwritten pursuant to the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines may have higher Loan-to-Value Ratios, higher loan amounts and different documentation requirements than those associated with the Standard Underwriting Guidelines. The Expanded Underwriting Guidelines also permit higher debt-to-income ratios than mortgage loans underwritten pursuant to the Standard Underwriting Guidelines.
Countrywide Home Loans’ Expanded Underwriting Guidelines for mortgage loans with non-conforming original principal balances generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination of up to 95% for purchase money or rate and term refinance mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $400,000, up to 90% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $650,000, up to 80% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $1,000,000, up to 75% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $1,500,000 and up to 70% for mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $3,000,000. Under certain circumstances, however, Countrywide Home Loans’ Expanded Underwriting Guidelines allow for Loan-to-Value Ratios of up to 100% for purchase money mortgage loans with original principal balances of up to $375,000.
For cash-out refinance mortgage loans, Countrywide Home Loans’ Expanded Underwriting Guidelines for mortgage loans with non-conforming original principal balances generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination of up to 90% and original principal balances ranging up to $1,500,000. The maximum “cash-out” amount permitted is $400,000 and is based in part on the original Loan-to-Value Ratio of the related mortgage loan.
Countrywide Home Loans’ Expanded Underwriting Guidelines for conforming balance mortgage loans generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination on owner occupied properties of up to 100% on 1 unit properties with principal balances up to $417,000 ($625,500 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 2 unit properties with principal balances up to $533,850 ($800,775 in Alaska and Hawaii) and up to 85% on 3 unit properties with principal balances of up to $645,300 ($967,950 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 4 unit properties with principal balances of up to $801,950 ($1,202,925 in Alaska and Hawaii). On second homes, Countrywide Home Loans’ Expanded Underwriting Guidelines for conforming balance mortgage loans generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination of up to 95% on 1 unit properties with principal balances up to $417,000 ($625,500 in Alaska and Hawaii). Countrywide Home Loans’ Expanded Underwriting Guidelines for conforming balance mortgage loans generally allow Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination on investment properties of up to 90% on 1 unit properties with principal balances up to $417,000 ($625,500 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 2 unit properties with principal balances up to $533,850 ($800,775 in Alaska and Hawaii) and up to 85% on 3 unit properties with principal balances of up to $645,300 ($967,950 in Alaska and Hawaii) and 4 unit properties with principal balances of up to $801,950 ($1,202,925 in Alaska and Hawaii).
Under its Expanded Underwriting Guidelines, Countrywide Home Loans generally permits a debt-to-income ratio based on the borrower’s monthly housing expenses of up to 36% and a debt-to-income ratio based on the borrower’s total monthly debt of up to 40%; provided, however, that if the Loan-to-Value Ratio exceeds 80%, the maximum permitted debt-to-income ratios are 33% and 38%, respectively.
In connection with the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines, Countrywide Home Loans originates or acquires mortgage loans under the Full Documentation Program, the Alternative Documentation Program, the Reduced Documentation Loan Program, the No Income/No Asset Documentation Program and the Stated Income/Stated Asset Documentation Program. Neither the No Income/No Asset Documentation Program nor the Stated Income/Stated Asset Documentation Program is available under the Standard Underwriting Guidelines.
The same documentation and verification requirements apply to mortgage loans documented under the Alternative Documentation Program regardless of whether the loan has been underwritten under the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines or the Standard Underwriting Guidelines. However, under the Alternative Documentation Program, mortgage loans that have been underwritten pursuant to the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines may have higher loan balances and Loan-to-Value Ratios than those permitted under the Standard Underwriting Guidelines.
Similarly, the same documentation and verification requirements apply to mortgage loans documented under the Reduced Documentation Program regardless of whether the loan has been underwritten under the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines or the Standard Underwriting Guidelines. However, under the Reduced Documentation Program, higher loan balances and Loan-to-Value Ratios are permitted for mortgage loans underwritten pursuant to the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines than those permitted under the Standard Underwriting Guidelines. The maximum Loan-to-Value Ratio, including secondary financing, ranges up to 90%. The borrower is not required to disclose any income information for some mortgage loans originated under the Reduced Documentation Program, and accordingly debt-to-income ratios are not calculated or included in the underwriting analysis. The maximum Loan-to-Value Ratio, including sec ondary financing, for those mortgage loans ranges up to 85%.
Under the No Income/No Asset Documentation Program, no documentation relating to a prospective borrower’s income, employment or assets is required and therefore debt-to-income ratios are not calculated or included in the underwriting analysis, or if the documentation or calculations are included in a mortgage loan file, they are not taken into account for purposes of the underwriting analysis. This program is limited to borrowers with excellent credit histories. Under the No Income/No Asset Documentation Program, the maximum Loan-to-Value Ratio, including secondary financing, ranges up to 95%. Mortgage loans originated under the No Income/No Asset Documentation Program are generally eligible for sale to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
Under the Stated Income/Stated Asset Documentation Program, the mortgage loan application is reviewed to determine that the stated income is reasonable for the borrower’s employment and that the stated assets are consistent with the borrower’s income. The Stated Income/Stated Asset Documentation Program permits maximum Loan-to-Value Ratios up to 90%. Mortgage loans originated under the Stated Income/Stated Asset Documentation Program are generally eligible for sale to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
Under the Expanded Underwriting Guidelines, Countrywide Home Loans may also provide mortgage loans to borrowers who are not U.S. citizens, including permanent and non-permanent residents. The borrower is required to have a valid U.S. social security number or a certificate of foreign status (IRS form W 8). The borrower’s income and assets must be verified under the Full Documentation Program or the Alternative Documentation Program. The maximum Loan-to-Value Ratio, including secondary financing, is 80%.
MortgageIT, Inc.
MortgageIT, Inc. (“MortgageIT”) is a New York corporation with an executive and administrative office located at 33 Maiden Lane, New York, New York 10038. MortgageIT is a full-service residential mortgage banking company that is licensed to originate loans throughout the United States. MortgageIT originates single-family mortgage loans of all types, including prime adjustable-rate mortgage loans and fixed-rate, first lien residential mortgage loans.
MortgageIT and its predecessors have been in the residential mortgage banking business since 1988, and have originated Alt-A mortgage loans since that time. For the year ended December 31, 2006, MortgageIT had an origination portfolio of approximately $29.5 billion, of which $4.41 billion were Alt-A mortgage loans , all of which was secured by one- to four-family residential real properties and individual condominium units.
On January 3, 2007, an affiliate of DB Structured Products, Inc., the sponsor, announced the completion of its acquisition of MortgageIT Holdings, Inc. (“MortgageIT Holdings”), MortgageIT’s former parent company. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., which is the master servicer and securities administrator and, potentially, a custodian, is also the master servicer for issuances of asset-backed securities for which MortgageIT Holdings was the sponsor. GMAC Mortgage, LLC, which is a servicer, serves as the interim servicer for all of the mortgage loans that MortgageIT funds.
The following table describes the size, composition and growth of MortgageIT’s mortgage loan production for Alt-A adjustable-rate mortgage loans over the past three years.
| December 31, 2004 | December 31, 2005 | December 31, 2006 | |||
Loan Type | Number | Total Principal Balance of Loans | Number | Total Principal Balance of Loans | Number | Total Principal Balance of Loans |
Alt-A ARMs | 10,318 | $2,893,893,784 | 18,154 | $5,076,582,539 | 9,086 | $2,723,899,272 |
MortgageIT Underwriting Guidelines
MortgageIT offers a wide variety of mortgage loan products pursuant to various mortgage loan origination programs. The following generally describes MortgageIT’s underwriting guidelines with respect to mortgage loans originated pursuant to its “prime” underwriting standards for mortgage loans with non-conforming balances and its “Alt-A” underwriting guidelines for mortgage loans with conforming and non-conforming balances.
MortgageIT’s underwriting philosophy is to weigh all risk factors inherent in the loan file, giving consideration to the individual transaction, borrower profile, the level of documentation provided and the property used to collateralize the debt. Because each loan is different, MortgageIT expects and encourages underwriters to use professional judgment based on their experience in making a lending decision. MortgageIT underwrites a borrower’s creditworthiness based solely on information that MortgageIT believes is indicative of the applicant’s willingness and ability to pay the debt they would be incurring.
Every MortgageIT mortgage loan is secured by a property that has been appraised by a licensed appraiser in accordance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice of the Appraisal Foundation. The appraisers perform on site inspections of the property and report on the neighborhood and property condition in factual and specific terms. Loans in excess of one million dollars require (i) two full appraisals or (ii) one full appraisal and a field review, ordered by a MortgageIT-approved national appraiser, including photographs of the interior and the exterior of the subject property. Each appraisal contains an opinion of value that represents the appraiser’s professional conclusion based on market data of sales of comparable properties, a logical analysis with adjustments for differences between the comparable sales and the subject property and the appraiser’s judgment. In addition , a MortgageIT underwriter or a mortgage insurance company contract underwriter reviews each appraisal for accuracy and consistency.
The appraiser’s value conclusion is used to calculate the ratio (loan-to-value) of the loan amount to the value of the property. For loans made to purchase a property this ratio is based on the lower of the sales price of the property and the appraised value. MortgageIT sets various maximum loan-to-value ratios based on the loan amount, property type, loan purpose and occupancy of the subject property securing the loan. In general, MortgageIT requires lower loan-to-value ratios for those loans that are perceived to have a higher risk, such as high loan amounts, loans in which additional cash is being taken out on a refinance transaction or loans on second homes. A lower loan-to-value ratio requires a borrower to have more equity in the property, which is a significant additional incentive to the borrower to avoid default on the loan. In addition, for all conventional loans in which the loan-to-value ratio exc eeds 80%, MortgageIT requires that a private mortgage insurance company that is approved by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac insure the loan. Higher loan-to-value ratios require higher coverage levels.
The mortgage loans have been originated under “full/alternative”, “stated income/verified assets”, “stated income/stated assets”, “no documentation” or “no ratio” programs. The “full/alternative” documentation programs generally verify income and assets in accordance with Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac underwriting requirements. The stated income/verified assets, stated income/stated assets, no documentation or no ratio programs generally require less documentation and verification than do full documentation programs which generally require standard Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac approved forms for verification of income/employment, assets and certain payment histories. Generally, under both “full/alternative” documentation programs, at least one month of income documentation is provided. This documentation is also required to include year-to-date income or pri or year income in case the former is not sufficient to establish consistent income. Generally, under a “stated income/verified assets” program, no verification of a mortgagor’s income is undertaken by the origination; however, verification of the mortgagor’s assets is obtained. Under a “stated income/stated assets” program, the originator undertakes no verification of either a mortgagor’s income or a mortgagor’s assets, although both income and assets are stated on the loan application and subject to reasonable underwriting approval. Generally, under a “no documentation” program, the mortgagor is not required to state his or her income or assets and therefore, the originator undertakes no verification of such mortgagor’s income or assets. The underwriting for such mortgage loans may be based primarily or entirely on the estimated value of the mortgaged property and the LTV ratio at origination as well as on the payment history and credit score. Generally , under a “no ratio” program, the mortgagor is not required to disclose their income although the nature of employment is disclosed. Additionally, on a “no ratio” program assets are verified. MortgageIT generally conducts a verbal verification of employment prior to closing.
MortgageIT obtains a credit report that summarizes each borrower’s credit history. The credit report contains information from the three major credit repositories, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. These companies have developed scoring models to identify the comparative risk of delinquency among applicants based on characteristics within the applicant’s credit report. A borrower’s credit score represents a comprehensive view of the borrower’s credit history risk factors and is indicative of whether a borrower is likely to default on a loan. Some of the factors used to calculate credit scores are a borrower’s incidents of previous delinquency, the number of credit accounts a borrower has, the amount of available credit that a borrower has utilized, the source of a borrower’s existing credit, and recent attempts by a borrower to obtain additional credit. Applicants who have higher cred it scores will, as a group, have fewer defaults than those who have lower credit scores. The minimum credit score allowed by MortgageIT loan guidelines for non-conforming loans is 620 and the average is typically over 700. For MortgageIT Alt-A products, the minimum credit score is generally 650.
In addition to reviewing the borrower’s credit history and credit score, MortgageIT underwriters closely review the borrower’s housing payment history. In general, for non-conforming loans the borrower should not have made any mortgage payments over 30 days after the due date for the most recent 24 months. In general, for Alt-A loans the borrower may have no more than one payment that was made over 30 days after the due date for the most recent 24 months.
The Alt-A loans are generally documented to the requirements of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in that the borrower provides the same information on the loan application along with documentation to verify the accuracy of the information on the application such as income, assets, other liabilities, etc. Certain non-conforming stated income or stated asset products allow for less verification documentation than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac require. Certain Alt-A products also allow for less verification documentation than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac requires. For these Alt-A products, the borrower may not be required to verify employment income, assets required to close or both. For some other Alt-A products, the borrower is not required to provide any information regarding employment income, assets required to close or both. Alt-A products with less verification documentation generally have other compensating factors such as higher credit score or lower loan-to-value requirements.
Generally, in order to determine if a borrower qualifies for an Alt-A loan, MortgageIT underwriting staff or contract underwriters provided by certain mortgage insurance companies manually underwrite and approve such loans; under certain limited circumstances, if other application safeguards are in place, a borrower’s qualification for an Alt-A loan is determined utilizing automated underwriting systems. For manually underwritten loans, the underwriter must ensure that the borrower’s income will support the total housing expense on an ongoing basis. Underwriters may give consideration to borrowers who have demonstrated an ability to carry a similar or greater housing expense for an extended period. In addition to the monthly housing expense the underwriter must evaluate the borrower’s ability to manage all recurring payments on all debts, including the monthly housing expense. When evaluating the ra tio of all monthly debt payments to the borrower’s monthly income (debt-to-income ratio), the underwriter should be aware of the degree and frequency of credit usage and its impact on the borrower’s ability to repay the loan. For example, borrowers who lower their total obligations should receive favorable consideration and borrowers with a history of heavy usage and a pattern of slow or late payments should receive less flexibility.
MortgageIT realizes that there may be some acceptable quality loans that fall outside published guidelines and encourages “common sense” underwriting. Because a multitude of factors are involved in a loan transaction, no set of guidelines can contemplate every potential situation. Therefore, exceptions to these underwriting guidelines are considered, so long as the borrower has other reasonable compensating factors, on a case-by-case basis.
Free Writing Prospectus Supplement
Filed Pursuant to Rule 433
Registration Statement No.: 333-141008
(Dated August 27, 2007)
Deutsche Alt-A Securities Mortgage Loan Trust
Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates
(Issuable in Series)
DB Structured Products, Inc.
Sponsor
ACE Securities Corp.
Depositor
Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
Master Servicer and Securities Administrator
Consider carefully the risk factors beginning on page S-9 of this free writing prospectus supplement. The certificates represent obligations of the trust fund only and do not represent an interest in or obligation of the sponsor, the depositor, their affiliates or any other entity. This free writing prospectus supplement must be read in conjunction with the attached prospectus. | The Trusts Each Deutsche Alt-A Securities Mortgage Loan Trust will be established to hold assets transferred to it by ACE Securities Corp. The assets in each trust fund will be specified in the prospectus supplement for the particular issuing entity and will generally consist of first-lien, fixed- or adjustable-rate mortgage loans secured by one- to four-family residential properties. The mortgage loans will have been purchased by the depositor, either directly or through affiliates, from one or more mortgage loan sellers. The mortgage loans will be master serviced by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. The Certificates Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. will sell the certificates pursuant to a prospectus and prospectus supplement. The certificates will be grouped into one or more series, each having its own designation. Each series will be issued in one or more classes and each class will evidence beneficial ownership of a specified portion of future payments secured by the assets of the related trust fund. A prospectus supplement for a series will specify all of the terms of the series and each of the classes in the series. |
The depositor has filed a registration statement (including a base prospectus) with the SEC for the offering to which this free writing prospectus supplement relates. Before you invest in this offering, you should read the base prospectus in that registration statement and other documents the issuer has filed with the SEC for more complete information about the issuer and this offering. You may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC Web site at www.sec.gov.
Although a registration statement (including the prospectus) relating to the securities discussed in this free writing prospectus supplement has been filed with the SEC and is effective, the final prospectus supplement relating to the securities discussed in this free writing prospectus supplement has not been filed with the SEC. Prospective purchasers are referred to the final prospectus and prospectus supplement relating to the securities discussed in this communication for definitive information on any matter discussed in this free writing prospectus supplement.
Deutsche Bank Securities
Underwriter
For use with the prospectus dated June 11, 2007
This free writing prospectus supplement is being delivered to you solely to provide you with information about the offering and to solicit an offer to purchase the offered securities. Any such offer to purchase made by you will not be accepted and will not constitute a contractual commitment by you to purchase any of the securities until we have accepted your offer to purchase such securities. Any such commitment shall be subject to the conditions specified below.
This free writing prospectus supplement is not required to contain all of the information that is required to be included in the base prospectus and the prospectus supplement. The information in this free writing prospectus supplement and the related free writing prospectus is preliminary and is subject to completion or change. The information in this free writing prospectus supplement, if conveyed prior to the time of your commitment to purchase the offered securities, supersedes any prior version of this free writing prospectus supplement and any information contained in any prior similar free writing prospectus supplement relating to these securities. If a preliminary prospectus is conveyed to you prior to your commitment to purchase, that document supersedes all other information provided to you concerning the offered securities.
This free writing prospectus supplement is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy these securities in any state where such offer, solicitation or sale is not permitted.
The securities referred to in this free writing prospectus supplement and the related free writing prospectus are being offered when, as and if issued. The issuer is not obligated to issue any such securities or any similar securities, and all or a portion of the securities may not be issued that have the characteristics described herein. The underwriter’s obligation to deliver such securities is subject to the terms and conditions of the underwriting agreement with the issuer and the availability of the securities having the characteristics described herein. If, for any reason, the issuer does not deliver such securities, the underwriter will notify you, and neither the issuer nor any underwriter will have any obligation to you to deliver all or any portion of the securities which you have committed to purchase, and there will be no liability between us as a consequence of the non-delivery.
Certain of the information contained herein may be based on numerous assumptions (including preliminary assumptions about the pool assets and structure), which may not be specifically identified as assumptions in the information. Any such information or assumptions are subject to change. The information in the related free writing prospectus may reflect assumptions specifically requested by you. If so, prior to the time of your commitment to purchase, you should request updated information based on any assumptions specifically required by you.
Any legends, disclaimers or other notices that may appear in this free writing prospectus supplement or on any electronic communication to which this free writing prospectus supplement is attached which state that (1) these materials do not constitute an offer (or a solicitation of an offer), (2) no representation is made as to the accuracy or completeness of these materials and that these materials may not be updated or (3) these materials may be confidential are not applicable to this communication and should be disregarded. Such legends, disclaimers or other notices have been automatically generated as a result of this communication having been sent via Bloomberg or another system.
This free writing prospectus relates to Registration Statement No. 333-141008.
Table of Contents
Free Writing Prospectus Supplement
Free Writing Prospectus Supplement
Summary
S-4
Risk Factors
S-9
The Originators
S-18
Issuing Entity
S-18
The Depositor
S-19
The Sponsor
S-19
Static Pool Information
S-20
The Servicers
S-20
Servicing of the Mortgage Loans
S-21
The Securities Administrator, the Master Servicer and the Custodians
S-23
The Trustee
S-27
The Credit Risk Manager
S-29
Pooling and Servicing Agreement
S-29
Prepayment and Yield Considerations
S-33
Material Federal Income Tax Consequences
S-35
Legal Investment Aspects
S-38
ERISA Considerations
S-38
EXHIBIT A: Prospectus
Prospectus
Risk Factors
1
Description of the Issuing Entities’ Trust Fund.
5
Use of Proceeds
22
Yield Considerations
23
Static Pool Information
30
The Sponsor
30
The Depositor
31
Description of the Securities
31
Description of the Agreements
51
Description of Credit Support
80
Certain Legal Aspects of Mortgage Loans
85
Material Federal Income Tax Considerations
103
Penalty Avoidance
148
State and Other Tax Consequences
149
ERISA Considerations
149
Legal Investment
158
Methods of Distribution
161
Additional Information
162
Incorporation of Certain Documents by Reference
163
Legal Matters
164
Financial Information
164
Rating
164
Index of Defined Terms
165
SUMMARY
This summary highlights selected information about the offering transactions and does not contain all of the information that you need to consider in making your investment decision. The terms of each series and each of the classes in a series have not yet been determined. The certificates in an offering and the other circumstances of the offering that have not yet been specified will be fully described in a prospectus supplement when it is available. To understand all of the terms of an offering of the certificates, read this entire free writing prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus, and, when available, the prospectus supplement relating to the applicable series of certificates carefully.
Issuing Entity
The issuing entity for a series of certificates will be the Deutsche Alt-A Securities Mortgage Loan Trust specified on the front cover of the related prospectus supplement. The issuing entity will be a common law trust formed under the laws of the State of New York pursuant to a pooling and servicing agreement dated as of the cut-off date among the depositor, the master servicer, the securities administrator and the trustee. For a particular series of certificates, the servicers and/or the credit risk manager may also be parties to the pooling and servicing agreement.
Sponsor
DB Structured Products, Inc., a Delaware corporation will sell the mortgage loans to the depositor.
Depositor
ACE Securities Corp., a Delaware corporation, will sell the mortgage loans to the issuing entity. The depositor’s address is 6525 Morrison Blvd., Suite 318, Charlotte, North Carolina 28211 and its telephone number is 704-365-0569.
Master Servicer
Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., a national banking association, will oversee the servicing of the mortgage loans by the servicers pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement.
Servicers
With respect to each series of certificates, the servicers of the mortgage loans will be described in the related free writing prospectus and the prospectus supplement.
Originators
With respect to each series of certificates, the originators of the mortgage loans will be described in the related free writing prospectus and the prospectus supplement.
Securities Administrator
Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. will act as the securities administrator pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement.
Trustee
A trustee will be appointed pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement.
Custodians
One or more custodians will be appointed to maintain custody of the mortgage loan documents.
Credit Risk Manager
If so specified in the related prospectus supplement for any series, Clayton Fixed Income Services Inc. or another entity may be appointed as credit risk manager.
NIMS Insurer
One or more insurance companies may issue a certificate insurance policy covering certain payments to be made on net interest margin securities to be issued by a separate trust and secured by all or a portion of the Class CE and Class P certificates. In such event, the NIMS Insurer will be able to exercise rights which could adversely impact the related certificateholders. See “Risk Factors—Rights of NIMS Insurer” in this free writing prospectus supplement.
The Certificates
The certificates of each series represent ownership interests in a separate trust fund, the assets of which will consist primarily of conventional, first-lien residential mortgage loans.
The mortgage loans in any mortgage pool may have mortgage rates that are fixed, adjustable or have fixed mortgage rates for a period of time after the date of origination of each mortgage loan before the mortgage rates become subject to periodic adjustment based on a specified index.
The mortgage loans to be included in a trust fund may be divided into two or more mortgage loan groups, sorted on the basis of specified characteristics. In such event, payments of principal and interest on a specified group of certificates will be based primarily on collections from the related mortgage loans.
The certificates of each series may include certificates that are entitled to receive both principal and interest payments from the mortgage loans, certificates that are entitled to receive only interest payments from the mortgage loans, and certificates that are entitled to receive only principal payments from the mortgage loans, or any combination of the foregoing.
Pre-Funding Account and Capitalized Interest Account
A particular series may provide for the purchase of additional mortgage loans after the related closing date if the aggregate stated principal balance of the mortgage loans transferred to that issuing entity on the related closing date is less than the principal balance of certificates specified in the related prospectus supplement (any such series, a “pre-funded series”). The related prospectus supplement will specify the amount required to be deposited in a pre-funding account to be used through the end of the related funding period (which, generally, will not exceed 90 days) to purchase subsequent mortgage loans for that issuing entity. Any amounts not used for that purpose will be paid to holders of the related senior certificates as a prepayment of principal no later than the distribution date following the end of the funding period.
In a pre-funded series, because an issuing entity will acquire subsequent mortgage loans after the closing date for that issuing entity, there may not be sufficient interest collections from the mortgage loans in that issuing entity at the closing date to pay all the interest due on the related certificates during the funding period. If a pre-funding account is funded, a capitalized interest account may be established and funded on the closing date of that series to cover those shortfalls.
Cut-Off Date
The cut-off date, which is specified in the related free writing prospectus, is the date after which the issuing entity will be entitled to receive all collections on and proceeds of the mortgage loans. For a pre-funded series, there will be more than one cut-off date, which are referred to herein as subsequent cut-off dates.
Distribution Date
The 25th day of each month or, if such day is not a business day, the next business day thereafter. Payments on each distribution date will be made to certificateholders of record as of the related record date, except that the final payment on the certificates will be made only upon presentment and surrender of the certificates at the corporate trust office of the securities administrator.
Record Date
Unless otherwise specified in the related free writing prospectus, the record date for certain classes of certificates will be the close of business on the last business day of the month preceding the month of a distribution date (or the closing date, in the case of the first distribution date) and for certain classes of certificates will be the business day before the distribution date.
Registration of Certificates
To the extent specified in the prospectus supplement relating to a series of certificates, the certificates may initially be issued in book-entry form. Persons acquiring beneficial ownership interests in the certificates may elect to hold their beneficial interests through The Depository Trust Company, in the United States, or Clearstream, Luxembourg or the Euroclear System, in Europe.
Payment Priorities
Certain certificates, referred to as the senior certificates, will have a payment priority over certain other certificates, referred to as the subordinate certificates. The classes of subordinate certificates with higher numerical class designations will be subordinate to subordinate certificates with lower numerical class designations.
Limited Cross-Collateralization With Respect To Multi-Group Series
With respect to any series of certificates backed by a loan pool consisting of two or more loan groups (referred to as a “multi-group series”), in certain very limited circumstances relating to a loan group’s experiencing either rapid prepayments or disproportionately high realized losses, principal and interest collected from the other loan group or loan groups may be applied to pay principal or interest, or both, to the senior certificates related to the loan group experiencing those conditions.
Internal Credit Enhancement
Subordination
With respect to any series, the senior certificates will have a prior right of payment over the subordinate certificates. Among the classes of subordinate certificates, the classes of subordinate certificates with higher numerical class designations will be subordinate to subordinate certificates with lower numerical class designations.
Subordination is designed to provide the holders of certificates with a higher payment priority with protection against losses realized when the remaining unpaid principal balance on a mortgage loan exceeds the amount of proceeds recovered upon the liquidation of that mortgage loan. On any distribution date (with respect to any overcollateralization series, if there is not sufficient excess interests or overcollateralization to absorb realized losses on the mortgage loans), this loss protection is accomplished by allocating the realized losses in excess of such amounts first, among the subordinate certificates, beginning with the subordinate certificates with the lowest payment priority, and second, to the related class or classes of senior certificates; provided, that certain classes of senior certificates, referred to in this terms sheet supplement as the senior support certificates, may bear the principal portion of all realized losses otherwise allocable to certain other classes of senior certificates, for so long as such class of senior support certificates is outstanding.
Overcollateralization
With respect to certain series, as of the closing date, the total principal balance of the mortgage loans as of the cut-off date may exceed the total class principal balance of the certificates. This feature is referred to as overcollateralization. A series that has an overcollateralization feature is referred to as a “overcollateralization series” and a series that does not have an overcollateralization feature is referred to as a “non-overcollateralization series.”
With respect to any overcollateralization series, the required level of overcollateralization may increase or decrease over time. We cannot assure you that sufficient interest will be generated by the mortgage loans to create or maintain the required level of overcollateralization for any overcollateralization series.
Excess Interest
With respect to any overcollateralization series, the mortgage loans are expected to bear interest each month that in the aggregate is expected to exceed the amount needed to distribute monthly interest on the offered certificates and to pay certain fees and expenses of the trust fund. Such excess interest will be available to absorb realized losses on the mortgage loans, to create and maintain overcollateralization at required levels and cover basis risk shortfalls, if any, as described in the pooling agreement.
Yield Maintenance Agreements
If so specified in the related free writing prospectus, the securities administrator or the trustee, on behalf of the trust fund, will enter into one or more yield maintenance agreements with a counterparty for the benefit of certain classes of certificates. On certain distribution dates payments may be made under a yield maintenance agreement and deposited into a reserve fund. Amounts on deposit in the reserve fund will be available to make certain payments to the certificates entitled to the benefits of the related yield maintenance agreement.
Certificate Insurance Policy
If so specified in the related free writing prospectus, a financial guaranty insurance company will issue a certificate insurance policy for the benefit of one or more classes of certificates, referred to in this free writing prospectus supplement as the insured certificates. Any policy will unconditionally and irrevocably guarantee payment of (1) the outstanding principal balance of the insured certificates on their final maturity date, (2) the amount of any realized losses allocated to the insured certificates and (3) accrued and unpaid interest calculated at the certificate rate due on the insured certificates, subject to certain terms and conditions set forth in the certificate insurance policy. Any certificate insurance policy will not provide credit enhancement for any class of certificates other than the related insured certificates.
Any certificate insurance policy will not cover basis risk shortfalls or shortfalls in interest collections on the mortgage loans that are attributable to prepayment interest shortfalls, deferred interest or the application of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, or any similar state or local law.
Retention of Certain Servicing Rights
With respect to certain series, the sponsor may retain certain rights relating to the servicing of the mortgage loans, including the right to sell the servicing rights with respect to certain mortgage loans at any time to a successor servicer as further specified in the pooling and servicing agreement. See “Servicing of the Mortgage Loans—Servicing and Other Compensation and Payment of Expenses” in this free writing prospectus supplement.
Advances
Each servicer will be required to advance delinquent payments of principal and interest on the mortgage loans serviced by it, subject to the limitations described under “Servicing of the Mortgage Loans—Advances” in this free writing prospectus supplement. The master servicer will be obligated to make any required delinquency advance if the applicable servicer fails in its obligation to do so, to the extent provided in the pooling and servicing agreement. The applicable servicer or the master servicer, as the case may be, will be entitled to be reimbursed from the trust fund for these advances, and therefore these advances are not a form of credit enhancement. See “Servicing of the Mortgage Loans—Advances” in this free writing prospectus supplement and “Description of the Securities—Advances” in the prospectus.
Fees and Expenses
Each servicer, the master servicer, the securities administrator, the trustee, the custodian and certificate insurer, if any, will receive compensation as described in the prospectus supplement.
The servicer, the master servicer, the securities administrator, the trustee, the custodian and the certificate insurer, if any, will also be entitled to reimbursement of certain expenses from the trust fund before payments are made on the certificates.
Optional Termination of the Trust Fund
The master servicer may, subject to certain conditions set forth in the pooling agreement, (1) purchase all of the mortgage loans and the other property of the trust fund when the total scheduled principal balance of the mortgage loans as of the last day of the related due period is equal to or less than the percentage specified in the related prospectus supplement of the total scheduled principal balance of all of the mortgage loans as of the cut-off date and (2) terminate the trust fund, subject to certain conditions set forth in the pooling agreement.
Material Federal Income Tax Consequences
In the opinion of McKee Nelson LLP, for federal income tax purposes, all or a portion of each trust fund will comprise one or more “real estate mortgage investment conduits” or REMICs. The offered certificates (other than any residual certificates) will represent ownership of REMIC regular interests, in some cases coupled with certain contractual rights and obligations. The residual certificates will represent the sole class of residual interests in one or more REMICs.
Legal Investment
Generally, offered certificates rated in one of the two highest generic rating categories by at least one nationally recognized statistical rating organization will constitute “mortgage related securities” for purposes of the Secondary Mortgage Market Enhancement Act of 1984, so long as they continue to have the required rating. You should consult your legal advisor in determining whether and to what extent the offered certificates constitute legal investments for you.
There are other restrictions on the ability of certain types of investors to purchase the offered certificates that prospective investors should consider.
We refer you to “Legal Investment” in the prospectus for more information.
ERISA Considerations
Generally, all of the offered certificates may be purchased by employee benefit plans or other retirement arrangements subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, or Section 4975 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, unless otherwise specified in the related prospectus supplement.
TRANSACTION STRUCTURE
RISK FACTORS
The following information, together with the information set forth under “Risk Factors” in the prospectus which you also should carefully consider, identifies the principal risks associated with an investment in the certificates.
Rights of the NIMS Insurer.
Pursuant to the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement, unless there exists a continuance of any failure by the NIMS Insurer, if any, to make a required payment under the policy insuring the net interest margin securities, any NIMS Insurer will be entitled to exercise, among others, the following rights of the holders of the offered certificates, without the consent of such holders, and the holders of the offered certificates may exercise such rights only with the prior written consent of such NIMS Insurer: (i) the right to provide notices of master servicer defaults and the right to direct the termination of the rights and obligations of the master servicer pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement in the event of a default by the master servicer; (ii) the right to remove the securities administrator, the trustee or any co-trustee, or custodians pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement; and (iii) the right to direct the t rustee or the securities administrator to take actions pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement. In addition, pursuant to the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement, unless a continuance of any failure by the NIMS Insurer, if any, to make a required payment under the policy insuring the net interest margin securities exists, such NIMS Insurer’s consent will be required prior to, among other things, (i) the removal or replacement of the master servicer, any successor master servicer, the securities administrator or the trustee, (ii) the appointment or termination of any servicer, subservicer or co-trustee or (iii) any amendment to the pooling and servicing agreement.
Investors in the offered certificates should note that:
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any insurance policy issued by the NIMS Insurer, if any, will not cover, and will not benefit in any manner whatsoever, the offered certificates;
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the rights to be granted to the NIMS Insurer, if any, are extensive;
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the interests of the NIMS Insurer, if any, may be inconsistent with, and adverse to the interests of the holders of the offered certificates and the NIMS Insurer, if any, has no obligation or duty to consider the interests of the offered certificates in connection with the exercise or nonexercise of such NIMS Insurer’s rights;
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such NIMS Insurer’s exercise of the rights and consents set forth above may negatively affect the offered certificates and the existence of such NIMS Insurer’s rights, whether or not exercised, may adversely affect the liquidity of the offered certificates relative to other asset-backed certificates backed by comparable loans and with comparable payment priorities and ratings; and
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there may be more than one series of notes insured by the NIMS Insurer and the NIMS Insurer will have the rights set forth herein so long as any such series of notes remain outstanding.
Prepayments on the mortgage loans may affect the yield on your certificates.
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If you purchase your certificates at a discount and principal is repaid slower than you anticipate, then your yield may be lower than you anticipate. For any class of certificates entitled to receive only payments of principal, a slower than expected repayment of principal may result in a lower than expected yield.
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If you purchase interest-only certificates or if you purchase other certificates at a premium and principal of the related mortgage loans (including prepayments) is repaid faster than you anticipate, then your yield may be lower than you anticipate. Prospective purchasers of any class of interest only certificates should carefully consider the risk that a rapid rate of principal payments on the mortgage loans could result in the failure of those purchasers to recover their initial investments. For any mortgage loan with a prepayment charge, the prepayment charge may or may not act as a deterrent to prepayment of the related mortgage loan. In addition, for a series of certificates with a pre-funding feature, to the extent any pre-funded amount on deposit in the pre-funding account is not used to purchase subsequent mortgage loans before the expiration of the pre-funding period, the distribution of all or a portion of the pre-funded amount will adversely affect the holders of interest-only certificates and may result in a lower than expected yield.
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Any time your principal is repaid to you at a time when you did not expect to receive it, you may not be able to reinvest your funds at the same rate or a higher rate of return than the interest rate on your certificates.
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If the actual characteristics and behavior of the mortgage loans differ from what you assumed, it can have a significant effect on the weighted average lives and yields of the certificates.
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With respect to any series containing negative amortization mortgage loans, the rate and timing of principal payments relative to the amount and timing of deferred interest on such negative amortization mortgage loans will affect the yield to maturity on the certificates.
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The rate of principal payments on pools of mortgage loans varies among pools and from time to time is influenced by a variety of economic, demographic, geographic, social, tax, legal and other factors, including prevailing mortgage market interest rates and the particular terms of the mortgage loans. There is no guarantee as to the actual rate of prepayment on the mortgage loans, or that the rate of prepayment will conform to any model described in this free writing prospectus supplement or in the prospectus. See “Prepayment and Yield Considerations” in this free writing prospectus supplement and “Yield Considerations” in the prospectus.
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The rate of prepayments on the mortgage loans will be sensitive to prevailing interest rates. Generally, if prevailing interest rates decline significantly below the interest rates on the mortgage loans, the mortgage loans are more likely to prepay than if prevailing rates remain above the interest rates on the mortgage loans. Conversely, if prevailing interest rates rise significantly, prepayments on the mortgage loans are likely to decrease.
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The related originator or the seller, as applicable, is required to purchase from the trust fund the related mortgage loans in the event certain breaches of representations and warranties occur and are not cured. These purchases will have the same effect on the holders of the offered certificates as a prepayment in full of the related mortgage loans.
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If the rate of default or the severity of losses on the mortgage loans is higher than you expect, then your yield may be lower than you expect.
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Under the principal payment priorities described in the related free writing prospectus, if prepayments in one loan group reduce the class principal balances of the related classes of senior certificates to zero, future payments that would otherwise be payable to the subordinate certificates may be used to pay outstanding senior certificates in the other loan group thereby reducing the amount distributable to the subordinate certificates and increasing the amount distributable to the senior certificates. If you purchase subordinate certificates and this occurs, your yield may be lower than you expect.
For any series containing negative amortization mortgage loans, your yield will be subject to any negative amortization on such mortgage loans.
With respect to any series containing negative amortization loans the following will apply. After an introductory period of up to three months after origination during which the interest rates on the negative amortization loans are fixed, the interest rates on negative amortization loans will adjust monthly but their monthly payments and amortization schedules adjust annually and are subject to payment caps. The interest rates on negative amortization mortgage loans during their introductory periods are lower than the sum of the indices applicable at origination and the related margins, and may be as low as approximately 1% per annum. Since the scheduled monthly payments on negative amortization loans for the first year are set at their origination, the scheduled monthly payments are based upon the introductory interest rates. As a result, after the introductory interest rates expire and until the initial annual adjus tment to the scheduled monthly payment made by the borrower, (unless the fully indexed mortgage rate is a rate at or below the introductory mortgage rate) the scheduled monthly payment made by the borrower will not be sufficient to pay the amount of interest accruing on the mortgage loan. If borrowers only make their scheduled monthly payments, a portion of the accrued interest on negatively amortizing loans will become “Deferred Interest”. Deferred Interest will be added to the related mortgage loan’s principal balance and will also bear interest at the applicable interest rate for that mortgage loan. In addition, due to the limit on the amount of the annual adjustment to the scheduled payment, the scheduled payment still may not be sufficient to avoid Deferred Interest after the first adjustment. Deferred Interest is also likely to result if interest rates rise more quickly than monthly payments are adjusted and borrowers only make their scheduled monthly payments.
In addition, the amount by which a monthly payment may be adjusted on an annual payment adjustment date is limited and may not be sufficient to amortize fully the unpaid principal balance of a mortgage loan over its remaining term to maturity. If the interest rates on the mortgage loans decrease prior to an adjustment in the monthly payment, a larger portion of the monthly payment will be applied to the unpaid principal balance of the mortgage loan, which may cause the classes of certificates to amortize more quickly. Conversely, if the interest rates on the mortgage loans increase prior to an adjustment in the monthly payment, a smaller portion of the monthly payment will be applied to the unpaid principal balance of the mortgage loan, which may cause the classes of certificates to amortize more slowly. Further, if a mortgage loan accrues Deferred Interest during a due period, it will reduce the amount of interest availabl e to be distributed as cash on the classes of certificates on the related distribution date. If the unpaid principal balance of a negative amortization loan exceeds the original balance of the mortgage loan by the amount specified in the related mortgage note, the monthly payment due on that negative amortization loan will be recast without regard to the payment cap in order to provide for the outstanding balance of the mortgage loan to be paid in full at its maturity. In addition, on the fifth payment adjustment date of a mortgage loan, and every fifth payment adjustment date thereafter and the last payment adjustment date prior to the mortgage loan’s maturity, the monthly payment due on that mortgage loan will be recast without regard to the related payment cap in order to provide for the outstanding balance of the mortgage loan to be paid in full at its maturity by the payment of equal monthly installments. These features may affect the rate at which principal on these mortgag e loans is paid and may create a greater risk of default if the borrowers are unable to pay the monthly payments on the related increased principal balances.
The amount of Deferred Interest, if any, for a given month will reduce the amount of interest collected on these mortgage loans and available to be distributed as a distribution of interest to the certificates. The resulting reduction in interest collections on the mortgage loans will be offset, in part or in whole, by applying scheduled and unscheduled principal payments received on the mortgage loans to interest distributions on the certificates. If principal payments are used to offset Deferred Interest on the mortgage loans, the amount of principal distributed on the certificates will be reduced. The slower reduction in the certificate principal balances due to the use of principal payments received on the mortgage loans to offset the Deferred Interest on those mortgage loans will have the effect of increasing the applicable investors’ exposure to realized losses on these mortgage loans.
For any distribution date, the net deferred interest on the mortgage loans will be deducted from the interest payable to the certificates and will be allocated to those certificates pro rata based on a certain formula. The amount of the reduction of accrued interest distributable to each class of certificates attributable to net deferred interest will be added to the certificate principal balance of that class. Any such allocation of net deferred interest could, as a result, increase the weighted average lives of the certificates. The increase in the certificate principal balance of any class of certificates and the slower reduction in the certificate principal balances due to the use of scheduled and unscheduled principal payments received on the mortgage loans to offset the Deferred Interest will have the effect of increasing the investors’ exposure to realized losses on the mortgage loans. In addit ion, because the allocation of scheduled and unscheduled payments of principal received on the mortgage loans between the classes of senior certificates and the subordinate certificates may be determined based on the relationship between the aggregate certificate principal balance of the senior certificates and the aggregate certificate principal balance of the subordinated certificates, this method of allocating net deferred interest may affect the rate and timing of distributions of principal among the classes of certificates. We cannot predict the extent to which borrowers will prepay their mortgage loans or the extent to which Deferred Interest will accrue on any negative amortization mortgage loans, and therefore cannot predict the extent of the effect of the allocation of net deferred interest on your certificates.
The pass-through rates on the certificates may be subject to a weighted average net rate cap.
With respect to certain series, the pass-through rates on certain of the offered certificates may be subject to a cap equal to the weighted average of the net mortgage rates of the mortgage loans adjusted, with respect to any insured certificates, to account for the premium payable to the certificate insurer. Therefore, the prepayment of the related mortgage loans with higher mortgage rates may result in a lower pass-through rate on such offered certificates.
To the extent that interest paid to a class of certificates is calculated based on a rate equal to a cap, the difference between that rate and the pass-through rate that would otherwise have been paid to that class of certificates absent such cap will create a shortfall. That shortfall will carry forward with interest thereon. These shortfalls may remain unpaid on the optional termination date or, if the optional termination is not exercised, on the final payment date. Any certificate insurance policy issued in connection with any insured certificates will not cover such shortfalls.
In addition, with respect to overcollateralization series, when the pass-through rates applicable to the certificates are limited by a cap, there may be little or no excess cash flow to cover losses and to maintain or restore the required level of overcollateralization. No assurance can be given that the excess cash flow that may be available to cover the shortfalls resulting from the limitation of the pass-through rates on the certificates will be sufficient for that purpose.
If credit enhancement is insufficient, you could experience losses on your certificates.
Credit enhancement will be provided for the offered certificates, first, by the right of the holders of offered certificates to receive payments before the classes subordinate to them and, second, only with respect to an overcollateralization series, by excess interest and overcollateralization, and third, by the allocation of realized losses on the mortgage loans to the subordinated classes in reverse order of their numerical class designations. Certain classes of certificates may be insured by a certificate insurance policy issued by a financial guaranty insurance company.
The first form of credit enhancement uses collections on the mortgage loans otherwise payable to holders of subordinated classes to pay interest or principal due on more senior classes of the related loan group. Collections otherwise payable to subordinated classes represent the sole source of funds from which this type of credit enhancement is provided.
The second form of credit enhancement, which applies only with respect to an overcollateralization series, is excess interest and overcollateralization. With respect to an overcollateralization series, the mortgage loans are expected to generate more interest than is needed to distribute interest owed on the offered certificates and to pay certain fees and expenses of the issuing entity. Any remaining interest generated by the mortgage loans will then be used to absorb losses that occur on the mortgage loans. After these financial obligations of the issuing entity are provided for, the available excess interest generated by the mortgage loans will be used to create and maintain overcollateralization. We cannot assure you, however, that enough excess interest will be generated to absorb losses that occur on the mortgage loans or create and maintain the required level of overcollateralization.
The third form of credit enhancement provides that (with respect to any overcollateralization series only, if realized losses exceed (1) the amount of excess interest available to absorb realized losses and (2) the amount of overcollateralization) realized losses from either loan group are allocated:
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first, to the subordinate certificates in the reverse order of their priority of payment, beginning with the subordinate certificates with the lowest payment priority, until the class principal balance of each such class has been reduced to zero, and
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second, to the class or classes of related senior certificates (other than any classes of interest-only certificates) until their respective class principal balances are reduced to zero; provided, that realized losses allocated to certain classes of senior certificates may be borne by certain other classes of senior certificates, referred to in this terms sheet supplement as senior support certificates, until the total class principal balance of such senior support certificates has been reduced to zero.
Accordingly, if the total principal balance of each subordinated class were to be reduced to zero, delinquencies and defaults on the mortgage loans in a loan group would reduce the amount of funds available for monthly payments to holders of the related senior certificates. In addition, with respect to a multi-group series, higher than expected losses on one group of mortgage loans will decrease the amount of credit support provided by the subordinate certificates to the senior certificates with respect to the other group or groups of mortgage loans.
It may not be possible to find an investor to purchase your certificates.
The underwriter intends to make a market for the purchase and sale of the offered certificates after their initial issuance but has no obligation to do so. There is no assurance that such a secondary market will develop for any class of certificates, or, if it develops, that it will continue. Consequently, investors may not be able to sell their certificates readily or at prices that will enable them to realize their desired yield. The market values of the certificates are likely to fluctuate. These fluctuations may be significant and could result in significant losses to investors. The secondary markets for mortgage-backed securities have experienced periods of illiquidity and can be expected to do so in the future. Illiquidity means you may not be able to find another investor to buy your certificates, which can have a severely adverse effect on the market value of your certificates. Illiquidity is more likely for classes that are especially sensitive to prepayment, credit, or interest rate risk, or that have been structured to meet the investment requirements of limited categories of investors. However, any class of certificates may experience illiquidity.
Certain certificates are subject to counterparty risk.
The issuing entity may enter into a yield maintenance agreement or agreements with the counterparty, for the benefit of certain certificates. The yield maintenance agreement or agreements will require the counterparty to make certain payments in the circumstances set forth in the prospectus supplement. The receipt of such amounts by such certificates will be subject to the credit risk of the counterparty.
Certain certificates may not receive amounts expected from a yield maintenance agreement.
Payments under a yield maintenance agreement that may be entered into, if any, for any distribution date will be based on a schedule of notional amounts which decreases during the life of the related yield maintenance agreement. The notional amounts will be derived using a specified percentage of a prepayment assumption on the related mortgage loans. The actual rate of payment on the mortgage loans is likely to differ from the specified percentage of the prepayment assumption used. If prepayments on the related mortgage loans occur at a rate slower than the rate used in determining the notional amounts, the total class principal balance of the certificates entitled to the benefits of the related yield maintenance agreement may be greater than such notional amount for a distribution date. For those certificates and any distribution date on which the related notional amount is lower than the actual total class principal balan ce of such classes of certificates, the amount paid by the counterparty under the related yield maintenance agreement may not be enough to pay the payments for which such amounts will be used on such distribution date, adversely affecting the yields on those certificates.
Payments from the mortgage loans will be the sole source of payments on the certificates, other than any insured certificates, which also will have the benefit of the related certificate insured policy.
The certificates do not represent an interest in or obligation of the sponsor, the depositor, the master servicer, the securities administrator, the custodians, the servicers, the trustee, the underwriter or any of their affiliates. However, the depositor does have limited obligations with respect to certain breaches of its representations and warranties. No governmental agency or instrumentality, the depositor, the sponsor, the master servicer, the servicers, the securities administrator, the custodians, the trustee, the underwriter nor any of their affiliates will guarantee or insure either the certificates or the mortgage loans. Consequently, if payments on the mortgage loans are insufficient or otherwise unavailable to make all payments required on the certificates, you will have no recourse to the depositor, the sponsor the master servicer, the servicers, the securities administrator, the custodians, the trustee, the u nderwriter or any of their affiliates. Any insured certificates will, however, have the benefit of the related certificate insurance policy.
Risks associated with forty-year mortgage loans.
Certain of the mortgage loans may have an original term to maturity of 480 months. These mortgage loans are a relatively new product and there is little statistical information or history with respect to defaults and prepayment experience for mortgage loans of this type. These mortgage loans may have a higher risk of default due to the fact that the borrowers of these mortgage loans may have significantly higher debt-to-income ratios than borrowers who would qualify for a conventional 360 month mortgage loan. It may be difficult to judge prospective defaults on these mortgage loans based on examination of the credit score used in determining the credit-worthiness of a prospective borrower because the borrower’s credit is subject to a greater possible fluctuation due the extended payment period. Furthermore, a term to maturity of 480 months permits the borrower to have a lower monthly payment than would be the cas e with the same down payment under a mortgage loan with a 360 month term to maturity.
Geographic concentration of the mortgage loans may adversely affect your certificates .
A significant concentration of the total principal balance of the mortgage loans may be secured by properties in California or other states. The rate of delinquencies, defaults and losses on the mortgage loans may be higher than if fewer of the mortgage loans were concentrated in those states because the following conditions in those states will have a disproportionate impact on the mortgage loans in general:
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Since 2001, California has experienced intermittent energy shortages that have resulted in unpredictable rolling blackouts and higher energy costs. This potential crisis could someday spread to other states and affect the entire nation. In addition, recently the cost of crude oil reached record highs. These higher energy and fuel costs could reduce the amount of money that the affected obligors have available to make monthly payments. Higher energy costs and blackouts could also cause business disruptions, which could cause unemployment and an economic downturn.
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Weak economic conditions, which may or may not affect real property values, may affect the ability of borrowers to repay their loans on time.
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Declines in the residential real estate market in those states may reduce the values of properties, which would result in an increase in the loan-to-value ratios.
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Properties in those states, particularly California, may be more susceptible than homes located in other parts of the country to certain types of uninsurable hazards, such as earthquakes, as well as storms, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, mudslides and other natural disasters.
Natural disasters affect regions of the United States from time to time, and may result in increased losses on mortgage loans in those regions, or in insurance payments that will constitute prepayments of those mortgage loans.
Default risk on high-balance mortgage loans.
As of the cut-off date, certain of the mortgage loans may have principal balances greater than $1,000,000. You should consider the risk that the loss and delinquency experience on these high balance mortgage loans may have a disproportionate effect on the related group and the pool of mortgage loans as a whole.
If the receipt of liquidation proceeds is delayed or if the liquidation proceeds are less than the mortgage loan balance, you could suffer a loss on your certificates.
Substantial delays could be encountered in connection with the liquidation of delinquent mortgage loans. Further, liquidation expenses such as legal fees, real estate taxes and maintenance and preservation expenses may reduce the portion of liquidation proceeds payable to you. If a mortgaged property fails to provide adequate security for the related mortgage loan, you will incur a loss on your investment if the credit enhancement is insufficient to cover that deficiency.
Increased risk of loss on the mortgage loans as a result of interest-only loans.
With respect to any series of certificates, certain of the mortgage loans may require the borrowers to make monthly payments of only accrued interest for a certain number of months or years following origination. Aftersuch interest-only period, the borrower’s monthly payment will be recalculated to cover both interest and principal so that the mortgage loan will amortize fully on or prior to its final payment date. When the borrower’s monthly payment increases, the borrower may not be able to pay the increased amount and may default or may refinance the related mortgage loan to avoid the higher payment. Because no principal payments are required to be made on such mortgage loans during the interest-only period, the certificateholders will receive smaller principal distributions during such period than they would have received if the related borrowers were required to make monthly payments of interest and princip al for the entire lives of such mortgage loans. This slower rate of principal distributions may reduce the return on the certificateholders’ investment.
Risks associated with mortgage loans secured by non-owner occupied properties.
Certain of the mortgage loans may be secured by properties acquired by investors for the purposes of rental income or capital appreciation, or by properties acquired as second homes. These mortgage loans tend to have higher severities of default than mortgage loans that are secured by properties that are regularly occupied by the related borrowers. In a default, real property investors who do not reside in the mortgaged property may be more likely to abandon the property, increasing the severity of the default.
Risks associated with balloon mortgage loans.
If so specified in the prospectus supplement relating to a series of certificates, the mortgage loans held by an issuing entity may include balloon loans, which are mortgage loans that do not provide for scheduled payments of principal that are sufficient to amortize the principal balance of the loan prior to maturity and which therefore will require the payment by the related borrower of a “balloon payment” of principal at maturity. Balloon loans involve a greater degree of risk because the ability of a borrower to make a balloon payment typically will depend upon the borrower’s ability either to timely refinance the mortgage loan or timely to sell the related mortgaged property.
Risks associated with seasoned mortgage loans.
If so specified in the prospectus supplement relating to the applicable series of certificates, the loan ages of some of the mortgage loans held by an issuing entity may be older than those of the other mortgage loans in that issuing entity or these mortgage loans may have been previously included in securitizations of the depositor and acquired upon exercise of an optional termination right. Generally, seasoned mortgage loans are believed to be less likely to prepay due to refinancing and are more likely to default than newly originated mortgage loans. In any case, the prepayment and default experience on well seasoned mortgage loans will likely differ from that on other mortgage loans.
Originators and servicers may be subject to litigation or governmental proceedings.
The mortgage lending and servicing business involves the collection of numerous accounts and compliance with various federal, state and local laws that regulate consumer lending. The originators and servicers may be subject from time to time to various types of claims, legal actions (including class action lawsuits), investigations, subpoenas and inquiries in the course of their business. It is impossible to predict the outcome of any particular actions, investigations or inquiries or the resulting legal and financial liability. If any such proceeding were determined adversely to any of the originators or servicers of the mortgage loans included in the trust fund and were to have a material adverse effect on its financial condition, the ability of such servicer to service the related mortgage loans in accordance with the servicing agreement, or the ability of such originator to fulfill its obligation to repurchase or substi tute for related defective mortgage loans, could be impaired.
The bankruptcy or insolvency of a servicer or the master servicer could further delay or reduce payments to you.
If a servicer or the master servicer becomes the subject of bankruptcy or similar proceedings, the trustee’s claim to collections in such servicer’s or the master servicer’s possession at the time of the bankruptcy filing or other similar filing may not be perfected. In this event, funds available to pay principal and interest on your certificates may be delayed or reduced.
Additionally, if a servicer defaults on its obligations under the related servicing agreement or the master servicer defaults on its obligations under the pooling and servicing agreement solely because it becomes insolvent, the bankruptcy court or other similar entity might have the power to prevent the appointment of a new servicer or master servicer, as applicable. In this event, the ability of that servicer or the master servicer to service or master service the mortgage loans or to oversee the servicers, as applicable, could be impaired by its bankruptcy or insolvency, and its actions would be supervised by the bankruptcy court or other similar entity, which could cause delays in payments being made on your certificates.
A transfer of servicing may result in higher delinquencies and defaults which may adversely affect the yield on your certificates.
With respect to any series of certificates, the sponsor may own the servicing rights with respect to certain of the mortgage loans and may elect to transfer the servicing of those mortgage loans to a qualified successor servicer in accordance with the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement. All transfers of servicing involve the risk of disruption in collections due to data input errors, misapplied or misdirected payments, system incompatibilities and other reasons. As a result, upon the occurrence of any servicing transfer, the rate of delinquencies and defaults is likely to increase at least for a period of time. There can be no assurance as to the extent or duration of any disruptions associated with any transfer of servicing or as to the resulting effects on the yield on your certificates.
Attempted recharacterization of the transfer from the sponsor to the depositor and from the depositor to the trust could delay or reduce payments to you.
We expect that the transfer of the mortgage loans from the sponsor to the depositor, and from the depositor to the trust will each be characterized as a sale. Each of the sponsor and the depositor has documented its respective transfer as a sale. However, a bankruptcy trustee or creditor of the sponsor may take the position that the transfer of the mortgage loans to the depositor should be recharacterized as a pledge of the mortgage loans to secure a loan. If so, the depositor would be required to participate in or appear in court proceedings to establish its rights to collections on the mortgage loans. Similarly, a bankruptcy trustee or creditor of the depositor may take the position that the transfer of the mortgage loans to the trust should be recharacterized as a pledge of the mortgage loans to secure a loan. If so, the Trustee would be required to participate in or appear in court proceedings to establish i ts rights to collections on the mortgage loans. If either or both of these events occur, payments on your certificates could be delayed or reduced.
The return on your certificates could be reduced by shortfalls due to the application of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and similar state or local laws.
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (the “Relief Act”) and similar state or local laws provide relief to borrowers who enter active military service and to borrowers in reserve status who are called to active military service after the origination of their mortgage loans. The ongoing military operations of the United States in Iraq and Afghanistan have caused an increase in the number of citizens in active military duty, including those citizens previously in reserve status. Under the Relief Act, the interest rate applicable to a mortgage loan for which the related borrower is called to active military service will be reduced from the percentage stated in the related mortgage note to 6.00%. This interest rate reduction and any reduction provided under similar state or local laws could result in an interest shortfall because neither the master servicer nor the related servicer will be able to collect the amount of interest which oth erwise would be payable with respect to such mortgage loan if the Relief Act or similar state or local law was not applicable thereto. This shortfall will not be paid by the borrower on future due dates or advanced by the master servicer or the related servicer and, therefore, will reduce the amount available to pay interest to the certificateholders on subsequent distribution dates. Any certificate insurance policy issued in connection with any insured certificates will not cover such shortfalls. We do not know how many mortgage loans in the mortgage pool have been or may be affected by the application of the Relief Act or similar state or local laws.
To the extent amounts on deposit in any pre-funding account are not used, there may be a mandatory prepayment on the certificates.
With respect to any pre-funded series, to the extent that the pre-funded amount on deposit in the pre-funding account has not been fully applied to the purchase of subsequent mortgage loans on or before the end of the pre-funding period, the holders of the certificates entitled to principal will receive on the distribution date immediately following the end of the pre-funding period, the pre-funded amount remaining after the purchase of subsequent mortgage loans as a payment of principal in accordance with the priorities set forth in this prospectus supplement. Although no assurance can be given, the depositor intends that, with respect to any pre-funded series, the principal amount of subsequent mortgage loans sold to the trustee will require the application of substantially all amounts on deposit in the pre-funding account and that there will be no material principal payment to the holders of the certificates on the distribution date immed iately following the end of the pre-funding period.
Suitability of the offered certificates as investments.
The offered certificates are not suitable investments for any investor that requires a regular or predictable schedule of monthly payments or payment on any specific date. The offered certificates are complex investments that should be considered only by investors who, either alone or with their financial, tax and legal advisors, have the expertise to analyze the prepayment, reinvestment, default and market risk, and the tax consequences of an investment and the interaction of these factors.
FICO scores are not an indicator of future performance of mortgagors.
Investors are encouraged to be aware that FICO scores are based on past payment history of the mortgagor. Investors are encouraged not to rely on FICO scores as an indicator of future borrower performance.
Information regarding historical performance of other mortgage loans may not be indicative of the performance of the loans in the trust fund.
A variety of factors may affect the performance of any pool of mortgage loans during any particular period of time. In addition, differing loan characteristics or external factors may cause the performance of the mortgage loans included in the trust fund to differ from the performance of other loans of a similar type. When examining data regarding the historical performance of pools of mortgage loans, prospective investors should consider, among other things:
·
differences in loan type;
·
the relative seasoning of the pools;
·
differences in interest rates, credit quality and any of various other material pool characteristics, both at formation of a pool and over time;
·
the extent to which the loans in a pool have prepayment penalties;
·
whether the loans were originated by different lenders, and the extent to which the underwriting guidelines differed; and
·
whether the loans were serviced by different servicers.
In particular, prospective investors should consider that, both in the case of comparable pools of mortgage loans and of the mortgage loans in the trust fund, historical loan performance during a period of rising home values may differ significantly from the future performance of similar loans during a period of stable or declining home values.
Recent developments in the residential mortgage market may adversely affect the performance and market value of your securities.
Recently, the residential mortgage market in the United States has experienced a variety of difficulties and changed economic conditions that may adversely affect the performance and market value of your securities. Delinquencies and losses with respect to residential mortgage loans generally have increased in recent months, and may continue to increase, particularly in the subprime sector. In addition, in recent months housing prices and appraisal values in many states have declined or stopped appreciating, after extended periods of significant appreciation. A continued decline or an extended flattening of those values may result in additional increases in delinquencies and losses on residential mortgage loans generally, particularly with respect to second homes and investor properties and with respect to any residential mortgage loans whose aggregate loan amounts (including any subordinate liens) are close to or greater than the related pr operty values.
Another factor that may have contributed to, and may in the future result in, higher delinquency rates is the increase in monthly payments on adjustable rate mortgage loans. Borrowers with adjustable payment mortgage loans are being exposed to increased monthly payments when the related mortgage interest rate adjusts upward from the initial fixed rate or a low introductory rate, as applicable, to the rate computed in accordance with the applicable index and margin. This increase in borrowers’ monthly payments, together with any increase in prevailing market interest rates, may result in significantly increased monthly payments for borrowers with adjustable rate mortgage loans.
Borrowers seeking to avoid these increased monthly payments by refinancing their mortgage loans may no longer be able to find available replacement loans at comparably low interest rates. A decline in housing prices may also leave borrowers with insufficient equity in their homes to permit them to refinance, and in addition, many mortgage loans have prepayment premiums that inhibit refinancing. Furthermore, borrowers who intend to sell their homes on or before the expiration of the fixed rate periods on their mortgage loans may find that they cannot sell their properties for an amount equal to or greater than the unpaid principal balance of their loans. These events, alone or in combination, may contribute to higher delinquency rates.
THE ORIGINATORS
With respect to each series of certificates, the related free writing prospectus will identify and provide information with respect to the principal originators of the mortgage loans and their related underwriting standards.
ISSUING ENTITY
The issuing entity will be a common law trust formed under the laws of the State of New York pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement. The pooling and servicing agreement constitutes the “governing instrument” under the laws of the State of New York. After its formation, the issuing entity will not engage in any activity other than (i) acquiring and holding the mortgage loans and the other assets of the trust fund and proceeds therefrom, (ii) issuing the certificates, (iii) making payments on the certificates and payments to the certificate insurer, if any, in respect of the premium and reimbursement amounts and (iv) engaging in other activities that are necessary, suitable or convenient to accomplish the foregoing or are incidental thereto or connected therewith. The foregoing restrictions are contained in the pooling and servicing agreement. These restrictions cannot be amende d without the consent of holders of certificates evidencing at least 51% of the voting rights and, in the event such amendment would be adverse to the certificate insurer, if any, without the consent of the certificate insurer. For a description of other provisions relating to amending the pooling and servicing agreement, see “Description of the Agreements—Amendment” in the prospectus.
The assets of the issuing entity will consist of the mortgage loans and certain related assets.
The issuing entity’s fiscal year end is December 31.
THE DEPOSITOR
ACE Securities Corp., the Depositor, is a special purpose corporation incorporated in the State of Delaware on June 3, 1998. The principal executive offices of the Depositor are located at 6525 Morrison Boulevard, Suite 318, Charlotte, North Carolina 28211. Its telephone number is (704) 365-0569. The Depositor does not have, nor is it expected in the future to have, any significant assets.
The limited purposes of the Depositor are, in general, to acquire, own and sell mortgage loans and financial assets; to issue, acquire, own, hold and sell securities and notes secured by or representing ownership interests in mortgage loans and other financial assets, collections on the mortgage loans and related assets; and to engage in any acts that are incidental to, or necessary, suitable or convenient to accomplish, these purposes. The Depositor has been serving as a private secondary mortgage market conduit for residential mortgage loans since 1999. Since that time it has been involved in the issuance of securities backed by residential mortgage loans in excess of $30 billion. After issuance and registration of the securities contemplated in this free writing prospectus supplement, the prospectus and any supplement hereto, the depositor will have no material duties or responsibilities with respect to the pool assets or secu rities.
All of the shares of capital stock of the Depositor are held by Altamont Holdings Corp., a Delaware corporation.
THE SPONSOR
DB Structured Products, Inc. is the sponsor. The sponsor was incorporated in the State of Delaware on February 4, 1970 under the name “Sharps Pixley Incorporated”. The name of the sponsor was changed on January 3, 1994 to Deutsche Bank Sharps Pixley Inc., and subsequently changed on January 2, 2002 to DB Structured Products, Inc. The sponsor maintains its principal office at 60 Wall Street, New York, New York 10005. Its telephone number is (212) 250-2500.
In 2007, the sponsor has purchased over $18 billion in residential mortgage loans. This includes the purchase of newly originated non-agency loans, as well as seasoned, program exception, sub-performing and non-performing loans. The sponsor is responsible for pooling the mortgage loans to be securitized by the depositor, negotiating the principal securitization transaction documents and participating with the underwriter in the structuring of such transactions.
The sponsor has been securitizing residential mortgage loans since 2004. The following table describes the size, composition and growth of the sponsor’s total portfolio of assets it has securitized as of the dates indicated.
|
| December 31, 2005 |
| December 31, 2006 | ||||
|
|
|
| Total Portfolio |
|
|
| Total Portfolio |
|
|
|
| of Loans |
|
|
| of Loans |
Loan Type |
| Number |
| ($) |
| Number |
| ($) |
Alt-A/Alt-B ARM………. |
| 3,466 |
| 1,088,327,305 |
| 26,609 |
| 8,141,028,206 |
Alt-A/Alt-B Fixed………. |
| 17,892 |
| 3,361,707,721 |
| 35,239 |
| 4,976,189,203 |
Scratch & Dent/Reperf… |
| 4,913 |
| 500,710,103 |
| 2,607 |
| 468,926,300 |
Seconds………………… |
| 5,227 |
| 258,281,341 |
| 36,822 |
| 2,082,515,320 |
SubPrime………………. |
| 71,747 |
| 13,066,859,416 |
| 96,052 |
| 18,022,392,642 |
Seasoned………………. |
| 1,827 |
| 165,210,069 |
| ---- |
| ---- |
TOTAL: |
| 105,072 |
| 18,441,095,955 |
| 197,329 |
| 33,691,051,671 |
|
| June 29, 2007 | ||
|
|
|
| Total Portfolio |
|
|
|
| of Loans |
Loan Type |
| Number |
| ($) |
Alt-A/Alt-B ARM………. |
| 23,987 |
| 9,189,305,873 |
Alt-A/Alt-B Fixed………. |
| 8,446 |
| 2,243,350,108 |
Scratch & Dent/Reperf… |
| ---- |
| ---- |
Seconds………………… |
| 10,254 |
| 566,490,497 |
SubPrime………………. |
| 36,499 |
| 6,902,269,021 |
Seasoned………………. |
| ---- |
| ---- |
TOTAL: |
| 79,186 |
| 18,901,415,499 |
STATIC POOL INFORMATION
Static pool information material to this offering may be found at http://regab.db.com.
Various factors may affect the prepayment, delinquency and loss performance of the mortgage loans over time. The various mortgage loan groups for which performance information is shown at the above internet address had initial characteristics that differed, and may have differed in ways that were material to the performance of those mortgage groups. These differing characteristics include, among others, product type, credit quality, geographic concentration, originator concentration, servicer concentration, average principal balance, weighted average interest rate, weighted average loan-to-value ratio, weighted average term to maturity, and the presence or absence of prepayment penalties. In particular, prospective investors should note that certain of the mortgage groups for which performance information is shown consist in whole or in part of loans that have negative amortization features, while other mortgage groups do n ot include negative amortization loans. We do not make any representation, and you should not assume, that the performance information shown at the above internet address is in any way indicative of the performance of the mortgage loans in the trust fund.
THE SERVICERS
With respect to each series of certificates, the related prospectus supplement will identify and provide information with respect to the principal servicers of the mortgage loans.
SERVICING OF THE MORTGAGE LOANS
Servicing and Other Compensation and Payment of Expenses
Each servicer will provide customary servicing functions with respect to the mortgage loans serviced by such servicer pursuant to certain servicing agreements between the applicable servicer and DB Structured Products, Inc. Among other things, the servicers are obligated under some circumstances to make Advances with respect to the mortgage loans. In managing the liquidation of defaulted mortgage loans, the servicers will have sole discretion to take such action in maximizing recoveries to the certificateholders including, without limitation, selling defaulted mortgage loans and REO properties as described in the related servicing agreement.
With respect to each mortgage loan, the amount of the servicing fee that will be paid to the related servicer or a weighted average servicing fee, as applicable, will be specified in the related prospectus supplement for each series. The servicing fees will be payable monthly, computed on the basis of the same principal amount and period respecting which any related interest payment on such mortgage loan is computed. As additional servicing compensation, the applicable servicer is entitled to retain all assumption fees, late payment charges and other miscellaneous servicing fees in respect of the mortgage loans serviced by it, to the extent collected from mortgagors, together with any interest or other income earned on funds held in the custodial account and any escrow accounts established by such servicer.
Each servicer is obligated to pay insurance premiums and other ongoing expenses associated with the mortgage loans serviced by it incurred by such servicer in connection with its responsibilities under the related servicing agreement and is entitled to reimbursement for these expenses as provided in the related servicing agreement. See “Description of the Agreements–Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Servicing Agreements–Retained Interest, Servicing Compensation and Payment of Expenses” in the prospectus for information regarding expenses payable by the applicable servicer.
With respect to certain series, the sponsor may have the right to transfer the servicing of certain mortgage loans to a successor servicer which is qualified to service mortgage loans for Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. The appointment of any successor servicer requires the consent of the master servicer, which consent may not be unreasonably withheld, and confirmation from the rating agencies that the transfer of servicing will not result in a qualification, withdrawal or downgrade of the then-current ratings of any of the offered certificates, although there can be no guaranty that such transfer will not have an adverse impact on rates of delinquencies, defaults and losses. See “Risk Factors—A transfer of servicing may result in higher delinquencies and defaults which may adversely affect the yield on your certificates” in this free writing prospectus supplement. Any expenses incurred by the master servicer related to the t ransfer of servicing to a successor servicer will be reimbursed by the sponsor or the successor servicer.
Payments on Mortgage Loans; Deposits to Custodial Accounts
Each servicer will establish and maintain or cause to be established and maintained a separate trust account (a “Custodial Account”) for the benefit of the certificateholders. Each Custodial Account will be an eligible account (or similar term as defined in the related servicing agreement). Upon receipt by the applicable servicer of amounts in respect of the mortgage loans serviced by it (excluding amounts representing the applicable servicing fee or other servicing compensation, reimbursement for Advances and servicing advances and insurance proceeds to be applied to the restoration or repair of a mortgaged property or similar items), the applicable servicer will deposit such amounts in the related Custodial Account. Amounts so deposited may be invested in accordance with the terms of the related servicing agreement in investments maturing no later than one business day prior to the date on which the amount on d eposit therein is required to be remitted to the securities administrator if such investment is managed by a person other than the related servicer or the securities administrator, or maturing on the business day on which the amount on deposit therein is required to be remitted to the securities administrator if such investment is managed by the related servicer or the securities administrator. All investment income on funds in the related Custodial Account will be for the benefit of the applicable servicer.
Advances
Subject to the limitations set forth in the following paragraph, each servicer will be obligated to advance or cause to be advanced on or before each determination date from its own funds, an amount equal to the aggregate of all payments of principal and interest, net of its servicing fee, that were due on the mortgage loans serviced by it and that were delinquent on the related determination date, plus amounts representing assumed payments not covered by any current net income on the related mortgaged properties acquired by foreclosure or deed in lieu of foreclosure (any such advance, an “Advance”).
Advances are required to be made only to the extent they are deemed by the applicable servicer to be recoverable from related late collections, insurance proceeds or liquidation proceeds. The purpose of making the Advances is to maintain a regular cash flow to the certificateholders, rather than to guarantee or insure against losses.
All Advances will be reimbursable to the applicable servicer from late collections, insurance proceeds and liquidation proceeds from the mortgage loan as to which the Advance was made. In addition, any Advances previously made in respect of any mortgage loan that are deemed by the applicable servicer to be nonrecoverable from related late collections, insurance proceeds or liquidation proceeds may be reimbursed to the applicable servicer out of any funds in the related custodial account prior to the distributions on the certificates. In the event that the applicable servicer fails in its obligation to make any required Advance, the master servicer, as successor servicer, or other successor servicer will be obligated to make the Advance, in each case, to the extent required in the pooling and servicing agreement.
Compensating Interest
The servicers or the master servicer, as applicable, will pay amounts referred to herein as “Compensating Interest” in the manner and to the extent set forth in the related prospectus supplement to reduce the adverse effect on certificateholders from the deficiency in interest collected as a result of prepayments in full or in part on the related mortgage loans.
With respect to the master servicer, if the servicers fail to pay the amount of any Compensating Interest required to be paid on that distribution date, the master servicer will be required to deposit into the Distribution Account as a payment of Compensating Interest the lesser of (i) the amount required to be paid by the servicers and not so paid and (ii) the master servicing compensation for such distribution date.
Modifications
In instances in which a mortgage loan is in default or if default is reasonably foreseeable, and if determined by the related servicer to be in the best interest of the certificateholders, that servicer may permit servicing modifications of the mortgage loan rather than proceeding with foreclosure. However, each servicer’s ability to perform servicing modifications will be subject to some limitations, including but not limited to the following: any amounts added to the principal balance of the mortgage loan, or capitalized amounts added to the mortgage loan, will be required to be fully amortized over the remaining term, or the extended term, of the mortgage loan; all capitalizations are to be implemented in accordance with the related servicer’s standards and may be implemented only by that servicer for that purpose; the final maturity of any mortgage loan will not be extended beyond the assumed final distribution date; and no ser vicing modification with respect to a mortgage loan will have the effect of reducing the mortgage rate below one half of the mortgage rate as in effect on the cut-off date, but not less than the servicing fee rate.
Any advances made on any mortgage loan will be reduced to reflect any related servicing modifications previously made. The mortgage rate and net mortgage rate as to any mortgage loan will be deemed not reduced by any servicing modification, so that the calculation of the Interest Distribution Amount (as defined in the related prospectus supplement) payable on the offered certificates will not be affected by the servicing modification.
Specially Serviced Mortgage Loans; Optional Purchase of Defaulted Mortgage Loans
A series of certificates may provide that upon a mortgage loan becoming ninety days or more delinquent, the holder of the majority interest in a specified subordinate class may at its sole opinion designate and transfer to a special servicer all servicing rights and responsibilities for that mortgage loan. Upon designation of the special servicer, the servicer for that mortgage loan will be terminated. Additionally, the master servicer or another entity specified in the related prospectus supplement may purchase from the trust fund within ninety days of a mortgage loan becoming ninety days delinquent that mortgage loan at a price described in the related prospectus supplement.
Upon appointment of a special servicer, all provisions of the pooling and servicing agreement shall be binding on the special servicer.
Evidence as to Compliance
The pooling and servicing agreement and each servicing agreement will provide that each year on or before the date set forth therein, beginning with the first year after the year in which the cut-off date occurs, each party responsible for the servicing function will provide to the depositor and the master servicer a report on an assessment of compliance with the minimum servicing criteria established in Item 1122(a) of Regulation AB (the “AB Servicing Criteria”). The AB Servicing Criteria include specific criteria relating to the following areas: general servicing considerations, cash collection and administration, investor remittances and reporting, and pool asset administration. Such report will indicate that the AB Servicing Criteria were used to test compliance on a platform level basis and will set out any material instances of noncompliance.
The pooling and servicing agreement and each servicing agreement will also provide that each party responsible for the servicing function will deliver along with its report on assessment of compliance, an attestation report from a firm of independent public accountants on the assessment of compliance with the AB Servicing Criteria.
The pooling and servicing agreement and each servicing agreement will also provide for delivery to the securities administrator each year, on or before the date set forth in the pooling and servicing agreement, of a separate annual statement of compliance from each entity responsible for the servicing function to the effect that, to the best knowledge of the signing officer, such entity has fulfilled in all material respects its obligations under the pooling and servicing agreement throughout the preceding year or, if there has been a material failure in the fulfillment of any obligation, the statement will specify such failure and the nature and status thereof.
Copies of the annual reports of assessment of compliance, attestation reports, and statements of compliance, if not available on the securities administrator’s website, may be obtained by securityholders without charge upon written request to the securities administrator at the address of the securities administrator set forth in the prospectus supplement. These items will be filed with the issuing entity’s annual report on Form 10-K, unless otherwise specified in the related pooling and servicing agreement.
THE SECURITIES ADMINISTRATOR, THE MASTER SERVICER AND THE CUSTODIANS
Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
General
Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (“Wells Fargo Bank”) will act as securities administrator and master servicer under the Pooling and Servicing Agreement and as a Custodian under a custodial agreement (the “Wells Fargo Custodial Agreement”), dated as of July 1, 2007, by and among the trustee, the applicable servicers and Wells Fargo Bank as custodian. Wells Fargo Bank is a national banking association and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wells Fargo & Company. A diversified financial services company with approximately $482 billion in assets, 23+ million customers and 158,000+ employees as of December 31, 2006, Wells Fargo & Company is a U.S. bank holding company, providing banking, insurance, trust, mortgage and consumer finance services throughout the United States and internationally. Wells Fargo Bank provides retail and commercial banking services and corporate trust, custody, securities lendi ng, securities transfer, cash management, investment management and other financial and fiduciary services. The depositor, the sponsor and the servicers may maintain banking and other commercial relationships with Wells Fargo Bank and its affiliates. Wells Fargo Bank maintains principal corporate trust offices located at 9062 Old Annapolis Road, Columbia, Maryland 21045-1951 (among other locations), and its office for certificate transfer services is located at Sixth Street and Marquette Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55479.
Wells Fargo Bank’s assessment of compliance with applicable servicing criteria relating to its provision of master servicing, trustee, securities administration and paying agent services for the twelve months ended December 31, 2006, furnished pursuant to Item 1122 of Regulation AB, discloses that it was not in compliance with the 1122(d)(3)(i) servicing criteria during that reporting period. The assessment of compliance indicates that certain monthly investor or remittance reports included errors in the calculation and/or the reporting of delinquencies for the related pool assets, which errors may or may not have been material, and that all such errors were the result of data processing errors and/or the mistaken interpretation of data provided by other parties participating in the servicing function. The assessment further states that all necessary adjustments to Wells Fargo Bank’s data processing systems and/or interpretive clar ifications have been made to correct those errors and to remedy related procedures.
Wells Fargo Bank serves or may have served within the past two years as loan file custodian for various mortgage loans owned by the sponsor or an affiliate of the sponsor and anticipates that one or more of those mortgage loans may be included in the trust. The terms of any custodial agreement under which those services are provided by Wells Fargo Bank are customary for the mortgage-backed securitization industry and provide for the delivery, receipt, review and safekeeping of mortgage loan files.
Securities Administrator
Under the terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreement, Wells Fargo Bank also is responsible for securities administration, which includes pool performance calculations, distribution calculations and the preparation of monthly distribution reports. As securities administrator, Wells Fargo Bank is responsible for the preparation and filing of all REMIC tax returns on behalf of the trust REMICs and the preparation of monthly reports on Form 10-D, certain current reports on Form 8-K and annual reports on Form 10-K that are required to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on behalf of the issuing trust. Wells Fargo Bank has been engaged in the business of securities administration since June 30, 1995. As of December 31, 2006, Wells Fargo Bank was acting as securities administrator with respect to more than $1,006,418,000,000 of outstanding residential mortgage-backed securities.
Master Servicer
Wells Fargo Bank acts as master servicer pursuant to the Pooling and Servicing Agreement. The master servicer is responsible for the aggregation of monthly servicer reports and remittances and for the oversight of the performance of the servicers under the terms of their respective servicing agreements. In particular, the master servicer independently calculates monthly loan balances based on servicer data, compares its results to servicer loan-level reports and reconciles any discrepancies with the servicers. The master servicer also reviews the servicing of defaulted loans for compliance with the terms of each respective servicing agreement. In addition, upon the occurrence of certain servicer events of default under the terms of each respective servicing agreement, the master servicer may be required to enforce certain remedies on behalf of the issuing entity and at the direction of the trustee against such defaulting se rvicer. Wells Fargo Bank has been engaged in the business of master servicing since June 30, 1995. As of December 31, 2006, Wells Fargo Bank was acting as master servicer for approximately 1,427 series of residential mortgage-backed securities with an aggregate outstanding principal balance of approximately $748,854,000,000.
Custodian
As custodian under the Wells Fargo Custodial Agreement, Wells Fargo Bank is responsible for holding and safeguarding the mortgage notes and other contents of the mortgage files on behalf of the trustee and the certificateholders. Wells Fargo Bank maintains each mortgage loan file in a separate file folder marked with a unique bar code to assure loan-level file integrity and to assist in inventory management. Files are segregated by transaction or investor. Wells Fargo Bank has been engaged in the mortgage document custody business for more than 25 years. Wells Fargo Bank maintains document custody facilities in its Minneapolis, Minnesota headquarters and in three regional offices located in Richfield, Minnesota, Irvine, California, and Salt Lake City, Utah. As of December 31, 2006, Wells Fargo Bank maintains mortgage custody vaults in each of those locations with an aggregate capacity of over eleven million files.
The Distribution Account
Pursuant to the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement, the securities administrator will establish and maintain a separate account (a “Distribution Account”) for the benefit of the certificateholders and any certificate insurer. The Distribution Account will be an Eligible Account (as defined in the pooling and servicing agreement). Amounts on deposit therein may be invested in Eligible Investments (at the direction and for the benefit of the master servicer) maturing no later than one business day prior to the related distribution date unless such Eligible Investments are invested in investments managed or advised by the securities administrator or an affiliate thereof, in which case such Eligible investments may mature on the related distribution date. All investment income on funds in the Distribution Account will be for the benefit of the master servicer.
Any one or more of the following obligations or securities held in the name of the trustee for the benefit of the certificateholders will be considered a Eligible Investment:
(i)
obligations of the United States or any agency thereof, provided such obligations are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States;
(ii)
general obligations of or obligations guaranteed by any state of the United States or the District of Columbia receiving the highest long-term debt rating of each rating agency, or such lower rating as will not result in the downgrading or withdrawal of the ratings then assigned to the certificates by each rating agency, as evidenced in writing;
(iii)
commercial or finance company paper which is then receiving the highest commercial or finance company paper rating of each rating agency, or such lower rating as will not result in the downgrading or withdrawal of the ratings then assigned to the certificates by each rating agency, as evidenced in writing;
(iv)
certificates of deposit, demand or time deposits, or bankers’ acceptances issued by any depository institution or trust company incorporated under the laws of the United States or of any state thereof and subject to supervision and examination by federal and/or state banking authorities (including the trustee in its commercial banking capacity), provided that the commercial paper and/or long term unsecured debt obligations of such depository institution or trust company are then rated one of the two highest long-term and the highest short-term ratings of each such rating agency for such securities, or such lower ratings as will not result in the downgrading or withdrawal of the rating then assigned to the certificates by any rating agency, as evidenced in writing;
(v)
repurchase obligations with respect to any security described in clauses (i) and (ii) above, in either case entered into with a depository institution or trust company (acting as principal) described in clause (v) above;
(vi)
securities (other than stripped bonds, stripped coupons or instruments sold at a purchase price in excess of 115% of the face amount thereof) bearing interest or sold at a discount issued by any corporation incorporated under the laws of the United States or any state thereof which, at the time of such investment, have one of the two highest short term ratings of each rating agency (except if the rating agency is Moody’s, such rating will be the highest commercial paper rating of Moody’s for any such securities), or such lower rating as will not result in the downgrading or withdrawal of the rating then assigned to the certificates by each rating agency, as evidenced by a signed writing delivered by each rating agency;
(vii)
interests in any money market fund (including any such fund managed or advised by the securities administrator or any affiliate thereof) which at the date of acquisition of the interests in such fund and throughout the time such interests are held in such fund has the highest applicable short term rating by each rating agency rating such fund or such lower rating as will not result in the downgrading or withdrawal of the ratings then assigned to the certificates by each rating agency, as evidenced in writing;
(viii)
short term investment funds sponsored by any trust company or banking association incorporated under the laws of the United States or any state thereof (including any such fund managed or advised by the trustee or the master servicer or any affiliate thereof) which on the date of acquisition has been rated by each rating agency rating such fund in their respective highest applicable rating category or such lower rating as will not result in the downgrading or withdrawal of the ratings then assigned to the certificates by each rating agency, as evidenced in writing; and
(ix)
such other investments having a specified stated maturity and bearing interest or sold at a discount acceptable to each rating agency and as will not result in the downgrading or withdrawal of the rating then assigned to the certificates by any rating agency, as evidenced by a signed writing delivered by each rating agency.
Master Servicing and Other Compensation and Payment of Expenses
Unless otherwise specified in the related prospectus supplement, the principal compensation to be paid to the master servicer on each distribution date in respect of its master servicing activities will be interest or other income earned on funds held in the Distribution Account. Unless otherwise specified in the related prospectus supplement, the agreed-upon fees of the trustee and the securities administrator shall be paid by the master servicer in accordance with a related pooling and servicing agreement.
In the event that the servicers fail to pay the amount of any Compensating Interest required to be paid on any distribution date, the master servicer will be required to pay such amounts up to the master servicing compensation payable to the master servicer on such distribution date.
Events of Default and Removal of Master Servicer
Upon the occurrence of events of default described under “Description of the Agreements—Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Servicing Agreements—Events of Default under the Agreement” and “—Rights Upon Events of Default under the Agreements” in the prospectus, the master servicer may be removed as master servicer of the mortgage loans in accordance with the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement.
Any successor to the master servicer appointed under the pooling and servicing agreement must be a housing loan servicing institution, acceptable to each rating agency, with a net worth at the time of the appointment of at least $15,000,000. See “Description of the Agreements—Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Servicing Agreements—Events of Default under the Agreement” and “—Rights Upon Events of Default under the Agreements” in the prospectus.
Transfer of Master Servicing
The master servicer may sell and assign its rights and delegate its duties and obligations in its entirety as master servicer under the pooling and servicing agreement; provided, however, that: (i) the purchaser or transferee will be required to accept in writing such assignment and delegation and assume the obligations of the master servicer under the pooling and servicing agreement and (a) will be required to have a net worth of not less than $25,000,000 (unless otherwise approved by each rating agency pursuant to clause (ii) below); (b) will be required to be reasonably satisfactory to the trustee (as evidenced in a writing signed by the trustee); and (c) will be required to execute and deliver to the trustee an agreement, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the trustee, which contains an assumption by such person of the due and punctual performance and observance of each covenant and condition to be performed or observed by it as master servicer under the pooling and servicing agreement; (ii) each rating agency will be given prior written notice of the identity of the proposed successor to the master servicer and each rating agency’s rating of the certificates in effect immediately prior to such assignment, sale and delegation will not be downgraded, qualified or withdrawn as a result of such assignment, sale and delegation, as evidenced by a letter to such effect delivered to the master servicer and the trustee; and (iii) the master servicer assigning and selling the master servicing will be required to deliver to the trustee an officer’s certificate and an opinion of independent counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent to such action under the pooling and servicing agreement have been completed and such action is permitted by and complies with the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement. No such assignment or delegation will affect any liability of the master servicer arising out of acts or omi ssions prior to the effective date thereof.
Indemnification
The master servicer and any director, officer, employee or agent of the master servicer will be indemnified and held harmless by the issuing entity against any loss, liability or expense as set forth in the pooling and servicing agreement.
The securities administrator and any director, officer, employee or agent of the securities administrator will be indemnified and held harmless by the issuing entity against any loss, liability or expense as set forth in the pooling and servicing agreement.
The custodians and any director, officer, employee or agent of the custodian will be indemnified and held harmless by the issuing entity against any loss, liability or expense as set forth in the custodial agreements.
THE TRUSTEE
An entity will be appointed to serve as trustee under the pooling and servicing agreement. The depositor and the master servicer may maintain other banking relationships in the ordinary course of business with the trustee.
The trustee, prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default and after the curing or waiver of all Events of Default which may have occurred, will undertake to perform such duties and only such duties as are specifically set forth in the pooling and servicing agreement as duties of the trustee, including:
1.
Upon receipt of all resolutions, certificates, statements, opinions, reports, documents, orders or other instruments which are specifically required to be furnished to the trustee pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement, the trustee (or its custodian, if applicable) will be required to examine them to determine whether they are in the required form; provided, however, that the trustee will not be responsible for the accuracy or content of any resolution, certificate, statement, opinion, report, document, order or other instrument furnished hereunder; provided, further, that the trustee will not be responsible for the accuracy or verification of any calculation provided to it pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement.
2.
The trustee will be required to promptly remit to the servicer any complaint, claim, demand, notice or other document (collectively, the “Notices”) delivered to the trustee as a consequence of the assignment of any mortgage loan hereunder and relating to the servicing of the mortgage loans; provided that any such notice (i) is delivered to the trustee at its corporate trust office, (ii) contains information sufficient to permit the trustee to make a determination that the real property to which such document relates is a mortgaged property (as defined in the pooling and servicing agreement). The trustee will have no duty under the pooling and servicing agreement with respect to any Notice it may receive or which may be alleged to have been delivered to or served upon it unless such Notice is delivered to it or served upon it at its corporate trust office and such Notice contains the information required pursuant to clause (ii) of t he preceding sentence.
3.
Except for those actions that the trustee is required to take under the pooling and servicing agreement, the trustee will not have any obligation or liability to take any action or to refrain from taking any action in the absence of written direction as provided in the pooling and servicing agreement.
If an Event of Default has occurred and has not been cured or waived, the trustee will be required to exercise such of the rights and powers vested in it by the pooling and servicing agreement, using the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent person would exercise under the circumstances in the conduct of his own affairs.
Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, if an Event of Default occurs, the trustee will be required to, at the direction of at least 51% of the voting rights, by notice in writing to the master servicer and to the depositor, with a copy to each Rating Agency, terminate all of the rights and obligations of the master servicer in its capacity as master servicer under the pooling and servicing agreement, to the extent permitted by law, and in and to the mortgage loans and the proceeds thereof. On or after the receipt by the master servicer of such written notice, all authority and power of the master servicer with respect to the Certificates (other than as a holder of any Certificate) or the mortgage loans or otherwise including, without limitation, the compensation payable to the master servicer under the pooling and servicing agreement, will pass to and be vested in the trustee, and, without limitation, the trustee will be authorize d and empowered, as attorney-in-fact or otherwise, to execute and deliver, on behalf of and at the expense of the master servicer, any and all documents and other instruments and to do or accomplish all other acts or things necessary or appropriate to effect the purposes of such notice of termination, whether to complete the transfer and endorsement or assignment of the mortgage loans and related documents, or otherwise. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the trustee will be permitted to, if it is unwilling to so act, or will be required to, if it is legally unable to act, appoint, or petition a court of competent jurisdiction to appoint, a successor master servicer in accordance with the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement.
To the extent that the costs and expenses of the trustee related to the termination of the master servicer, appointment of a successor master servicer or the transfer and assumption of the master servicing by the trustee (including, without limitation, (i) all legal costs and expenses and all due diligence costs and expenses associated with an evaluation of the potential termination of the master servicer as a result of an Event of Default and (ii) all costs and expenses associated with the complete transfer of the master servicing, including all servicing files and all servicing data and the completion, correction or manipulation of such servicing data as may be required by the successor master servicer to correct any errors or insufficiencies in the servicing data or otherwise to enable the successor master servicer to master service the mortgage loans in accordance with the pooling and servicing agreement) are not fully and timely reimbur sed by the terminated master servicer, the trustee will be entitled to reimbursement of such costs and expenses from the Distribution Account.
For further discussion of the duties of the trustee, see “Description of the Agreements—Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Servicing Agreements—Duties of the Trustee” in the prospectus.
Unless otherwise specified in the related prospectus supplement, the master servicer will pay the trustee the trustee’s fee in respect of its obligations under the pooling and servicing agreement. The pooling and servicing agreement will provide that the trustee and any director, officer, employee or agent of the trustee will be indemnified by the trust and will be held harmless against any loss, liability, expense or cost including, without limitation, attorneys fees and expenses (not including expenses and disbursements incurred or made by the trustee in the ordinary course of the trustee’s performance in accordance with the provisions of the pooling and servicing agreement) incurred by the trustee in connection with any pending or threatened legal action or arising out of or in connection with the acceptance or administration of its obligations and duties under the pooling and servicing agreement, the certificates or the custodi al agreement, other than any loss, liability or expense (i) resulting from a breach of the obligations and duties of the master servicer under the pooling and servicing agreement (for which the trustee receives indemnity from the master servicer) or (ii) incurred by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or negligence in the performance of the trustee’s duties under the pooling and servicing agreement, the certificates or the custodial agreement or by reason of reckless disregard, of the trustee’s obligations and duties under the pooling and servicing agreement, the certificates or the custodial agreement.
The trustee may resign at any time, in which event the depositor will be obligated to appoint a successor trustee. The depositor may also remove the trustee if the trustee ceases to be eligible to continue under the pooling and servicing agreement or if the trustee becomes insolvent. Upon becoming aware of the circumstances, the depositor will be obligated to appoint a successor trustee. The trustee may also be removed at any time by the holders of the certificates evidencing not less than a majority of the voting rights in the trust fund. Any resignation or removal of the trustee and appointment of a successor trustee will not become effective until acceptance of the appointment by the successor trustee. If the trustee resigns or is removed by the depositor, the expenses associated with the change of trustees will be paid by the former trustee and reimbursed from the Distribution Accounts. If the trustee is removed by holders of certificates, such holders will be responsible for paying any compensation payable to a successor trustee, in excess of the amount paid to the predecessor trustee.
The trustee and any director, officer, employee or agent of the trustee will be indemnified and held harmless against any loss, liability or expense as set forth in the pooling and servicing agreement.
THE CREDIT RISK MANAGER
If specified in the related prospectus supplement with respect to any series, Clayton Fixed Income Services Inc., or another entity may be appointed as credit risk manager for the issuing entity. The credit risk manager will monitor the performance of the servicers, and make recommendations to the servicers regarding certain delinquent and defaulted mortgage loans and will report to the depositor on the performance of such mortgage loans, pursuant to a credit risk management agreement to be entered into by the credit risk manager and the servicers and/or master servicer on or prior to the closing date. The credit risk manager will rely upon mortgage loan data that is provided to it by the servicers and/or master servicer in performing its advisory and monitoring functions. The credit risk manager will be entitled to receive a “Credit Risk Manager’s Fee” until the termination of the trust or u ntil its removal by a vote of at least 66 2/3% of the certificateholders. Such fee will be paid by the trust and will be equal to an amount specified in the related prospectus supplement.
POOLING AND SERVICING AGREEMENT
General
The certificates will be issued under the pooling and servicing agreement, a form of which is filed as an exhibit to the registration statement. A Current Report on Form 8-K relating to the certificates containing a copy of the pooling and servicing agreement as executed will be filed by the depositor with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) within fifteen days of the initial issuance of the certificates. The trust fund created under the pooling and servicing agreement will consist of: (i) all of the depositor’s right, title and interest in the mortgage loans, the related mortgage notes, mortgages and other related documents; (ii) all payments on or collections in respect of the mortgage loans due after the cut-off date or subsequent cut-off date, as applicable, together with any proceeds of the mortgage loans; (iii) any mortgaged properties acquired on behalf of certificateholders by foreclosure or by deed in lieu of foreclosure, and any revenues received on these mortgaged properties; (iv) the rights of the trustee under all insurance policies required to be maintained under the pooling and servicing agreement; (v) the rights of the depositor under the Mortgage Loan Purchase Agreement, the servicing agreements and the assignment; assumption and recognition agreements related to the servicing agreements; (vi) the Reserve Fund and any amounts on deposit in the Reserve Fund and any proceeds thereof; (vii) the Pre-Funding Account and the Capitalized Interest Account, if any, and any amounts on deposit in the Pre-Funding Account and the Capitalized Interest Account, if any, from time to time and, with respect to Capitalized Interest Account, if any, any proceeds thereof; and (viii) with respect to any insured certificates, the related certificate insurance policy. Reference is made to the prospectus for important information in addition to that set forth in this free writing prospectus supplement regarding the trust fund, the terms and conditions of the pooling and servicing agreement and the offered certificates. The depositor will provide to a prospective or actual certificateholder without charge, on written request, a copy, without exhibits, of the pooling and servicing agreement. Requests should be addressed to 6525 Morrison Boulevard, Suite 318, Charlotte, North Carolina 28211.
Each of the certificate insurer, if any, and the NIMS Insurer, if any, will be a third party beneficiary of the Pooling and Servicing Agreement to the extent set forth in the Pooling and Servicing Agreement. In addition, the certificate insurer, if any, and the NIMS Insurer, if any, will have several rights under the Pooling and Servicing Agreement including, but not limited to, the rights set forth under “Risk Factors—Rights of the NIMS Insurer” in this free writing prospectus supplement.
Assignment of the Mortgage Loans
The depositor will acquire all of the mortgage loans included in the mortgage pool pursuant to a mortgage loan purchase agreement, the (“Mortgage Loan Purchase Agreement”), to be dated as of the cut-off date, between the sponsor and the depositor. The mortgage loans were previously purchased by the sponsor either directly or indirectly from the originators.
Pursuant to the terms of the Mortgage Loan Purchase Agreement, the sponsor will make certain representations and warranties with respect to the mortgage loans which the depositor will assign to the trustee for the benefit of the certificateholders and the certificate insurer, if any. If the sponsor breaches any of the representations and warranties with respect to any mortgage loan which materially and adversely affects (i) the value of any of the mortgage loans actually delivered or (ii) the interests of the certificateholders therein (without regard to the certificate insurance policy, if any), the sponsor will be obligated to cure such breach in all material respects or repurchase the mortgage loan or any property acquired in respect thereof.
In addition, the depositor will make representations and warranties regarding the mortgage loans in the pooling and servicing agreement but its assignment of the mortgage loans to the trustee will be without recourse and the depositor’s obligations relating to the mortgage loans will be limited to the representations and warranties made by it under the pooling and servicing agreement. If the depositor breaches any of the representations and warranties with respect to any mortgage loan which breach materially and adversely affects the interests of the certificateholders in the related mortgage loan (without regard to the certificate insurance policy, if any), the depositor will be obligated to cure such breach in all material respects or repurchase the mortgage loan or any property acquired in respect thereof.
On the closing date, the depositor will transfer to the trust all of its right, title and interest in and to each mortgage loan, the related mortgage note, mortgage, assignment of mortgage in recordable form to the trustee and other related documents (collectively, the “Related Documents”), including all scheduled payments with respect to each such mortgage loan due after the Cut-Off Date. The trustee, concurrently with such transfer, will deliver the certificates to the depositor. Each mortgage loan transferred to the trust will be identified on a schedule delivered to the trustee pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement. The mortgage loan schedule will include information such as the principal balance of each mortgage loan as of the cut-off date or subsequent cut-off date, as applicable, its mortgage interest rate as well as other information with respect to each mortgage loan.
The pooling and servicing agreement will require that, within the time period specified therein, the depositor will deliver or cause to be delivered to the trustee (or a custodian, as the trustee’s agent for such purpose) the original mortgages and original mortgage notes endorsed to the trustee on behalf of the certificateholders and the Related Documents. If such original is not available or is lost, the depositor may, in lieu of delivery of the original mortgage or mortgage note, deliver or cause to be delivered true and correct copies thereof, and, with respect to a lost mortgage note, a lost note affidavit.
On or prior to the closing date, the trustee or a custodian on its behalf will review the Related Documents pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement. If any Related Document is found to be defective in any material respect and such defect is not cured within 90 days following notification thereof to the sponsor by the trustee or receipt of any required custodial certification delivered by the related Custodian, the sponsor will be required to either (i) substitute for such mortgage loan pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement; provided, however, that such substitution is permitted only within two years of the closing date and may not be made unless an opinion of counsel is provided to the trustee, the master servicer and the depositor in effect that such substitution will not disqualify any REMIC (as defined in the pooling and servicing agreement) as a REMIC or result in a prohibited transaction tax under the Inter nal Revenue Code or (ii) purchase such mortgage loan at a price (the “Purchase Price”) equal to the outstanding principal balance of such mortgage loan as of the date of purchase, plus all accrued and unpaid interest thereon, at the mortgage interest rate from the date interest was last paid by the borrower to the next scheduled due date, plus the amount of any unreimbursed Advances and servicing advances made by the applicable servicer and/or the master servicer plus all unreimbursed costs and damages incurred by the trust and the trustee in connection with any violation of any such mortgage loan of any predatory or abusive lending law. The Purchase Price will be remitted to the securities administrator for deposit in the related Distribution Account (as defined herein) no later than the day prior to the related distribution date. The obligation of the sponsor to repurchase or substitute for a deleted mortgage loan is the sole remedy regarding any defects in the mortgage loans and Related Do cuments available to the certificateholders.
Voting Rights
Voting rights will be allocated as specified in the pooling and servicing agreement.
Pursuant to the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement, with respect to any series involving a certificate insurer, unless such certificate insurer has defaulted on its obligations under the related certificate insurance policy and such default is continuing, the insured certificateholders will agree that the certificate insurer will be treated by the depositor, the master servicer, the trustee, the securities administrator and the sponsor as if the certificate insurer were the holder of the insured certificates for the purpose of the giving of any consent, the making of any direction or the exercise of any voting or other control rights otherwise given to the insured certificateholders thereunder without any further consent of the holders of the insured certificates.
Any certificate insurer shall be subrogated to the rights of the holder of the related insured certificates to the extent of any payment by such certificate insurer under the related certificate insurance policy.
Optional Termination
The circumstances under which the obligations created by the pooling and servicing agreement will terminate in respect of the certificates are described in “Description of the Securities–Termination” in the prospectus. The master servicer will have the right to purchase all remaining mortgage loans and any properties acquired in respect thereof and thereby effect early retirement of the certificates on any distribution date following the Due Period during which the aggregate principal balance of the mortgage loans and properties acquired in respect thereof remaining in the trust fund at the time of purchase is reduced to less than or equal to the percentage specified in the related free writing prospectus of the aggregate outstanding principal balance of the mortgage loans as of the cut-off date, or with respect to any pre-funded series, of the sum of the aggregate outstanding principal balance of the initial mortgage loans as of the cut-off date and the amount on deposit in the pre-funding account on the closing date; provided that the master servicer will be required to obtain the consent of any certificate insurer if the exercise of such right would cause a claim under the related certificate insurance policy; and provided, further, that the optional termination will only occur if the purchase price is sufficient to pay all interest accrued on, as well as amounts necessary to retire the principal balance of, each class of notes issued pursuant to an indenture that are insured by the NIMS Insurer, if any. In the event the master servicer exercises its option, the purchase price payable in connection with the option will be equal to par with respect to the mortgage loans and the fair market value of all properties acquired by the trust in respect of any mortgage loans, plus accrued interest for each mortgage loan at the related mortgage rate to but not including the first day of the month in which the repurchase pric e is distributed, together with (to the extent not covered by the foregoing) all amounts due and owing to the trustee, any certificate insurer, the servicers, the master servicer, the custodians and the securities administrator as of the termination date. In the event the master servicer exercises this option, the purchase price, will be paid, to the extent of available funds, in accordance with the priorities set forth in the related free writing prospectus. In no event will the trust created by the pooling and servicing agreement continue beyond the expiration of 21 years from the death of the survivor of the persons named in the pooling and servicing agreement. See “Description of the Securities—Termination” in the prospectus.
The securities administrator will be required to give notice of any termination to the certificateholders, upon which the certificateholders will surrender their certificates to the securities administrator for payment of the final distribution and cancellation. Such notice will be given by letter, mailed not earlier than the 15th day and not later than the 25th day of the month next preceding the month of such final distribution, and will specify (i) the distribution date upon which final payment of the certificates will be made upon presentation and surrender of the certificates at the office of the securities administrator therein designated, (ii) the amount of any such final payment and (iii) that the record date otherwise applicable to such distribution date is not applicable, payments being made only upon presentation and surrender of the certificates at the office of the securities administrator therein specified.
In the event such notice is given in connection with the purchase of all of the mortgage loans by the master servicer, the master servicer will deliver to the securities administrator for deposit in the Distribution Account not later than the business day prior to the distribution date on which the final distribution on the certificates is made an amount in immediately available funds equal to the above-described termination price. The securities administrator will remit to the servicer, the master servicer, the trustee, the certificate insurer, if any, and the custodians from such funds deposited in the Distribution Account (i) any amounts which the servicers would be permitted to withdraw and retain from the Distribution Account as if such funds had been deposited therein (including all unpaid servicing fees and all outstanding P&I Advances and Servicing Advances) and (ii) any other amounts otherwise payable by the securities administr ator to the master servicer, the trustee, any certificate insurer, if any, the custodians and the servicers from amounts on deposit in the Distribution Account pursuant to the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement prior to making any final distributions. Upon certification to the trustee by the securities administrator of the making of such final deposit, the trustee will promptly release or cause to be released to the master servicer the mortgage files for the remaining mortgage loans, and the trustee will execute all assignments, endorsements and other instruments delivered to it and necessary to effectuate such transfer.
Upon presentation of the certificates by the certificateholders on the final distribution date, the securities administrator will distribute to each certificateholder so presenting and surrendering its certificates the amount otherwise distributable on such distribution date in respect of the certificates so presented and surrendered. Any funds not distributed to any holder or holders of certificates being retired on such distribution date because of the failure of such holder or holders to tender their certificates will, on such date, be set aside and held in trust and credited to the account of the appropriate non-tendering holder or holders. If any certificates as to which notice has been given are not surrendered for cancellation within six months after the time specified in such notice, the securities administrator will mail a second notice to the remaining non-tendering certificateholders to surrender their certificates for cancellatio n in order to receive the final distribution with respect thereto. If within one year after the second notice all such certificates have not been surrendered for cancellation, the securities administrator will, directly or through an agent, mail a final notice to the remaining non-tendering certificateholders concerning surrender of their certificates. The costs and expenses of maintaining the funds in trust and of contacting such certificateholders will be paid out of the assets remaining in the trust funds. If within one (1) year after the final notice any such certificates have not been surrendered for cancellation, the securities administrator will pay to the depositor all such amounts, and all rights of non-tendering certificateholders in or to such amounts will thereupon cease. No interest will accrue or be payable to any certificateholder on any amount held in trust by the securities administrator as a result of such certificateholder’s failure to surrender its certificate(s) on the final distrib ution date for final payment thereof. Any such amounts held in trust by the securities administrator will be held uninvested in an Eligible Account.
In the event that the master servicer purchases all the mortgage loans or the final payment on or other liquidation of the last mortgage loan, the trust fund will be terminated in accordance with the requirements of the pooling and servicing agreement.
Reports to Certificateholders
On each distribution date, the securities administrator will make available to each certificateholder, any certificate insurer and the depositor a statement generally setting forth the information specified in the related prospectus supplement.
On each distribution date, the securities administrator will make the monthly statement (and, at its option, any additional files containing the same information in an alternative format) available each month via the securities administrator’s internet website. Assistance in using the website can be obtained by calling the securities administrator’s customer service desk at (866) 846-4526. Parties that are unable to use the above distribution options are entitled to have a paper copy mailed to them via first class mail by calling the securities administrator’s customer service desk and indicating such. The securities administrator will have the right to change the way such statements are distributed in order to make such distribution more convenient and/or more accessible to the above parties and the securities administrator will provide timely and adequate notification to all above parties regarding any such chang es.
The annual reports on Form 10-K, the distribution reports on Form 10-D, the current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports, in each case, if prepared and filed by the securities administrator with respect to the trust pursuant to section 13(a) or 15(d)of the Exchange Act, will be made available on the website of the securities administrator as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In addition, within a reasonable period of time after the end of each calendar year, the securities administrator will, upon written request, prepare and deliver to each holder of a certificate of record during the previous calendar year a statement containing information necessary to enable certificateholders to prepare their tax returns. Such statements will not have been examined and reported upon by an independent public accountant.
PREPAYMENT AND YIELD CONSIDERATIONS
General
The yield to maturity of each class of certificates will depend upon, among other things, the price at which such certificates are purchased, the applicable interest rate, the actual characteristics of the mortgage loans, the rate and timing of principal payments (including principal prepayments) on the mortgage loans and the rate of liquidations on the mortgage loans. The yield to maturity to holders of certain certificates will be lower than the yield to maturity otherwise produced by the applicable interest rate and purchase price of such certificates, because principal and interest distributions will not be payable to such certificateholders until the 25th day of the month following the month of accrual (without any additional distribution of interest or earnings thereon with respect to such delay).
Because principal distributions are paid to certain classes of offered certificates before other classes, holders of classes of offered certificates having a later priority of payment bear a greater risk of losses than holders of classes having earlier priorities for distribution of principal. This is because the certificates having a later priority of payment will represent an increasing percentage interest in the trust fund during the period prior to the commencement of distributions of principal on these certificates.
In general, defaults on mortgage loans are expected to occur with greater frequency in their early years. In addition, default rates may be higher for mortgage loans used to refinance an existing mortgage loan. In the event of a borrower’s default on a mortgage loan, there can be no assurance that recourse will be available beyond the specific mortgaged property pledged as security for repayment.
Principal Prepayments and Compensating Interest
When a borrower prepays a mortgage loan in full or in part, the borrower pays interest on the amount prepaid only to the date of prepayment, instead of for the entire month. In addition, when a borrower makes a partial principal prepayment, together with its scheduled monthly payment, the principal balance of the mortgage loan is reduced by the amount of the partial principal prepayment as of such due date. However, the additional principal is not distributed to the certificateholders until the distribution date in the month following the month of such partial principal prepayment.
The servicers will pay Compensating Interest in the manner and to the extent set forth in the related prospectus supplement to reduce the adverse effect on certificateholders from the deficiency in interest collected as a result of prepayments in full or in part on the mortgage loans.
In the event that a servicer fails to pay the amount of any Compensating Interest required to be paid by it on any distribution date, the master servicer will be required to pay such amounts up to the compensation payable to the master servicer on such distribution date.
To the extent that the amount allocated to pay Compensating Interest is insufficient to cover the deficiency in interest payable as a result of a full or partial principal prepayment on a mortgage loan, such deficiency will be allocated to the certificates as described in the related free writing prospectus. In addition, any deficiencies in interest due to the application of the Relief Act will be allocated to the certificates on a pro rata basis according to the amount of interest to which each class of certificates would otherwise be entitled.
Rate of Payments
The rate of principal payments on the certificates entitled to payments of principal, the aggregate amount of distributions on those certificates and the yield to maturity of those certificates will be related to the rate and timing of payments of principal on the mortgage loans. The rate of principal payments on the mortgage loans will in turn be affected by the rate of principal prepayments thereon (including for this purpose, payments resulting from refinancings, liquidations of the mortgage loans due to defaults, casualties, condemnations and repurchases, whether optional or required, by the depositor or the sponsor).
Prepayments, liquidations and repurchases of the mortgage loans will result in distributions in respect of principal to the holders of the class or classes of offered certificates then entitled to receive distributions that otherwise would be distributed over the remaining terms of the mortgage loans. Since the rates of payment of principal on the mortgage loans will depend on future events and a variety of factors, no assurance can be given as to that rate or the rate of principal prepayments. The extent to which the yield to maturity of any class of offered certificates may vary from the anticipated yield will depend upon the degree to which the offered certificates are purchased at a discount or premium and the degree to which the timing of payments thereon is sensitive to prepayments on the mortgage loans. Further, an investor should consider, in the case of any certificate purchased at a discount, the risk that a slower than anticipated rate of principal payments on the mortgage loans could result in an actual yield to the investor that is lower than the anticipated yield. In the case of any such certificate purchased at a premium, the risk that a faster than anticipated rate of principal payments could result in an actual yield to the investor that is lower than the anticipated yield. In general, the earlier prepayments of principal are made on the mortgage loans, the greater the effect on the yield to maturity of the offered certificates. As a result, the effect on an investors’ yield of principal payments occurring at a rate higher (or lower) than the rate anticipated by the investor during the period immediately following the issuance of the certificates would not be fully offset by a subsequent like reduction (or increase) in the rate of principal payments.
It is highly unlikely that the mortgage loans will prepay at any constant rate until maturity or that all of the mortgage loans will prepay at the same rate. Moreover, the timing of prepayments on the mortgage loans may significantly affect the yield to maturity on the offered certificates, even if the average rate of principal payments experienced over time is consistent with an investor’s expectation.
The rate of payments (including prepayments) on pools of mortgage loans is influenced by a variety of economic, geographic, social and other factors. If prevailing mortgage rates fall significantly below the mortgage rates on the mortgage loans, the rate of prepayment and refinancing would be expected to increase. Conversely, if prevailing mortgage rates rise significantly above the mortgage rates on the mortgage loans, the rate of prepayment on the mortgage loans would be expected to decrease. Other factors affecting prepayment of mortgage loans include changes in borrowers’ housing needs, job transfers, unemployment, borrowers’ net equity in the mortgaged properties and servicing decisions. The interest only feature of any interest only loans may reduce the perceived benefits of refinancing to take advantage of lower market interest rates or to avoid adjustments in the mortgage rates. However, as a mortgage loan with such a feature nears the end of its interest only period, the borrower may be more likely to refinance the mortgage loan, even if market interest rates are only slightly less than the Mortgage Rate in order to avoid the increase in the monthly payments to amortize the mortgage loan over its remaining life. There can be no certainty as to the rate of prepayments on the mortgage loans during any period or over the life of the certificates. See “Yield Considerations” in the prospectus.
MATERIAL FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES
General
In the opinion of McKee Nelson LLP, a designated portion of each trust fund will comprise one or more REMICs for federal income tax purposes. Elections will be made to treat each REMIC created under the pooling and servicing agreement as a REMIC for federal income tax purposes. The offered certificates other than any residual certificates (each, a “Regular Certificate”) will represent ownership of regular interests in a REMIC. Further, a Regular Certificate may be treated as being coupled with certain contractual rights and obligations (in such case, a “Cap Certificate”). Any residual certificates will represent ownership of the sole residual interest in one or more REMICs. See “Additional Considerations for the Cap Certificates” below. All prospective investors should review the discussion under “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations” in the accompanying prospe ctus.
The Regular Certificates will be treated as debt instruments for federal income tax purposes. Income on the Regular Certificates must be reported under an accrual method of accounting. Under the accrual method of accounting, interest income may be required to be included in a holder's gross income in advance of the holder's actual receipt of that interest income.
Certain Regular Certificates may be treated as having been issued with OID. The prepayment assumption that will be used for purposes of computing original issue discount, if any, for federal income tax purposes will be set forth in the related prospectus supplement. No representation is made that the mortgage loans will, in fact, prepay at this rate or any other rate. Computing accruals of OID in the manner described in the prospectus may (depending on the actual rate of prepayments during the accrual period) result in the accrual of negative amounts of OID on the certificates issued with OID in an accrual period. Holders will be entitled to offset negative accruals of OID only against future OID accruals on their certificates.
As is described more fully under “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations” in the prospectus, the offered certificates will represent "real estate assets" under Section 856(c)(5)(B) of the Code and qualifying assets under Section 7701(a)(19)(C) of the Code generally in the same proportion that the assets of the trust fund (exclusive of any assets not included in any REMIC) would be so treated, and income on the offered certificates generally will represent “interest on obligations secured by mortgages on real property or on interests in real property” under Section 856(c)(3)(B) of the Code in the same proportion that the income on the assets of the trust fund (exclusive of any assets not included in the REMIC) will be so treated. The Regular Certificates will represent qualified mortgages under Section 860G(a)(3) if acquired by a REMIC within the prescribed time periods of the Code.
Additional Considerations for the Cap Certificates
Each Cap Certificate will be treated as representing (i) an undivided interest in a REMIC regular interest corresponding to that Cap Certificate and (ii) an interest in a limited recourse interest rate cap contract (the "Cap Contract"). The REMIC regular interest corresponding to a Cap Certificate will be entitled to receive interest and principal payments at the times and in the amounts equal to those made on that Certificate except that certain adjustments will be made in determining the amount attributable to the REMIC regular interest. Any amount paid on a Cap Certificate in excess of the amounts payable on the corresponding REMIC regular interest, will be deemed to have been paid pursuant to the Cap Contract. Alternatively, any amount payable on the REMIC regular interest corresponding to a Cap Certificate in excess of the amount payable on the Cap Certificate will be treated as having been received by the ho lder of that Cap Certificate and then as having been paid by such holder pursuant to the Cap Contract. As a result of the foregoing, the amount of distributions on the REMIC regular interest corresponding to a Cap Certificate may exceed the actual amount of distributions on the Cap Certificate.
Each beneficial owner of a Cap Certificate will be required to report income accruing with respect to the REMIC regular interest component as discussed under "General" above. In addition, each beneficial owner of a Cap Certificate will be required to report net income with respect to the Cap Contract component and will be permitted to recognize a net deduction with respect to the Cap Contract component, subject to certain limitations. All prospective investors should review the discussion under “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations” in the accompanying prospectus. Prospective investors are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the consequences to them in light of their own particular circumstances of taxing separately the two components comprising the Cap Certificates.
This discussion assumes that the rights of the holders of the Cap Certificates to receive payments in excess of the amounts payable on the corresponding REMIC regular interest will be treated as rights under a notional principal contract rather than as a partnership for federal income tax purposes. Treatment of such rights as a partnership interest could result in differing timing and character consequences to certificateholders and withholding tax consequences for certificateholders who are not U.S. Persons. Prospective investors are encouraged to consult their tax advisors regarding the appropriate tax treatment of the right to receive payments on a Cap Certificate in excess of the amounts payable on the corresponding REMIC regular interest.
Allocations
A beneficial owner of a Cap Certificate must allocate its purchase price for the certificate between its components—the REMIC regular interest component and the Cap Contract component. The related prospectus supplement will provide the value, if any, attributed to the Cap Contract component for tax purposes. The Cap Contract is difficult to value, and the Internal Revenue Service could assert that the value of a Cap Contract component is greater than the value used for information reporting purposes. Prospective investors are encouraged to consider the tax consequences to them if the Internal Revenue Service were to assert a different value for the Cap Contract component.
Upon the sale, exchange, or other disposition of a Cap Certificate, the beneficial owner of the certificate must allocate the amount realized between the components of the certificate based on the relative fair market values of those components at the time of sale and must treat the sale, exchange or other disposition as a sale, exchange or disposition of the REMIC regular interest component and the Cap Contract component. Assuming that the Cap Certificate is held as a "capital asset" within the meaning of Section 1221 of the Code, gain or loss on the disposition of an interest in the Cap Contract component should be capital gain or loss. For a discussion of the material federal income tax consequences to a beneficial owner upon the disposition of a REMIC regular interest, see "Material Material Federal Income Tax Considerations" in the prospectus.
The Cap Contract Component
The portion of the overall purchase price of a Cap Certificate attributable to the Cap Contract component must be amortized over the life of such certificate, taking into account the declining balance of the related REMIC regular interest component. Treasury regulations concerning notional principal contracts provide alternative methods for amortizing the purchase price of an interest rate cap contract. Under one method—the level yield constant interest method—the price paid for an interest rate cap is amortized over the life of the cap as though it were the principal amount of a loan bearing interest at a reasonable rate. Prospective investors are urged to consult their tax advisors concerning the methods that can be employed to amortize the portion of the purchase price paid for the Cap Contract component of a Cap Certificate.
Any payments to a beneficial owner of a Cap Certificate in excess of the amount attributable to the REMIC regular interest will be treated as periodic payments on an interest rate cap contract. To the extent the sum of such periodic payments for any year exceeds that year’s amortized cost of the Cap Contract component, such excess represents net income for that year. Conversely, to the extent that the amount of that year’s amortized cost exceeds the sum of the periodic payments, such excess shall represent a net deduction for that year. Although not clear, net income or a net deduction should be treated as ordinary income or as an ordinary deduction.
A beneficial owner’s ability to recognize a net deduction with respect to the Cap Contract component is limited under Sections 67 and 68 of the Code in the case of (i) estates and trusts and (ii) individuals owning an interest in such component directly or through a "pass-through entity" (other than in connection with such individual’s trade or business). Pass-through entities include partnerships, S corporations, grantor trusts and non-publicly offered regulated investment companies, but do not include estates, nongrantor trusts, cooperatives, real estate investment trusts and publicly offered regulated investment companies. Further, such a beneficial owner will not be able to recognize a net deduction with respect to the Cap Contract component in computing the beneficial owner’s alternative minimum tax liability.
Because a certificateholder will be required to include in income the amount deemed to have been paid by such holder pursuant to the Cap Contract but may not be able to deduct that amount from income, a beneficial owner of a Cap Certificate may have income that exceeds cash distributions on the Cap Certificate, in any period and over the term of the Cap Certificate. As a result, the Cap Certificates may not be a suitable investment for any taxpayer whose net deduction with respect to the Cap Contract would be subject to the limitations described above.
Status of the Cap Certificates
The REMIC regular interest component of Cap Certificates will be treated as assets described in Section 7701(a)(19) of the Code, and as "real estate assets" under Section 856(c)(4)(A) of the Code, generally, in the same proportion that the assets of the Trust, exclusive of the assets not included in any REMIC, would be so treated. In addition, the interest derived from the REMIC regular interest component of a Cap Certificate will be interest on obligations secured by interests in real property for purposes of Section 856(c)(3)(B) of the Code, subject to the same limitation in the preceding sentence. The Cap Contract component of the Cap Certificates will not qualify, however, as an asset described in Section 7701(a)(19)(C) of the Code or as a real estate asset under Section 856(c)(4)(A) of the Code. Further, any income attributable to the Cap Contract component will not constitute "interest on obligations se cured by mortgages on real property" within the meaning of Section 856(c)(3)(B) of the Code. As a result of the obligations represented by the Cap Contract components, the Cap Certificates generally will not be a suitable investment for a REMIC.
The Residual Certificates
Special tax considerations apply to an investment in any residual certificates. In certain circumstances, residual certificates can produce a significantly less favorable after tax return for a beneficial owner than would be the case if (i) a residual certificate were taxable as a debt instrument, or (ii) no portion of taxable income allocated to a residual certificate were “excess inclusion” income. See “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations —Taxation of Owners of REMIC Residual Certificates” in the prospectus.
Under applicable Treasury regulations, if a residual certificate is a “noneconomic residual interest,” as described in the prospectus, the transfer of a residual certificate to a U.S. Person will be disregarded for all federal tax purposes unless no significant purpose of the transfer was to impede the assessment or collection of tax. A residual certificate will be considered a “noneconomic residual interest” for this purpose. See “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations — Taxation of Owners of REMIC Residual Certificates — Noneconomic REMIC Residual Certificates” in the prospectus.
Effective August 1, 2006, temporary regulations issued by the Internal Revenue Service have modified the general rule that excess inclusions from a REMIC residual interest are not includible in the income of a foreign person (or subject to withholding tax) until paid or distributed. The new regulations accelerate the time both for reporting of, and withholding tax on, excess inclusions allocated to the foreign equity holders of partnerships and certain other pass-through entities. The new rules also provide that excess inclusions are United States sourced income. The timing rules apply to a particular residual interest and a particular foreign person, if the first allocation of income from the residual interest to the foreign person occurs after July 31, 2006. The source rules apply for taxable years ending after August 1, 2006.
Under the temporary regulations, in the case of REMIC residual interests held by a foreign person through a partnership, the amount of excess inclusion income allocated to the foreign partner is deemed to be received by the foreign partner on the last day of the partnership‘s taxable year except to the extent that the excess inclusion was required to be taken into account by the foreign partner at an earlier time under section 860G(b) of the Code as a result of a distribution by the partnership to the foreign partner or a disposition in whole or in part of the foreign partner's indirect interest in the REMIC residual interest. A disposition in whole or in part of the foreign partner's indirect interest in the REMIC residual interest may occur as a result of a termination of the REMIC, a disposition of the partnership's residual interest in the REMIC, a disposition of the foreign partner's interest in the partnership, or any other reduct ion in the foreign partner's allocable share of the portion of the REMIC net income or deduction allocated to the partnership.
Similarly, in the case of a residual interest held by a foreign person as a shareholder of a real estate investment trust or regulated investment company, as a participant in a common trust fund or as a patron in an organization subject to part I of subchapter T (cooperatives), the amount of excess inclusion allocated to the foreign person must be taken into income at the same time that other income from trust, company, fund, or organization would be taken into account.
Under the temporary regulations, excess inclusions allocated to a foreign person (whether as a partner or holder of an interest in a pass-through entity) are expressly made subject to withholding tax. In addition, in the case of excess inclusions allocable to a foreign person as a partner, the temporary regulations eliminate an important exception to the withholding requirements under which a withholding agent unrelated to a payee is obligated to withhold on a payment only to the extent that the withholding agent has control over the payee’s money or property and knows the facts giving rise to the payment.
LEGAL INVESTMENT ASPECTS
Unless otherwise specified in the related free writing prospectus, certificates will constitute “mortgage related securities” for purposes of SMMEA for so long as they are rated in one of the two highest rating categories by one or more nationally recognized statistical rating agencies, and, as such, are legal investments for certain entities to the extent provided in SMMEA; provided that the related mortgage loans are secured by first liens on the related mortgaged properties. Such investments, however, will be subject to general regulatory considerations governing investment practices under state and federal laws.
Institutions whose investment activities are subject to review by certain regulatory authorities may be or may become subject to restrictions, which may be retroactively imposed by such regulatory authorities, on the investment by such institutions in certain mortgage related securities. In addition, several states have adopted or may adopt regulations that prohibit certain state chartered institutions from purchasing or holding similar types of securities.
Accordingly, investors should consult their own legal advisors to determine whether and to what extent the certificates may be purchased by such investors. See “Legal Investment” in the prospectus.
ERISA CONSIDERATIONS
An employee benefit plan or other retirement arrangement that is subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), or to Section 4975 of the Code (collectively, a “Plan”), or an entity deemed to be investing with plan assets of such a plan or arrangement is subject to the fiduciary obligation and prohibited transaction provisions of ERISA and Section 4975 of the Code, unless it is covered by an administrative exemption. The U.S. Department of Labor has granted to the underwriter a prohibited transaction exemption relating to the acquisition, holding and transfer of mortgage-backed certificates (the “Underwriter’s Exemption”), subject to the limitations and qualifications described under “ERISA Considerations” in the prospectus. See “ERISA Considerations” in the prospectus.
The certificates that are identified as “ERISA eligible” in the related prospectus supplement will generally be eligible to be purchased by Plans under the Underwriters Exemption. Under certain circumstances, the certificates may not be acquired or held by a person investing assets of any such plans or arrangements unless such acquisition or holding is eligible for the exemptive relief available under an administrative or statutory exemption.
PROSPECTUS
Asset Backed Certificates
Asset Backed Notes
(Issuable in Series)
ACE Securities Corp.,
Depositor
The Issuing Entities:
Each issuing entity will be established to hold assets transferred to it by ACE Securities Corp. The assets in each issuing entity will generally consist of one or more of the following:
•
mortgage loans, which may include closed-end and/or revolving home equity loans or balances thereof, secured by one- to four-family residential properties;
•
mortgage pass-through notes or certificates issued or guaranteed by Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac; or
•
previously issued asset-backed or mortgage-backed notes or certificates backed by mortgage loans secured by residential properties or participations in those types of loans.
The assets in your issuing entity are specified in the prospectus supplement for that particular issuing entity, while the types of assets that may be included in an issuing entity, whether or not in your issuing entity, are described in greater detail in this prospectus.
The Securities:
ACE Securities Corp. will sell the notes or certificates, as applicable, pursuant to a prospectus supplement. The notes or certificates, as applicable, will be grouped into one or more series, each having is own distinct designation. Each series will be issued in one or more classes and will evidence beneficial ownership of, or be secured by, the assets in the issuing entity that the series relates to. A prospectus supplement for a series will specify all of the terms of the series and of each of the classes in the series.
Consider carefully the risk factors beginning on Page 1 of this prospectus:
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
The date of this prospectus is June 11, 2007
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Risk Factors
1
Description of the Issuing Entities’ Trust Fund
5
Use of Proceeds
20
Yield Considerations
23
Static Pool Information
30
The Sponsor
30
The Depositor
31
Description of the Securities
31
Description of the Agreements
51
Description of Credit Support
80
Certain Legal Aspects of Mortgage Loans
85
Material Federal Income Tax Considerations
103
Penalty Avoidance
148
State and Other Tax Considerations
149
ERISA Considerations
149
Legal Investment
158
Methods of Distribution
161
Additional Information
162
Incorporation of Certain Documents by Reference
163
Legal Matters
164
Financial Information
164
Rating
164
INDEX OF DEFINED TERMS
165
Risk Factors
The following information, which you should carefully consider, identifies certain significant sources of risk associated with an investment in the certificates and the notes. You should also carefully consider the information set forth under “Risk Factors” in the prospectus supplement.
Description of the Issuing Entities’ Trust Fund
Assets
The primary assets of each issuing entity’s trust fund (the “Assets”) will include some or all of the following types of assets:
•
mortgage loans on residential properties, which may include Home Equity Loans and Land Sale Contracts (each as defined in this prospectus);
•
any combination of “fully modified pass-through” mortgage-backed certificates guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae”), guaranteed mortgage pass-through securities issued by Fannie Mae (“Fannie Mae”) and mortgage participation certificates issued by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”) (collectively, “Agency Securities”);
•
previously issued asset-backed certificates, collateralized mortgage obligations or participation certificates (each, and collectively, “Mortgage Securities”) evidencing interests in, or collateralized by, mortgage loans or Agency Securities; or
•
a combination of mortgage loans, Agency Securities and/or Mortgage Securities.
The mortgage loans will not be guaranteed or insured by ACE Securities Corp. or any of its affiliates. The mortgage loans will be guaranteed or insured by a governmental agency or instrumentality or other person only if and to the extent expressly provided in the prospectus supplement. The depositor will select each Asset to include in an issuing entity’s trust fund from among those it has purchased, either directly or indirectly, from a prior holder (an “Asset Seller”), which may be an affiliate of the depositor and which prior holder may or may not be the originator of that mortgage loan. As to each series of securities, the mortgage loans will be selected for inclusion in the mortgage pool based on rating agency criteria, compliance with representations and warranties, and conformity to criteria relating to the characterization of securities for tax, ERISA, SMMEA, F orm S-3 eligibility and other legal purposes.
The Assets included in the issuing entity’s trust fund for your series may be subject to various types of payment provisions:
•
“Level Payment Assets,” which may provide for the payment of interest, and full repayment of principal, in level monthly payments with a fixed rate of interest computed on their declining principal balances;
•
“Adjustable Rate Assets,” which may provide for periodic adjustments to their rates of interest to equal the sum of a fixed margin and an index;
•
“Buy Down Assets,” which are Assets for which funds have been provided by someone other than the related borrowers to reduce the borrowers’ monthly payments during the early period after origination of those Assets;
•
“Increasing Payment Assets,” as described below;
•
“Interest Reduction Assets,” which provide for the one-time reduction of the interest rate payable on these Assets;
•
“GEM Assets,” which provide for (1) monthly payments during the first year after origination that are at least sufficient to pay interest due on these Assets, and (2) an increase in those monthly payments in later years at a predetermined rate resulting in full repayment over a shorter term than the initial amortization terms of those Assets;
•
“GPM Assets,” which allow for payments during a portion of their terms which are or may be less than the amount of interest due on their unpaid principal balances, and this unpaid interest will be added to the principal balances of those Assets and will be paid, together with interest on the unpaid interest, in later years;
•
“Step-up Rate Assets” which provide for interest rates that increase over time;
•
“Balloon Payment Assets;”
•
“Convertible Assets” which are Adjustable Rate Assets subject to provisions pursuant to which, subject to limitations, the related borrowers may exercise an option to convert the adjustable interest rate to a fixed interest rate; and
•
“Bi-weekly Assets,” which provide for payments to be made by borrowers on a bi-weekly basis.
An “Increasing Payment Asset” is an Asset that provides for monthly payments that are fixed for an initial period to be specified in the prospectus supplement and which increase thereafter (at a predetermined rate expressed as a percentage of the monthly payment during the preceding payment period, subject to any caps on the amount of any single monthly payment increase) for a period to be specified in the prospectus supplement from the date of origination, after which the monthly payment is fixed at a level-payment amount so as to fully amortize the Asset over its remaining term to maturity. The scheduled monthly payment for an Increasing Payment Asset is the total amount required to be paid each month in accordance with its terms and equals the sum of (1) the borrower’s monthly payments referred to in the preceding sentence and (2) payments made by the respective servicers pursu ant to buy-down or subsidy agreements. The borrower’s initial monthly payments for each Increasing Payment Asset are set at the level-payment amount that would apply to an otherwise identical Level Payment Asset having an interest rate some number of percentage points below the Asset Rate of that Increasing Payment Asset. The borrower’s monthly payments on each Increasing Payment Asset, together with any payments made on the Increasing Payment Asset by the related servicers pursuant to buy-down or subsidy agreements, will in all cases be sufficient to allow payment of accrued interest on the Increasing Payment Asset at the related interest rate, without negative amortization. A borrower’s monthly payments on an Increasing Payment Asset may, however, not be sufficient to result in any reduction of the principal balance of that Asset until after the period when those payments may be increased.
The Notes or Certificates, as applicable (as defined in this prospectus), will be entitled to payment only from the assets of the related issuing entity and will not be entitled to payments from the assets of any other issuing entity established by the depositor. The assets of an issuing entity may consist of certificates representing beneficial ownership interests in, or indebtedness of, another issuing entity that contains the Assets, if specified in the prospectus supplement.
Mortgage Loans
General
Each mortgage loan will generally be secured by a lien on (1) a one- to four-family residential property (including a manufactured home) or a security interest in shares issued by a cooperative housing corporation (a “Single Family Property”) or (2) a primarily residential property that consists of five or more residential dwelling units referred to as a multifamily property, which may include limited retail, office or other commercial space (“Multi Family Property” and together with Single Family Property, the “Mortgaged Properties.”) The mortgage loans will be secured by first and/or junior mortgages or deeds of trust or other similar security instruments creating a first or junior lien on Mortgaged Property.
The Mortgaged Properties may also include:
•
Apartment buildings owned by cooperative housing corporations (“Cooperatives”) and
•
Leasehold interests in properties, the title to which is held by third party lessors. The term of these leaseholds will exceed the term of the related mortgage note by at least five years or some other time period specified in the prospectus supplement.
The principal balance of the mortgage loans secured by Mortgaged Property consisting of Multi Family Property or apartment buildings owned by Cooperatives shall not exceed 5% of the principal balance of all mortgage loans conveyed to the issuing entity.
The mortgage loans may include:
•
Closed-end and/or revolving home equity loans or balances of these home equity loans (“Home Equity Loans”); and
•
Mortgage loans evidenced by contracts (“Land Sale Contracts”) for the sale of properties pursuant to which the borrower promises to pay the amount due on the mortgage loans to the holder of the Land Sale Contract with fee title to the related property held by that holder until the borrower has made all of the payments required pursuant to that Land Sale Contract, at which time fee title is conveyed to the borrower.
The originator of each mortgage loan will have been a person other than the depositor. The prospectus supplement will indicate if any originator is an affiliate of the depositor. The mortgage loans will be evidenced by mortgage notes secured by mortgages, deeds of trust or other security instruments (the “Mortgages”) creating a lien on the Mortgaged Properties. The Mortgaged Properties will be located in any one of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico or any other territory of the United States. If provided in the prospectus supplement, the mortgage loans may include loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (the “FHA”) or partially guaranteed by the Veteran’s Administration (the “VA”). See “—FHA Loans and VA Loans” below.
FICO Scores
The FICO Score is a statistical ranking of likely future credit performance developed by Fair, Isaac & Company (“Fair, Isaac”) and the three national credit repositories-Equifax, Trans Union and First American (formerly Experian which was formerly TRW). The FICO Scores available from the three national credit repositories are calculated by the assignment of weightings to the most predictive data collected by the credit repositories and range from the 300’s to the 900’s. Although the FICO Scores are based solely on the information at the particular credit repository, such FICO Scores have been calibrated to indicate the same level of credit risk regardless of which credit repository is used. The FICO Scores is used along with, but not limited to, mortgage payment history, seasoning on bankruptcy and/or foreclosure, and is not a substitute for the underwriter 46;s judgment.
Loan-to-Value Ratio
The “Loan-to-Value Ratio” of a mortgage loan at any particular time is the ratio (expressed as a percentage) of the then outstanding principal balance of the mortgage loan to the Value of the related Mortgaged Property. The “Value” of a Mortgaged Property, other than for Refinance Loans, is generally the lesser of (a) the appraised value determined in an appraisal obtained by the originator at origination of that loan and (b) the sales price for that property. ”Refinance Loans” are loans made to refinance existing loans. Unless otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement, the Value of the Mortgaged Property securing a Refinance Loan is the appraised value of the Mortgaged Property determined in an appraisal obtained at the time of origination of the Refinance Loan. The value of a Mortgaged Property as of the date of initial issuance of the rel ated series may be less than the Value at origination and will fluctuate from time to time based upon changes in economic conditions and the real estate market.
Primary Mortgage Insurance
Except in the case of high loan-to-value loans and as otherwise specified in the related prospectus supplement, each mortgage loan having a loan-to-value ratio at origination in excess of 80%, is required to be covered by a primary mortgage guaranty insurance policy insuring against default on such mortgage loan as to at least the principal amount thereof exceeding 75% of the value of the mortgaged property at origination of the mortgage loan. This insurance must remain in force at least until the mortgage loan amortizes to a level that would produce a loan-to-value ratio lower than 80%. See “Primary Mortgage Insurance Policies”.
Mortgage Loan Information in the Prospectus Supplements
Your prospectus supplement will contain information, as of the dates specified in that prospectus supplement and to the extent then applicable and specifically known to the depositor, with respect to the mortgage loans, including:
•
the total outstanding principal balance and the largest, smallest and average outstanding principal balance of the mortgage loans as of, unless otherwise specified in that prospectus supplement, the close of business on the first day of the month of formation of the related issuing entity (the “Cut-off Date”);
•
the type of property securing the mortgage loans;
•
the weighted average (by principal balance) of the original and remaining terms to maturity of the mortgage loans;
•
the range of maturity dates of the mortgage loans;
•
the range of the Loan-to-Value Ratios at origination of the mortgage loans;
•
the mortgage rates or range of mortgage rates and the weighted average mortgage rate borne by the mortgage loans;
•
the state or states in which most of the Mortgaged Properties are located;
•
information regarding the prepayment provisions, if any, of the mortgage loans;
•
for mortgage loans with adjustable mortgage rates (“ARM Loans”), the index, the frequency of the adjustment dates, the range of margins added to the index, and the maximum mortgage rate or monthly payment variation at the time of any adjustment of and over the life of the ARM Loan;
•
information regarding the payment characteristics of the mortgage loans, including balloon payment and other amortization provisions;
•
the number of mortgage loans that are delinquent and the number of days or ranges of the number of days those mortgage loans are delinquent; and
•
the material underwriting standards used for the mortgage loans.
If specific information respecting the mortgage loans is unknown to the depositor at the time the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, are initially offered, more general information of the nature described above will be provided in the prospectus supplement, and specific information will be set forth in a report that will be available to purchasers of the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable, at or before the initial issuance of that Security and will be filed as part of a Current Report on Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) within fifteen days after that initial issuance. In the event that mortgage loans are added to or deleted from the issuing entity after the date of the related prospectus supplement but on or before the date of issuance of the securities if any material pool characteristic differs by 5% or more from the description in the prospectus supplement, revised disclosure will be provided either in a supplement or in a Current Report on Form 8-K.
The prospectus supplement will specify whether the mortgage loans include Home Equity Loans, which may be secured by Mortgages that are junior to other liens on the related Mortgaged Property. In addition, the prospectus supplement will specify whether the mortgage loans contain some mortgage loans evidenced by Land Sale Contracts.
Payment Provisions of the Mortgage Loans
All of the mortgage loans will provide for payments of principal, interest or both, on due dates that occur monthly, quarterly or semi-annually or at some other interval as is specified in the prospectus supplement or for payments in another manner described in the prospectus supplement. Each mortgage loan may provide for no accrual of interest or for accrual of interest on the mortgage loan at a mortgage rate that is fixed over its term or that adjusts from time to time, or that may be converted from an adjustable to a fixed mortgage rate or a different adjustable mortgage rate, or from a fixed to an adjustable mortgage rate, from time to time pursuant to an election or as otherwise specified in the related mortgage note, in each case as described in the prospectus supplement. Each mortgage loan may provide for scheduled payments to maturity or payments that adjust from time to time to ac commodate changes in the mortgage rate or to reflect the occurrence of particular events or that adjust on the basis of other methodologies, and may provide for negative amortization or accelerated amortization, in each case as described in the prospectus supplement. Each mortgage loan may be fully amortizing or require a balloon payment due on its stated maturity date, in each case as described in the prospectus supplement. Each mortgage loan may contain prohibitions on prepayment (a “Lock-out Period” and, the date of expiration thereof, a “Lock-out Date”) or require payment of a premium or a yield maintenance penalty (a “Prepayment Premium”) in connection with a prepayment, in each case as described in the prospectus supplement. If the holders of any class or classes of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, are entitled to all or a portion of any Prepayment Premiums collected from the mortgage loans, the prospectus supplement will specify the method or methods by which any of these amounts will be allocated. See “—Assets” above.
HELOCs
As more fully described in the prospectus supplement, the mortgage loans may consist, in whole or in part, of revolving Home Equity Loans or balances of these Home Equity Loans (“HELOCs”). Interest on each HELOC, excluding introductory rates offered from time to time during promotional periods, may be computed and payable monthly on the average daily outstanding principal balance of that loan. From time to time before the expiration of the related draw period specified in a HELOC, principal amounts on that HELOC may be drawn down (up to a maximum amount as set forth in the prospectus supplement) or repaid. If specified in the prospectus supplement, new draws by borrowers under the HELOCs will automatically become part of the issuing entity described in the prospectus supplement. As a result, the total balance of the HELOCs will fluctuate from day to day as new draws b y borrowers are added to the issuing entity and principal payments are applied to those balances and those amounts will usually differ each day, as more specifically described in the prospectus supplement. Under some circumstances, under a HELOC, a borrower may, during the related draw period, choose an interest only payment option, during which the borrower is obligated to pay only the amount of interest that accrues on the loan during the billing cycle, and may also elect to pay all or a portion of the principal. An interest only payment option may terminate at the end of the related draw period, after which the borrower must begin paying at least a minimum monthly portion of the average outstanding principal balance of the loan.
Agency Securities
The Agency Securities will consist of any combination of Ginnie Mae certificates, Fannie Mae certificates and Freddie Mac certificates, which may include Stripped Agency Securities, as described below.
Ginnie Mae
Ginnie Mae is a wholly-owned corporate instrumentality of the United States within the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Section 306(g) of Title III of the Housing Act authorizes Ginnie Mae to guarantee the timely payment of the principal of and interest on certificates that are based on and backed by a pool of FHA loans, VA loans or by pools of other eligible residential loans.
Section 306(g) of the Housing Act provides that “the full faith and credit of the United States is pledged to the payment of all amounts that may be required to be paid under any guaranty under this subsection.” To meet its obligations under that guaranty, Ginnie Mae is authorized, under Section 306(d) of the National Housing Act of 1934 (the “Housing Act”), to borrow from the United States Treasury with no limitations as to amount, to perform its obligations under its guarantee.
Ginnie Mae Certificates
Each Ginnie Mae certificate will be a “fully modified pass-through” mortgage-backed certificate issued and serviced by an issuer approved by Ginnie Mae or Fannie Mae as a seller-servicer of FHA loans or VA loans, except as described below regarding Stripped Agency Securities (as defined below). The loans underlying Ginnie Mae certificates may consist of FHA loans, VA loans and other loans eligible for inclusion in loan pools underlying Ginnie Mae certificates. Ginnie Mae certificates may be issued under either or both of the Ginnie Mae I program and the Ginnie Mae II program, as described in the prospectus supplement. If the issuing entity includes Ginnie Mae certificates, your prospectus supplement will include any material additional information regarding the Ginnie Mae guaranty program, the characteristics of the pool underlying those Ginnie Mae certificates, the servici ng of the related pool, the payment of principal and interest on Ginnie Mae certificates and other relevant matters regarding the Ginnie Mae certificates.
Except as otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement or as described below with respect to Stripped Agency Securities, each Ginnie Mae certificate will provide for the payment, by or on behalf of the issuer, to the registered holder of that Ginnie Mae certificate of monthly payments of principal and interest equal to the holder’s proportionate interest in the total amount of the monthly principal and interest payments on each related FHA loan or VA loan, minus servicing and guaranty fees totaling the excess of the interest on that FHA loan or VA loan over the Ginnie Mae certificates’ interest rate. In addition, each payment to a holder of a Ginnie Mae certificate will include proportionate pass-through payments to that holder of any prepayments of principal of the FHA loans or VA loans underlying the Ginnie Mae certificate and the holder’s proportionate interest in the remai ning principal balance in the event of a foreclosure or other disposition of any related FHA loan or VA loan.
The Ginnie Mae certificates do not constitute a liability of, or evidence any recourse against, the issuer of the Ginnie Mae certificates, the depositor or any affiliates of the depositor, and the only recourse of a registered holder (for example, the trustee) is to enforce the guaranty of Ginnie Mae.
Ginnie Mae will have approved the issuance of each of the Ginnie Mae certificates included in an issuing entity in accordance with a guaranty agreement or contract between Ginnie Mae and the issuer of the Ginnie Mae certificates. Pursuant to that agreement, that issuer, in its capacity as servicer, is required to perform customary functions of a servicer of FHA loans and VA loans, including collecting payments from borrowers and remitting those collections to the registered holder, maintaining escrow and impoundment accounts of borrowers for payments of taxes, insurance and other items required to be paid by the borrower, maintaining primary hazard insurance, and advancing from its own funds to make timely payments of all amounts due on the Ginnie Mae certificate, even if the payments received by that issuer on the loans backing the Ginnie Mae certificate are less than the amounts due. If the issuer is unable to make payments on a Ginnie Mae certificate as they become due, it must promptly notify Ginnie Mae and request Ginnie Mae to make that payment. Upon that notification and request, Ginnie Mae will make those payments directly to the registered holder of the Ginnie Mae certificate. In the event no payment is made by the issuer and the issuer fails to notify and request Ginnie Mae to make that payment, the registered holder of the Ginnie Mae certificate has recourse against only Ginnie Mae to obtain that payment. The trustee or its nominee, as registered holder of the Ginnie Mae certificates included in an issuing entity, is entitled to proceed directly against Ginnie Mae under the terms of the guaranty agreement or contract relating to the Ginnie Mae certificates for any amounts that are unpaid when due under each Ginnie Mae certificate.
The Ginnie Mae certificates included in an issuing entity may have other characteristics and terms, different from those described above so long as the Ginnie Mae certificates and underlying residential loans meet the criteria of the rating agency or agencies. The Ginnie Mae certificates and underlying residential loans will be described in the prospectus supplement.
Fannie Mae
Fannie Mae is a federally chartered and stockholder-owned corporation organized and existing under the Federal National Mortgage Association Charter Act, as amended (the “Charter Act”). Fannie Mae was originally established in 1938 as a United States government agency to provide supplemental liquidity to the mortgage market and was transformed into a stockholder-owned and privately managed corporation by legislation enacted in 1968.
Fannie Mae provides funds to the mortgage market by purchasing mortgage loans from lenders. Fannie Mae acquires funds to purchase loans from many capital market investors, thus expanding the total amount of funds available for housing. Operating nationwide, Fannie Mae helps to redistribute mortgage funds from capital-surplus to capital-short areas. In addition, Fannie Mae issues mortgage-backed securities primarily in exchange for pools of mortgage loans from lenders. Fannie Mae receives fees for its guaranty of timely payment of principal and interest on its mortgage-backed securities.
Fannie Mae Certificates
Fannie Mae certificates are Guaranteed Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates typically issued pursuant to a prospectus that is periodically revised by Fannie Mae. Fannie Mae certificates represent fractional undivided interests in a pool of mortgage loans formed by Fannie Mae. Each mortgage loan must meet the applicable standards of the Fannie Mae purchase program. Mortgage loans comprising a pool are either provided by Fannie Mae from its own portfolio or purchased pursuant to the criteria of the Fannie Mae purchase program. Mortgage loans underlying Fannie Mae certificates included in an issuing entity will consist of conventional mortgage loans, FHA loans or VA loans. If the issuing entity includes Fannie Mae certificates, your prospectus supplement will include any material additional information regarding the Fannie Mae program, the characteristics of the pool underlyin g the Fannie Mae certificates, the servicing of the related pool, payment of principal and interest on the Fannie Mae certificates and other relevant matters about the Fannie Mae certificates.
Except as described below with respect to Stripped Agency Securities, Fannie Mae guarantees to each registered holder of a Fannie Mae certificate that it will distribute amounts representing that holder’s proportionate share of scheduled principal and interest at the applicable interest rate provided for by that Fannie Mae certificate on the underlying mortgage loans, whether or not received, and that holder’s proportionate share of the full principal amount of any prepayment or foreclosed or other finally liquidated mortgage loan, whether or not the related principal amount is actually recovered.
The obligations of Fannie Mae under its guarantees are obligations solely of Fannie Mae and are not backed by, nor entitled to, the full faith and credit of the United States. If Fannie Mae were unable to satisfy those obligations, distributions to the holders of Fannie Mae certificates would consist solely of payments and other recoveries on the underlying loans and, accordingly, monthly distributions to the holders of Fannie Mae certificates would be affected by delinquent payments and defaults on those loans.
Fannie Mae certificates evidencing interests in pools of mortgage loans formed on or after May 1, 1985 (other than Fannie Mae certificates backed by pools containing graduated payment mortgage loans or multifamily loans) are available in book-entry form only. For a Fannie Mae certificate issued in book-entry form, distributions on the Fannie Mae certificate will be made by wire, and for a fully registered Fannie Mae certificate, distributions will be made by check.
The Fannie Mae certificates included in an issuing entity may have other characteristics and terms, different from those described above, as long as the Fannie Mae certificates and underlying mortgage loans meet the criteria of the rating agency or agencies rating the Certificates. The Fannie Mae certificates and underlying mortgage loans will be described in the prospectus supplement.
Freddie Mac
Freddie Mac is a corporate instrumentality of the United States created pursuant to Title III of the Emergency Home Finance Act of 1970, as amended (the “Freddie Mac Act”). Freddie Mac was established primarily for the purpose of increasing the availability of mortgage credit for the financing of needed housing. It seeks to provide an enhanced degree of liquidity for residential mortgage investments primarily by assisting in the development of secondary markets for conventional mortgages. The principal activity of Freddie Mac currently consists of the purchase of first lien, conventional residential mortgage loans or participation interests in those mortgage loans and the resale of the mortgage loans so purchased in the form of mortgage securities, primarily Freddie Mac certificates. Freddie Mac is confined to purchasing, so far as practicable, mortgage loans and part icipation interests in mortgage loans which it deems to be of the quality, type and class as to meet generally the purchase standards imposed by private institutional mortgage investors.
Freddie Mac Certificates
Each Freddie Mac certificate represents an undivided interest in a pool of residential loans that may consist of first lien conventional residential loans, FHA loans or VA loans (the “Freddie Mac Certificate Group”). Each of these mortgage loans must meet the applicable standards set forth in the Freddie Mac Act. A Freddie Mac Certificate Group may include whole loans, participation interests in whole loans and undivided interests in whole loans and/or participations comprising another Freddie Mac Certificate Group. If the issuing entity includes Freddie Mac certificates, your prospectus supplement will include any material additional information regarding the Freddie Mac guaranty program, the characteristics of the pool underlying that Freddie Mac certificate, the servicing of the related pool, payment of principal and interest on the Freddie Mac certificate and any other relevant matters about the Freddie Mac certificates.
Except as described below with respect to Stripped Agency Securities, Freddie Mac guarantees to each registered holder of a Freddie Mac certificate the timely payment of interest on the underlying mortgage loans to the extent of the applicable interest rate on the registered holder’s pro rata share of the unpaid principal balance outstanding on the underlying mortgage loans in the Freddie Mac Certificate Group represented by that Freddie Mac certificate, whether or not received. Freddie Mac also guarantees to each registered holder of a Freddie Mac certificate collection by that holder of all principal on the underlying mortgage loans, without any offset or deduction, to the extent of that holder’s pro rata share of the principal, but does not, except if and to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, guarantee the timely payment of scheduled principal. Pursuant to its guarantees, Freddie Mac also guarantees ultimate collection of scheduled principal payments, prepayments of principal and the remaining principal balance in the event of a foreclosure or other disposition of a mortgage loan. Freddie Mac may remit the amount due on account of its guarantee of collection of principal at any time after default on an underlying mortgage loan, but not later than 30 days following the latest of
(1)
foreclosure sale;
(2)
payment of the claim by any mortgage insurer; and
(3)
the expiration of any right of redemption, but in any event no later than one year after demand has been made upon the borrower for accelerated payment of principal.
In taking actions regarding the collection of principal after default on the mortgage loans underlying Freddie Mac certificates, including the timing of demand for acceleration, Freddie Mac reserves the right to exercise its servicing judgment for the mortgage loans in the same manner as for mortgage loans that it has purchased but not sold. The length of time necessary for Freddie Mac to determine that a mortgage loan should be accelerated varies with the particular circumstances of each borrower, and Freddie Mac has not adopted servicing standards that require that the demand be made within any specified period.
Freddie Mac certificates are not guaranteed by the United States or by any Federal Home Loan Bank and do not constitute debts or obligations of the United States or any Federal Home Loan Bank. The obligations of Freddie Mac under its guarantee are obligations solely of Freddie Mac and are not backed by, nor entitled to, the full faith and credit of the United States. If Freddie Mac were unable to satisfy those obligations, distributions to holders of Freddie Mac certificates would consist solely of payments and other recoveries on the underlying mortgage loans and, accordingly, monthly distributions to holders of Freddie Mac certificates would be affected by delinquent payments and defaults on those mortgage loans.
The Freddie Mac certificates included in an issuing entity may have other characteristics and terms, different from those described above, so long as the Freddie Mac certificates and underlying mortgage loans meet the criteria of the rating agency or agencies rating the Notes or Certificates, as applicable. The Freddie Mac certificates and underlying mortgage loans will be described in the prospectus supplement.
Stripped Agency Securities
The Ginnie Mae certificates, Fannie Mae certificates or Freddie Mac certificates may be issued in the form of certificates (“Stripped Agency Securities”) that represent an undivided interest in all or part of either the principal distributions (but not the interest distributions) or the interest distributions (but not the principal distributions), or in some specified portion of the principal or interest distributions (but not all of those distributions), on an underlying pool of mortgage loans or other Ginnie Mae certificates, Fannie Mae certificates or Freddie Mac certificates. Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, as applicable, will guarantee each Stripped Agency Security to the same extent as that entity guarantees the underlying securities backing the Stripped Agency Securities or to the extent described above for a Stripped Agency Security backed by a pool of mortgage loans, un less otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement. If the issuing entity includes Stripped Agency Securities, your prospectus supplement will include any material additional information regarding the characteristics of the assets underlying the Stripped Agency Securities, the payments of principal and interest on the Stripped Agency Securities and other relevant matters about the Stripped Agency Securities.
Mortgage Securities
The Mortgage Securities will represent beneficial interests in loans of the type that would otherwise be eligible to be mortgage loans or Agency Securities, or collateralized obligations secured by mortgage loans or Agency Securities. Although individual Underlying Loans may be insured or guaranteed by the United States or an agency or instrumentality of the United States, they need not be, and Mortgage Securities themselves will not be so insured or guaranteed. Except as otherwise set forth in the prospectus supplement, Mortgage Securities will generally be similar to Notes or Certificates, as applicable, offered under this prospectus.
The depositor will register the offering of the relevant Mortgage Securities as a primary offering of such securities, unless the Mortgage Securities are themselves exempt from registration under the Securities Act. The offering of Mortgage Securities included in a trust fund will not be separately registered if all of the following are true:
(1)
neither the issuer of the Mortgage Securities nor any of its affiliates has a direct or indirect agreement, arrangement, relationship or understanding, written or otherwise, relating to the Mortgage Securities and the related trust fund;
(2)
neither the issuer of the Mortgage Securities nor any of its affiliates is an affiliate of the depositor, sponsor, issuing entity or any underwriter relating to such trust fund and series of securities; and
(3)
the depositor would be free to publicly resell the Mortgage Securities without registration under the Securities Act.
If all the conditions for the Mortgage Securities described above are not met, the offering of the relevant Mortgage Securities itself will be registered as a primary offering of such securities under the Securities Act.
The prospectus supplement for the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of each series evidencing interests in an issuing entity including Mortgage Securities will include a description of the Mortgage Securities and any related credit enhancement, and the related mortgage loans or Agency Securities will be described together with any other mortgage loans or Agency Securities included in the issuing entity of that series. As used in this prospectus, the terms “mortgage loans,” include the mortgage loans, underlying the Mortgage Securities in your issuing entity. References in this prospectus to advances to be made and other actions to be taken by the master servicer in connection with the Assets may include any advances made and other actions taken pursuant to the terms of the applicable Mortgage Securities.
FHA Loans and VA Loans
FHA loans will be insured by the FHA as authorized under the Housing Act, and the United States Housing Act of 1937, as amended. One- to four-family FHA loans will be insured under various FHA programs including the standard FHA 203-b programs to finance the acquisition of one- to four-family housing units and the FHA 245 graduated payment mortgage program. The FHA loans generally require a minimum down payment of approximately 5% of the original principal amount of the FHA loan. No FHA loan may have an interest rate or original principal balance exceeding the applicable FHA limits at the time of origination of that FHA loan.
Mortgage loans that are FHA loans are insured by the FHA (as described in the prospectus supplement, up to an amount equal to 90% of the sum of the unpaid principal of the FHA loan, a portion of the unpaid interest and other liquidation costs) pursuant to Title I of the Housing Act.
There are two primary FHA insurance programs that are available for multifamily loans. Sections 221(d)(3) and (d)(4) of the Housing Act allow HUD to insure multifamily loans that are secured by newly constructed and substantially rehabilitated multifamily rental projects. Section 244 of the Housing Act provides for co-insurance of those loans made under Sections 221(d)(3) and (d)(4) by HUD/FHA and a HUD-approved co-insurer. Generally the term of this type of multifamily loan may be up to 40 years and the ratio of the loan amount to property replacement cost can be up to 90%.
Section 223(f) of the Housing Act allows HUD to insure multifamily loans made for the purchase or refinancing of existing apartment projects that are at least three years old. Section 244 also provides for co-insurance of mortgage loans made under Section 223(f). Under Section 223(f), the loan proceeds cannot be used for substantial rehabilitation work, but repairs may be made for up to, in general, the greater of 15% of the value of the project and a dollar amount per apartment unit established from time to time by HUD. In general the loan term may not exceed 35 years and a loan-to-value ratio refinancing of a project.
VA loans will be partially guaranteed by the VA under the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, as amended (the “Servicemen’s Readjustment Act”). The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act permits a veteran (or in some instances the spouse of a veteran) to obtain a mortgage loan guarantee by the VA covering mortgage financing of the purchase of a one- to four-family dwelling unit at interest rates permitted by the VA. The program has no mortgage loan limits, requires no down payment from the purchasers and permits the guarantee of mortgage loans of up to 30 years’ duration. However, no VA loan will have an original principal amount greater than five times the partial VA guarantee for that VA loan. The maximum guarantee that may be issued by the VA under this program will be set forth in the prospectus supplement.
Pre-Funding Accounts
To the extent provided in a prospectus supplement, a portion of the proceeds of the issuance of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be deposited into an account maintained with the trustee (a “Pre-Funding Account”). In that case, the depositor will be obligated to sell at a predetermined price – and the issuing entity for the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be obligated to purchase – additional Assets (the “Subsequent Assets”) from time to time, and as frequently as daily, within the period (not to exceed three months) specified in the prospectus supplement (the “Pre-Funding Period”) after the issuance of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, having a total principal balance approximately equal to the amount on deposit in the Pre-Funding Account (the “Pre-Funded Amount”) for that series on the date of its is suance. The Pre-Funded Amount for a series will be specified in the prospectus supplement, and will not in any case exceed 50% of the proceeds of the offering of the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable. Any Subsequent Assets will be required to satisfy specific eligibility criteria more fully set forth in the prospectus supplement, which criteria will be consistent with the eligibility criteria of the Assets initially included in the issuing entity, subject to those exceptions that are expressly stated in the prospectus supplement. In addition, specific conditions must be satisfied before the Subsequent Assets are transferred into the issuing entity, for example, the delivery to the rating agencies and to the trustee of any required opinions of counsel. See “ERISA Considerations—Pre-Funding Accounts” for additional information regarding Pre-Funding Accounts.
Except as set forth in the following sentence, the Pre-Funded Amount will be used only to purchase Subsequent Assets. The related pooling and servicing agreement or other agreement providing for the transfer of Subsequent Assets will generally provide that the transfers must be made within up to three months (with respect to any series of Notes or Certificates) or up to, but not in excess of, one year (with respect to any series of Notes or Certificates) after the Closing Date, and that any portion of the Pre-Funded Amount remaining in the Pre-Funding Account at the end of the Pre-Funding Period will be used to prepay one or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, in the amounts and in the manner specified in the prospectus supplement. In addition, if specified in the prospectus supplement, the depositor may be required to deposit cash into an account maintained by the truste e (the “Capitalized Interest Account”) for the purpose of assuring the availability of funds to pay interest on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, during the Pre-Funding Period. Any amount remaining in the Capitalized Interest Account at the end of the Pre-Funding Period will be remitted as specified in the prospectus supplement.
Amounts deposited in the Pre-Funding and Capitalized Interest Accounts will be permitted to be invested, pending application, only in eligible investments authorized by each applicable rating agency.
Accounts
Each issuing entity will include one or more accounts, established and maintained on behalf of the securityholders into which the person or persons designated in the prospectus supplement will, to the extent described in this prospectus and in the prospectus supplement deposit all payments and collections received or advanced with respect to the Assets and other assets in the issuing entity. This type of account may be maintained as an interest bearing or a non-interest bearing account, and funds held in that account may be held as cash or invested in some short-term, investment grade obligations, in each case as described in the prospectus supplement. See “Description of the Agreements—Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Servicing Agreements—Collection Account and Related Accounts.” Such accounts will be established so as to comp ly with the standards of each Rating Agency that has rated any one or more classes of securities of the related series. Such accounts shall be maintained as Eligible Accounts, and the funds held therein may be held as cash or invested in Permitted Investments. The person designated in the prospectus supplement will have sole discretion to determine the particular investments made so long as it complies with the investment terms of the related pooling and servicing agreement or the related servicing agreement and indenture. Any Permitted Investments shall not cause the depositor to register under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Any interest or other income earned on funds in such accounts will be paid to the related master servicer or trustee as additional compensation or will be available for payments on the securities as provided in the prospectus supplement. If permitted by the Rating Agency or Agencies and so specified in the related prospectus supplement, such accounts may contain funds r elating to more than one series of Certificates and may contain other funds representing payments on mortgages owned by the related master servicer or serviced by it on behalf of others.
Credit Support
If so provided in the prospectus supplement, partial or full protection against some defaults and losses on the Assets in the related issuing entity may only be provided to one or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, in the related series in the form of subordination of one or more other classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, in that series or by one or more of only the following types of credit support: a letter of credit, insurance policy, guarantee, reserve fund, or a combination of these (any of these types of coverage for the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of any series, is referred to generally as “credit support”). The amount and types of coverage, the identification of the entity providing the coverage (if applicable) and related information for each type of credit support, if any, will be described in the prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certifi cates, as applicable. See “Description of Credit Support.”
Cash Flow Agreements
The trust fund may include one or more derivative instruments, (each a “Cash Flow Agreement”), as described in this section. All Cash Flow Agreements included in any trust fund will be used only in a manner that reduces or alters risk resulting from the mortgage loans or other assets in the pool, and only in a manner such that the return on the offered securities will be based primarily on the performance of the mortgage loans or other assets in the pool. Cash Flow Agreements may include only 1) interest rate swaps (or caps, floors and collars) and yield supplement agreements as described below, 2) currency swaps, and 3) market value swaps that are referenced to the value of one or more of the mortgage loans or other assets included in the trust fund or to a class of offered securities.
An interest rate swap is an agreement between two parties to exchange a stream of interest payments on an agreed hypothetical or “notional” principal amount. No principal amount is exchanged between the counterparties to an interest rate swap. In a typical swap, one party agrees to pay a fixed rate on a notional principal amount, while the counterparty pays a floating rate based on one or more reference interest rates including the London Interbank Offered Rate, or LIBOR, a specified bank’s prime rate or U.S. Treasury Bill rates. Interest rate swaps also permit counterparties to exchange a floating rate obligation based upon one reference interest rate, such as LIBOR, for a floating rate obligation based upon another referenced interest rate, such as U.S. Treasury Bill rates. An interest rate cap, collar or floor is an agreement where the counterparty agrees to make payments representing interest on a n otional principal amount when a specified reference interest rate is above a strike rate, outside of a range of strike rates, or below a strike rate as specified in the agreement, generally in exchange for a fixed amount paid to the counterparty at the time the agreement is entered into. A yield supplement agreement is a type of cap agreement, and is substantially similar to a cap agreement as described above.
The trustee on behalf of a trust fund may enter into interest rate swaps, caps, floors and collars, or yield supplement agreements, to minimize the risk to securityholders from adverse changes in interest rates or to provide supplemental credit support. Cap agreements and yield supplement agreements may be entered into to supplement the interest rate or other rates available to make interest payments on one or more classes of the securities of any series.
A market value swap might be used in a structure where the pooled assets are hybrid ARMs, or mortgage loans that provide for a fixed rate period and then convert by their terms to adjustable rate loans. Such a structure might provide that at a specified date near the end of the fixed rate period, the investors must tender their securities to the trustee who will then transfer the securities to other investors in a mandatory auction procedure. The market value swap would ensure that the original investors would receive at least par at the time of tender, by covering any shortfall between par and the then current market value of their securities.
Any Cash Flow Agreements will be documented based upon the standard forms provided by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, or ISDA. These forms generally consist of an ISDA master agreement, a schedule to the master agreement, and a confirmation, although in some cases the schedule and confirmation will be combined in a single document and the standard ISDA master agreement will be incorporated therein by reference. Standard ISDA definitions also will be incorporated by reference. Each confirmation will provide for payments to be made by the Cash Flow Agreement counterparty to the trust, and in some cases by the trust to the Cash Flow Agreement counterparty, generally based upon specified notional amounts and upon differences between specified interest rates or values. For example, the confirmation for an interest rate cap agreement will contain a schedule of fixed interest rates, gen erally referred to as strike rates, and a schedule of notional amounts, for each distribution date during the term of the interest rate cap agreement. The confirmation also will specify a reference rate, generally a floating or adjustable interest rate, and will provide that payments will be made by the Cash Flow Agreement counterparty to the trust on each distribution date, based on the notional amount for that distribution date and the excess, if any, of the specified reference rate over the strike rate for that distribution date.
In the event of the withdrawal of the credit rating of a Cash Flow Agreement counterparty or the downgrade of such credit rating below levels specified in the Cash Flow Agreement (where the Cash Flow Agreement is relevant to the ratings of the offered securities, such levels generally are set by the rating agencies rating the offered securities), the Cash Flow Agreement counterparty may be required to post collateral for the performance of its obligations under the Cash Flow Agreement, or to take certain other measures intended to assure performance of those obligations. Posting of collateral will be documented using the ISDA Credit Support Annex.
There can be no assurance that the trustee will be able to enter into Cash Flow Agreements at any specific time or at prices or on other terms that are advantageous. In addition, although the terms of the Cash Flow Agreements may provide for termination under various circumstances, there can be no assurance that the trustee will be able to terminate a Cash Flow Agreement when it would be economically advantageous to the trust fund to do so.
.
Use of Proceeds
The net proceeds to be received from the sale of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be applied by the depositor to the purchase of Assets, or the repayment of the financing incurred in that purchase, and to pay for some of the expenses incurred in connection with that purchase of Assets and sale of Notes or Certificates, as applicable. The depositor expects to sell the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, from time to time, but the timing and amount of offerings of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will depend on a number of factors, including the volume of Assets acquired by the depositor, prevailing interest rates, availability of funds and general market conditions.
Yield Considerations
General
The yield on any Offered Security will depend on the price paid by the securityholder, the Interest Rate of the Security, the receipt and timing of receipt of distributions on the Security and the weighted average life of the Assets in the related issuing entity (which may be affected by prepayments, defaults, liquidations or repurchases).
Interest Rate
Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of any class within a series may have fixed, variable or adjustable Interest Rates, which may or may not be based upon the interest rates borne by the Assets in the related issuing entity. The prospectus supplement for any series will specify the Interest Rate for each class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, or, in the case of a variable or adjustable Interest Rate, the method of determining the Interest Rate; the effect, if any, of the prepayment of any Asset on the Interest Rate of one or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable; and whether the distributions of interest on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of any class will be dependent, in whole or in part, on the performance of any borrower under a Cash Flow Agreement.
If specified in the prospectus supplement, the effective yield to maturity to each holder of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, entitled to payments of interest will be below that otherwise produced by the applicable Interest Rate and purchase price of that Security because, while interest may accrue on each Asset during a period (each, an “Accrual Period”), the distribution of that interest will be made on a day that may be several days, weeks or months following the period of accrual.
Timing of Payment of Interest
Each payment of interest on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, entitled to distributions of interest (or addition to the Security Balance of a class of Accrual Securities) will be made by or on behalf of the trustee each month on the date specified in the related prospectus supplement (each date, a “Distribution Date”), and will include interest accrued during the Accrual Period for that Distribution Date. As indicated above under “—Interest Rate,” if the Accrual Period ends on a date other than the day before a Distribution Date for the related series, the yield realized by the holders of those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be lower than the yield that would result if the Accrual Period ended on the day before the Distribution Date.
Payments of Principal; Prepayments
The yield to maturity on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be affected by the rate of principal payments on the Assets (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities), including principal prepayments resulting from both voluntary prepayments by the borrowers and involuntary liquidations. The rate at which principal prepayments occur will be affected by a variety of factors, including the terms of the Assets (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities), the level of prevailing interest rates, the availability of mortgage credit and economic, demographic, geographic, tax, legal and other factors.
In general, however, if prevailing interest rates fall significantly below the interest rates on the Assets in a particular issuing entity (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities), those assets are likely to be the subject of higher principal prepayments than if prevailing rates remain at or above the rates borne by those assets. However, you should note that some Assets (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities) may consist of loans with different interest rates. The rate of principal payment on Mortgage Securities will also be affected by the allocation of principal payments on the underlying assets among the Mortgage Securities or Agency Securities and other Mortgage Securities or Agency Securities of the same series. The rate of principal payments on the Assets in the related issuing entity (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities) is likely to be affected by the existence of any Lock-out Periods and Prepayment Premium provisions of the mortgage loans underlying or comprising those Assets, and by the extent to which the servicer of any of these mortgage loans is able to enforce these provisions. Mortgage loans with a Lock-out Period or a Prepayment Premium provision, to the extent enforceable, generally would be expected to experience a lower rate of principal prepayments than otherwise identical mortgage loans without those provisions, with shorter Lock-out Periods or with lower Prepayment Premiums.
If the purchaser of a Security offered at a discount calculates its anticipated yield to maturity based on an assumed rate of distributions of principal that is faster than that actually experienced on the Assets (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities), the actual yield to maturity will be lower than that so calculated. Conversely, if the purchaser of a Security offered at a premium calculates its anticipated yield to maturity based on an assumed rate of distributions of principal that is slower than that actually experienced on the Assets (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities), the actual yield to maturity will be lower than that so calculated. In either case, if so provided in the pro spectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, the effect on yield on one or more classes of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that series of prepayments of the Assets in the related issuing entity may be mitigated or exacerbated by any provisions for sequential or selective distribution of principal to those classes.
When a full prepayment is made on a mortgage loan, the borrower is charged interest on the principal amount of the mortgage loan so prepaid for the number of days in the month actually elapsed up to the date of the prepayment or some other period specified in the prospectus supplement. Generally, the effect of prepayments in full will be to reduce the amount of interest paid in the following month to holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, entitled to payments of interest because interest on the principal amount of any mortgage loan so prepaid will be paid only to the date of prepayment rather than for a full month. A partial prepayment of principal is applied so as to reduce the outstanding principal balance of the related mortgage loan as of its due date in the month in which the partial prepayment is received or some other date as is specified in the prospectus supplement.
The timing of changes in the rate of principal payments on the Assets (or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, the underlying assets related to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities) may significantly affect an investor’s actual yield to maturity, even if the average rate of distributions of principal is consistent with an investor’s expectation. In general, the earlier a principal payment is received on the mortgage loans and distributed on a Security, the greater the effect on that investor’s yield to maturity. The effect on an investor’s yield of principal payments occurring at a rate higher (or lower) than the rate anticipated by the investor during a particular period may not be offset by a similar decrease (or increase) in the rate of principal payments at a later time.
The securityholder will bear the risk of not being able to reinvest principal received from a Security at a yield at least equal to the yield on that Security.
Prepayments—Maturity and Weighted Average Life
The rates at which principal payments are received on the Assets included in or comprising an issuing entity and the rate at which payments are made from any credit support or Cash Flow Agreement for the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may affect the ultimate maturity and the weighted average life of each class of that series. Prepayments on the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets in a particular issuing entity will generally accelerate the rate at which principal is paid on some or all of the classes of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of the related series.
If so provided in the prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, one or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may have a final scheduled Distribution Date, which is the date on or before which the Security Balance of the class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, is scheduled to be reduced to zero, calculated on the basis of the assumptions applicable to that series. Weighted average life refers to the average amount of time that will elapse from the date of issue of a security until each dollar of principal of that security will be repaid to the investor. The weighted average life of a class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series will be influenced by the rate at which principal on the Assets is paid to that class, which may be in the form of scheduled amortization or prepayments (for this purpose, the term “prepaymen t” includes prepayments, in whole or in part, and liquidations due to default).
In addition, the weighted average life of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be affected by the varying maturities of the Assets in an issuing entity. If any Assets in a particular issuing entity have actual terms to maturity less than those assumed in calculating final scheduled Distribution Dates for the classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of the related series, one or more classes of these Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be fully paid before their respective final scheduled Distribution Dates, even in the absence of prepayments. Accordingly, the prepayment experience of the Assets will, to some extent, be a function of the mix of mortgage rates and maturities of the mortgage loans comprising or underlying those Assets. See “Description of the Issuing Entities.”
Prepayments on loans are also commonly measured relative to a prepayment standard or model, such as the Constant Prepayment Rate (“CPR”) prepayment model or the Standard Prepayment Assumption (“SPA”) prepayment model. CPR represents a constant assumed rate of prepayment each month relative to the then outstanding principal balance of a pool of loans for the life of those loans. SPA represents an assumed rate of prepayment each month relative to the then outstanding principal balance of a pool of loans. A prepayment assumption of 100% of SPA assumes prepayment rates of 0.2% per annum of the then outstanding principal balance of those loans in the first month of the life of the loans and an additional 0.2% per annum in each month thereafter until the thirtieth month. Starting in the thirtieth month and in each month thereafter during the life of the loans, 100 % of SPA assumes a constant prepayment rate of 6% per annum each month.
Neither CPR nor SPA nor any other prepayment model or assumption purports to be a historical description of prepayment experience or a prediction of the anticipated rate of prepayment of any pool of loans, including the mortgage loans underlying or comprising the Assets.
The prospectus supplement for each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may contain tables, if applicable, setting forth the projected weighted average life of each class of Offered Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that series and the percentage of the initial Security Balance of each class that would be outstanding on specified Distribution Dates based on the assumptions stated in the prospectus supplement, including assumptions that prepayments on the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the related Assets are made at rates corresponding to various percentages of CPR, SPA or some other standard specified in the prospectus supplement. These tables and assumptions are intended to illustrate the sensitivity of the weighted average life of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, to various prepayment rates and will not be intended to predict or to provide information that w ill enable investors to predict the actual weighted average life of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable. It is unlikely that prepayment of any mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets for any series will conform to any particular level of CPR, SPA or any other rate specified in the prospectus supplement.
Other Factors Affecting Weighted Average Life
Type of Loan
Mortgage Loans secured by Multifamily Properties may have provisions that prevent prepayment for a number of years and may provide for payments of interest only during a certain period followed by amortization of principal on the basis of a schedule extending beyond the maturity of the related mortgage loan. There can be no assurance as to the respective rates of prepayment of these mortgage loans in either stable or changing interest rate environments.
Type of Asset
If specified in the prospectus supplement, a number of mortgage loans may have balloon payments due at maturity (which, based on the amortization schedule of those mortgage loans, may be a substantial amount), and because the ability of a borrower to make a balloon payment typically will depend on its ability either to refinance the loan or to sell the related Mortgaged Property, there is a risk that a number of Balloon Payment Assets may default at maturity. The ability to obtain refinancing will depend on a number of factors prevailing at the time refinancing or sale is required, including real estate values, the borrower’s financial situation, prevailing mortgage loan interest rates, the borrower’s equity in the related Mortgaged Property, tax laws and prevailing general economic conditions. Neither the depositor, the servicer, the master servicer, nor any of their affiliates will be obligated to refinance or repurchase any mortgage loan or to sell the Mortgaged Property except to the extent provided in the prospectus supplement. In the case of defaults, recovery of proceeds may be delayed by, among other things, bankruptcy of the borrower or adverse conditions in the market where the property is located. To minimize losses on defaulted mortgage loans, the servicer may modify mortgage loans that are in default or as to which a payment default is reasonably foreseeable. Any defaulted balloon payment or modification that extends the maturity of a mortgage loan will tend to extend the weighted average life of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, and may thus lengthen the period of time elapsed from the date of issuance of a Security until it is retired.
For some mortgage loans, including ARM Loans, the mortgage rate at origination may be below the rate that would result if the index and margin relating to the mortgage loan were applied at origination. Under the applicable underwriting standards, the borrower under each mortgage loan generally will be qualified on the basis of the mortgage rate in effect at origination. The repayment of any of these mortgage loans may therefore be dependent on the ability of the borrower to make larger level monthly payments following the adjustment of the mortgage rate. In addition, some mortgage loans may be subject to temporary buydown plans (“Buydown Mortgage Loans”) pursuant to which the monthly payments made by the borrower during the early years of the mortgage loan will be less than the scheduled monthly payments on the mortgage loan (the “Buydown Period”). The perio dic increase in the amount paid by the borrower of a Buydown Mortgage Loan during or at the end of the applicable Buydown Period may create a greater financial burden for the borrower, who might not have otherwise qualified for a mortgage, and may accordingly increase the risk of default for the related mortgage loan.
The mortgage rates on some ARM Loans subject to negative amortization generally adjust monthly and their amortization schedules adjust less frequently. During a period of rising interest rates as well as immediately after origination (initial mortgage rates are generally lower than the sum of the applicable index at origination and the related margin over that index at which interest accrues), the amount of interest accruing on the principal balance of those mortgage loans may exceed the amount of the minimum scheduled monthly payment on the mortgage loans. As a result, a portion of the accrued interest on negatively amortizing mortgage loans may be added to the principal balance of those mortgage loans and will bear interest at the applicable mortgage rate. The addition of any deferred interest to the principal balance of any related class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as app licable, will lengthen the weighted average life of those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, and may adversely affect yield to holders of those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, depending on the price at which those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, were purchased. In addition, for some ARM Loans subject to negative amortization, during a period of declining interest rates, it might be expected that each minimum scheduled monthly payment on this type of mortgage loan would exceed the amount of scheduled principal and accrued interest on the principal balance of that mortgage loan, and since that excess will be applied to reduce the principal balance of the related class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, the weighted average life of those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be reduced and may adversely affect yield to holders of those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, depending on the price at which those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, were purchased.
As may be described in the prospectus supplement, the related Agreement may provide that all or a portion of the principal collected on or with respect to the related mortgage loans may be applied by the related trustee to the acquisition of additional HELOCs during a specified period (rather than used to fund payments of principal to securityholders during that period) with the result that the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable, possess an interest-only period, also commonly referred to as a revolving period, which will be followed by an amortization period. Any of these interest-only or revolving periods may, upon the occurrence of particular events to be described in the prospectus supplement, terminate before the end of the specified period and result in the earlier than expected amortization of the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable.
In addition, and as may be described in the prospectus supplement, the related Agreement may provide that all or some of this collected principal may be retained by the trustee (and held in specific temporary investments, including mortgage loans) for a specified period before being used to fund payments of principal to securityholders.
The result of the retention and temporary investment by the trustee of this principal would be to slow the amortization rate of the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable, relative to the amortization rate of the related mortgage loans, or to attempt to match the amortization rate of the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable, to an amortization schedule established at the time the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, are issued. Any similar feature applicable to any Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may end on the occurrence of events to be described in the prospectus supplement, resulting in the current funding of principal payments to the related securityholders and an acceleration of the amortization of these Notes or Certificates, as applicable.
Termination
If specified in the prospectus supplement, a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be subject to optional early termination through the repurchase of the Assets in the related issuing entity by the party specified in the prospectus supplement, on any date on which the total Security Balance of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that series declines to a percentage specified in the prospectus supplement (generally not to exceed 10%) of the Initial Security Balance, under the circumstances and in the manner set forth therein. In addition, if so provided in the prospectus supplement, some classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be purchased or redeemed in the manner set forth therein. See “Description of the Securities—Termination.”
Defaults
The rate of defaults on the Assets will also affect the rate, timing and amount of principal payments on the Assets and thus the yield on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable. In general, defaults on mortgage loans are expected to occur with greater frequency in their early years. The rate of default on mortgage loans that are refinance or limited documentation mortgage loans, and on mortgage loans with high Loan-to-Value Ratios, may be higher than for other types of mortgage loans. Furthermore, the rate and timing of prepayments, defaults and liquidations on the mortgage loans will be affected by the general economic condition of the region of the country in which the related Mortgaged Properties are located. The risk of delinquencies and loss is greater and prepayments are less likely in regions where a weak or deteriorating economy exists, as may be evidenced by, among o ther factors, increasing unemployment or falling property values.
Foreclosures
The number of foreclosures or repossessions and the principal amount of the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets that are foreclosed or repossessed in relation to the number and principal amount of mortgage loans that are repaid in accordance with their terms will affect the weighted average life of the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets and that of the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable.
Refinancing
At the request of a borrower, the servicer may allow the refinancing of a mortgage loan in any issuing entity by accepting prepayments on the mortgage loan and permitting a new loan secured by a mortgage on the same property. In the event of that refinancing, the new loan would not be included in the related issuing entity and, therefore, that refinancing would have the same effect as a prepayment in full of the related mortgage loan. A servicer may, from time to time, implement programs designed to encourage refinancing. These programs may include modifications of existing loans, general or targeted solicitations, the offering of pre-approved applications, reduced origination fees or closing costs, or other financial incentives. In addition, servicers may encourage the refinancing of mortgage loans, including defaulted mortgage loans, that would permit creditworthy borrowers t o assume the outstanding indebtedness of those mortgage loans.
Due-on-Sale Clauses
Acceleration of mortgage payments as a result of transfers of underlying Mortgaged Property is another factor affecting prepayment rates that may not be reflected in the prepayment standards or models used in the relevant prospectus supplement. A number of the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets, other than FHA loans and VA loans, may include “due-on-sale clauses” that allow the holder of the mortgage loans to demand payment in full of the remaining principal balance of the mortgage loans upon sale, transfer or conveyance of the related Mortgaged Property.
For any mortgage loans, except as set forth in the prospectus supplement, the servicer will generally enforce any due-on-sale clause to the extent it has knowledge of the conveyance or proposed conveyance of the underlying Mortgaged Property and it is entitled to do so under applicable law; provided, however, that the servicer will not take any action in relation to the enforcement of any due-on-sale provision that would adversely affect or jeopardize coverage under any applicable insurance policy. See “Certain Legal Aspects of Mortgage Loans—Due-on-Sale Clauses” and “Description of the Agreements—Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Servicing Agreements—Due-on-Sale Provisions.”
Static Pool Information
For each mortgage pool, the issuing entity will provide static pool information with respect to the experience of the sponsor, or other appropriate entity, in securitizing asset pools of the same type to the extent material.
With respect to each series of securities, the information referred to in this section will be provided through an internet web site at the address disclosed in the related prospectus supplement.
The Sponsor
The sponsor will be DB Structured Products, Inc., a Delaware corporation, referred to herein as the Sponsor, for each series of securities unless otherwise indicated in the related prospectus supplement. The Sponsor maintains its principal office at 60 Wall Street, New York, New York 10005. Its telephone number is (212) 250-2500.
During fiscal year 2005, the Sponsor and its affiliates securitized approximately $18.4 billion of residential mortgages.
With respect to any series of securities, if so specified in the related prospectus supplement, the Sponsor will also act as servicer or master servicer for the mortgage pool. If so, the Sponsor will service the Designated Mortgage Assets in accordance with the description of the applicable servicing procedures contained in this prospectus under “Description of the Securities.”
The Depositor
ACE Securities Corp., the depositor, is a special purpose corporation incorporated in the State of Delaware on June 3, 1998. The principal executive offices of the depositor are located at 6525 Morrison Boulevard, Suite 318, Charlotte, North Carolina 28211. Its telephone number is (704) 365-0569. The depositor does not have, nor is it expected in the future to have, any significant assets.
The limited purposes of the depositor are, in general, to acquire, own and sell mortgage loans and financial assets; to issue, acquire, own, hold and sell securities and notes secured by or representing ownership interests in mortgage loans and other financial assets, collections on the mortgage loans and related assets; and to engage in any acts that are incidental to, or necessary, suitable or convenient to accomplish, these purposes.
All of the shares of capital stock of the depositor are held by Altamont Holdings Corp., a Delaware corporation.
Description of the Securities
General
The Securities issued in each series will include either asset-backed certificates (the “Certificates”) or asset-backed notes (the “Notes”, and together with the Certificates, the “Securities”). The Certificates of each series (including any class of Certificates not offered by this prospectus) will represent the entire beneficial ownership interest in the issuing entity created pursuant to the related Agreement. The “Notes” of each series will represent indebtedness of the related issuing entity and will be issued and secured pursuant to an indenture. Each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will consist of one or more of the following classes of Notes or Certificates:
Accretion Directed
A class of securities designated to receive principal payments primarily from the interest that accrues on specified Accrual Classes.
Accrual
A class of securities where the accrued interest otherwise payable to such certificates or notes is allocated to specified classes of certificates as principal payments in reduction of their certificate principal balance or note principal balance. The certificate principal balance or note principal balance of the Accrual Class will be increased to the extent such accrued interest is so allocated.
Companion
A class that receives principal payments on any distribution date only if scheduled payments have been made on specified planned principal classes, targeted principal classes or scheduled principal classes.
Component
A class consisting of “components.” The components of a class of component securities may have different principal and/or interest payment characteristics but together constitute a single class. Each component of a class of component securities may be identified as falling into one or more of the categories in this list.
Fixed Rate
A class with an interest rate that is fixed throughout the life of the class.
Floating Rate
A class that receives interest payments based on an interest rate that fluctuates each payment period based on a designated index plus a specified margin.
Interest Only or IO
A class of securities with no principal balance and which is not entitled to principal payments. Interest usually accrues based on a specified notional amount.
Inverse Floating Rate
A class of securities where the pass-through rate adjusts based on the excess between a specified rate and LIBOR or another index.
Lock Out
A class of securities which is “locked out” of certain payments, usually principal, for a specified period of time.
Partial Accrual
A class that accretes a portion of the amount of accrued interest thereon, which amount will be added to the principal balance of such class on each applicable distribution date, with the remainder of such accrued interest to be distributed currently as interest on such class. Such accretion may continue until a specified event has occurred or until such Partial Accrual class is retired.
Principal Only
A class of securities which is not entitled to interest payments.
Planned Amortization Class
A class of securities with a principal balance that is reduced based on a schedule of principal balances, assuming a certain range of prepayment rates on the underlying assets.
Scheduled Principal
A class that is designed to receive principal payments using a predetermined principal balance schedule but is not designated as a Planned Principal Class or Targeted Principal Class. In many cases, the schedule is derived by assuming two constant prepayment rates for the underlying assets. These two rates are the endpoints for the “structuring range” for the scheduled principal class.
Senior Support
A class that absorbs the realized losses other than excess losses that would otherwise be allocated to a Super Senior Class after the related classes of subordinated securities are no longer outstanding.
Sequential Pay
Classes that receive principal payments in a prescribed sequence, that do not have predetermined principal balance schedules and that under all circumstances receive payments of principal continuously from the first distribution date on which they receive principal until they are retired. A single class that receives principal payments before or after all other classes in the same series of securities may be identified as a sequential pay class.
Super Senior
A class that will not bear its proportionate share of realized losses (other than excess losses) as its share is directed to another class, referred to as the “support class” until the class principal balance of the support class is reduced to zero.
Target Amortization
A class of securities with a principal balance that is reduced based on a scheduled of principal balances, assuming a certain targeted rate of prepayments on the related collateral.
Variable Rate
A class with an interest rate that resets periodically and is calculated by reference to the rate or rates of interest applicable to specified assets or instruments (e.g., the Loan Rates borne by the underlying loans).
If specified in the prospectus supplement, distributions on one or more classes of a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be limited to collections from a designated portion of the Assets in the related issuing entity (each portion of the Assets, an “Asset Group”). Any of these classes may include classes of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable.
Each class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, offered by this prospectus and the related prospectus supplement (the “Offered Notes” and the “Offered Certificates,” respectively, and together, the “Offered Securities”) will be issued in minimum denominations corresponding to the Security Balances or, in the case of some classes of Strip Securities, notional amounts or percentage interests specified in the prospectus supplement. The transfer of any Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, may be registered and those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be exchanged without the payment of any service charge payable in connection with that registration of transfer or exchange, but the depositor or the trustee or any agent of the depositor or the trustee may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge. O ne or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series may be issued in fully registered, certificated form (“Definitive Notes” or “Definitive Certificates,” and collectively, “Definitive Securities”) or in book-entry form (“Book-Entry Notes” or “Book-Entry Certificates,” and collectively, Book Entry Securities”), as provided in the prospectus supplement. See “Description of the Securities—Book-Entry Registration and Definitive Securities.” Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, will be exchangeable for other Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of the same class and series of a similar total Security Balance, notional amount or percentage interest but of different authorized denominations.
Distributions
Distributions on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of each series will be made by or on behalf of the trustee on each Distribution Date as specified in the prospectus supplement from the Available Distribution Amount for that series and that Distribution Date. Distributions (other than the final distribution) will be made to the persons in whose names the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, are registered at the close of business on, unless a different date is specified in the prospectus supplement, the last business day of the month preceding the month in which the Distribution Date occurs (the “Record Date”), and the amount of each distribution will be determined as of the close of business on the date specified in the prospectus supplement (the “Determination Date”). All distributions for each class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, on each Distribut ion Date will be allocated pro rata among the outstanding securityholders in that class or by random selection or as described in the prospectus supplement. Payments will be made either by wire transfer in immediately available funds to the account of a securityholder at a bank or other entity having appropriate facilities for these payments, if that securityholder has so notified the trustee or other person required to make those payments no later than the date specified in the prospectus supplement (and, if so provided in the prospectus supplement, holds Notes or Certificates, as applicable, in the requisite amount specified in the prospectus supplement), or by check mailed to the address of the person entitled to the payment as it appears on the Security Register; provided, however, that the final distribution in retirement of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be made only upon presentation and surrender of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, at the location specified in the notic e to securityholders of that final distribution.
Available Distribution Amount
All distributions on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of each series on each Distribution Date will be made from the Available Distribution Amount described below, subject to the terms described in the prospectus supplement. Generally, the “Available Distribution Amount” for each Distribution Date equals the sum of the following amounts:
(1)
the total amount of all cash on deposit in the related Collection Account as of the corresponding Determination Date, exclusive, unless otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement, of:
(a)
all scheduled payments of principal and interest collected but due on a date after the related Due Period (unless a different period is specified in the prospectus supplement, a “Due Period “ for any Distribution Date will begin on the second day of the month in which the immediately preceding Distribution Date occurs, or the Cut-off Date in the case of the first Due Period, and will end on the first day of the month of the related Distribution Date),
(b)
all prepayments, together with related payments of the interest thereon and related Prepayment Premiums, all proceeds of any FHA insurance, VA Guaranty Policy or insurance policies to be maintained for each Asset (to the extent that proceeds are not applied to the restoration of the Asset or released in accordance with the normal servicing procedures of a servicer, subject to the terms and conditions applicable to the related Asset) (collectively, “Insurance Proceeds”), all other amounts received and retained in connection with the liquidation of Assets in default in the issuing entity (“Liquidation Proceeds”), and other unscheduled recoveries received after the related Due Period, or other period specified in the prospectus supplement,
(c)
all amounts in the Collection Account that are due or reimbursable to the depositor, the trustee, an Asset Seller, a servicer, the master servicer or any other entity as specified in the prospectus supplement or that are payable in respect of particular expenses of the related issuing entity, and
(d)
all amounts received for a repurchase of an Asset from the issuing entity for defective documentation or a breach of representation or warranty received after the related Due Period, or other period specified in the prospectus supplement;
(2)
if the prospectus supplement so provides, interest or investment income on amounts on deposit in the Collection Account, including any net amounts paid under any Cash Flow Agreements;
(3)
all advances made by a servicer or the master servicer or any other entity as specified in the prospectus supplement for that Distribution Date;
(4)
if and to the extent the prospectus supplement so provides, amounts paid by a servicer or any other entity as specified in the prospectus supplement with respect to interest shortfalls resulting from prepayments during the related Prepayment Period; and
(5)
to the extent not on deposit in the related Collection Account as of the corresponding Determination Date, any amounts collected under, from or in respect of any credit support for that Distribution Date.
As described below, unless otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement, the entire Available Distribution Amount will be distributed among the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable (including any Notes or Certificates, as applicable, not offered by this prospectus), on each Distribution Date, and accordingly will be released from the issuing entity and will not be available for any future distributions.
The prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will describe any variation in the calculation or distribution of the Available Distribution Amount for that series.
Distributions of Interest on the Securities
Each class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable (other than classes of Strip Securities which have no Interest Rate), may have a different Interest Rate, which will be a fixed, variable or adjustable rate at which interest will accrue on that class or a component of that class (the “Interest Rate” in the case of Certificates). The indices applicable to variable rate and adjustable rate classes will only be of a type that are customarily used in the debt and fixed income markets to measure the cost of borrowed funds and will not be indices linked to stocks or commodities. The prospectus supplement will specify the Interest Rate for each class or component or, in the case of a variable or adjustable Interest Rate, the method for determining the Interest Rate. Interest on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be calculated on the basis of a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months unless the prospectus supplement specifies a different basis.
Distributions of interest on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of any class will be made on each Distribution Date (other than any class of Accrual Securities, which will be entitled to distributions of accrued interest starting only on the Distribution Date, or under the circumstances, specified in the prospectus supplement, and any class of Strip Securities that are not entitled to any distributions of interest) based on the Accrued Security Interest for that class and that Distribution Date, subject to the sufficiency of the portion of the Available Distribution Amount allocable to that class on that Distribution Date. Before any interest is distributed on any class of Accrual Securities, the amount of Accrued Security Interest otherwise distributable on that class will instead be added to the Security Balance of that class on each Distribution Date.
For each class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, and each Distribution Date (other than some classes of Strip Securities), “Accrued Security Interest” will be equal to interest accrued during the related Accrual Period on the outstanding Security Balance of the class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, immediately before the Distribution Date, at the applicable Interest Rate, reduced as described below. Accrued Security Interest on some classes of Strip Securities will be equal to interest accrued during the related Accrual Period on the outstanding notional amount of the Strip Security immediately before each Distribution Date, at the applicable Interest Rate, reduced as described below, or interest accrual in the manner described in the prospectus supplement. The method of determining the notional amount for a particular class of Strip Securities will be described i n the prospectus supplement. Reference to notional amount is solely for convenience in some of the calculations and does not represent the right to receive any distributions of principal. Unless otherwise provided in the prospectus supplement, the Accrued Security Interest on a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be reduced in the event of prepayment interest shortfalls, which are shortfalls in collections of interest for a full accrual period resulting from prepayments before the due date in that accrual period on the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets in the issuing entity for that series. The particular manner in which these shortfalls are to be allocated among some or all of the classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that series will be specified in the prospectus supplement. The prospectus supplement will also describe the extent to which the amount of Accrued Security Interest that is otherwise distributable on (or, in the case of Ac crual Securities, that may otherwise be added to the Security Balance of) a class of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, may be reduced as a result of any other contingencies, including delinquencies, losses and deferred interest on the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets in the related issuing entity. Unless otherwise provided in the prospectus supplement, any reduction in the amount of Accrued Security Interest otherwise distributable on a class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, by reason of the allocation to that class of a portion of any deferred interest on the mortgage loans comprising or underlying the Assets in the related issuing entity will result in a corresponding increase in the Security Balance of that class. See “Yield Considerations.”
Distributions of Principal of the Securities
The Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of each series, other than some classes of Strip Securities, will have a “Security Balance” which, at any time, will equal the then maximum amount that the holder will be entitled to receive on principal out of the future cash flow on the Assets and other assets included in the related issuing entity. The outstanding Security Balance of a Security will be reduced:
•
to the extent of distributions of principal on that Security from time to time and
•
if and to the extent provided in the prospectus supplement, by the amount of losses incurred on the related Assets.
The outstanding Security Balance of a Security:
•
may be increased in respect of deferred interest on the related mortgage loans, to the extent provided in the prospectus supplement and
•
in the case of Accrual Securities, will be increased by any related Accrued Security Interest up until the Distribution Date on which distributions of interest are required to begin.
If specified in the prospectus supplement, the initial total Security Balance of all classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series will be greater than the outstanding total principal balance of the related Assets as of the applicable Cut-off Date. The initial total Security Balance of a series and each class of the series will be specified in the prospectus supplement. Distributions of principal will be made on each Distribution Date to the class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, in the amounts and in accordance with the priorities specified in the prospectus supplement. Some classes of Strip Securities with no Security Balance are not entitled to any distributions of principal.
If specified in the related prospectus supplement, the issuing entity may issue notes or certificates, as applicable, from time to time and use the proceeds of this issuance to make principal payments with respect to a series.
Revolving Period
The applicable prospectus supplement may provide that all or a portion of the principal collections may be applied by the trustee to the acquisition of subsequent HELOCs or asset-backed or mortgage backed securities during a specified period rather than used to distribute payments of principal to noteholders or certificateholders, as applicable, during that period. These notes or certificates, as applicable, would then possess an interest only period, also commonly referred to as a “Revolving Period”, which will be followed by an “Amortization Period”, during which principal will be paid. Any interest only or revolving period may terminate prior to the end of the specified period and result in the earlier than expected principal repayment of the notes or certificates, as applicable.
Components
To the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, distribution on a class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be based on a combination of two or more different components as described under “—General” above. To that extent, the descriptions set forth under “—Distributions of Interest on the Securities” and “—Distributions of Principal of the Securities” above also relate to components of the component class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable. References in those sections to Security Balance may refer to the principal balance, if any, of these components and reference to the Interest Rate may refer to the Interest Rate, if any, on these components.
Distributions on the Securities of Prepayment Premiums
If so provided in the prospectus supplement, Prepayment Premiums that are collected on the mortgage loans in the related issuing entity will be distributed on each Distribution Date to the class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, entitled to the distribution as described in the prospectus supplement.
Allocation of Losses and Shortfalls
If so provided in the prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, consisting of one or more classes of Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, on any Distribution Date in respect of which losses or shortfalls in collections on the Assets have been incurred, the amount of those losses or shortfalls will be borne first by a class of Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, in the priority and manner and subject to the limitations specified in the prospectus supplement. See “Description of Credit Support” for a description of the types of protection that may be included in an issuing entity against losses and shortfalls on Assets comprising that issuing entity. The prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will describe the entitlement, if any, of a class of Notes or Certific ates, as applicable, whose Security Balance has been reduced to zero as a result of distributions or the allocation of losses on the related Assets to recover any losses previously allocated to that class from amounts received on the Assets. However, if the Security Balance of a class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, has been reduced to zero as the result of principal distributions, the allocation of losses on the Assets, an optional termination or an optional purchase or redemption, that class will no longer be entitled to receive principal distributions from amounts received on the assets of the related issuing entity, including distributions in respect of principal losses previously allocated to that class.
Advances in Respect of Delinquencies
If so provided in the prospectus supplement, the servicer or another entity described in the prospectus supplement will be required as part of its servicing responsibilities to advance on or before each Distribution Date its own funds or funds held in the related Collection Account that are not included in the Available Distribution Amount for that Distribution Date, in an amount equal to the total of payments of (1) principal (other than any balloon payments) and (2) interest (net of related servicing fees and Retained Interest) that were due on the Assets in that issuing entity during the related Due Period and were delinquent on the related Determination Date, subject to a good faith determination that the advances will be reimbursable from Related Proceeds (as defined below). In the case of a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, that includes one or more classes of Subordinate Not es or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, and if so provided in the prospectus supplement, the servicer’s (or another entity’s) advance obligation may be limited only to the portion of those delinquencies necessary to make the required distributions on one or more classes of Senior Notes or Senior Certificates, as applicable, and/or may be subject to a good faith determination that advances will be reimbursable not only from Related Proceeds but also from collections on other Assets otherwise distributable on one or more classes of those Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable. See “Description of Credit Support.”
Advances are intended to maintain a regular flow of scheduled interest and principal payments to holders of the class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, entitled to the payments, rather than to guarantee or insure against losses. Advances of the servicer’s (or another entity’s) funds will be reimbursable only out of related recoveries on the Assets (including amounts received under any form of credit support) respecting which those advances were made (as to any Assets, “Related Proceeds”) and from any other amounts specified in the prospectus supplement, including out of any amounts otherwise distributable on one or more classes of Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, of that series; provided, however, that any advance will be reimbursable from any amounts in the related Collection Account before any distributions being made on the No tes or Certificates, as applicable, to the extent that the servicer (or some other entity) determines in good faith that that advance (a “Nonrecoverable Advance”) is not ultimately recoverable from Related Proceeds or, if applicable, from collections on other Assets otherwise distributable on the Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable. If advances have been made by the servicer from excess funds in the related Collection Account, the servicer is required to replace these funds in that Collection Account on any future Distribution Date to the extent that funds in that Collection Account on that Distribution Date are less than payments required to be made to securityholders on that date. If specified in the prospectus supplement, the obligations of the servicer (or another entity) to make advances may be secured by a cash advance reserve fund, a surety bond, a letter of credit or another form of limited guaranty. If applicable, information regarding the charact eristics of and the identity of any borrower on any surety bond will be set forth in the prospectus supplement.
If and to the extent so provided in the prospectus supplement, the servicer (or another entity) will be entitled to receive interest at the rate specified in the prospectus supplement on its outstanding advances and will be entitled to pay itself this interest periodically from general collections on the Assets before any payment to securityholders or as otherwise provided in the related Agreement and described in the prospectus supplement.
If specified in the prospectus supplement, the master servicer or the trustee will be required to make advances, subject to specific conditions described in the prospectus supplement, in the event of a servicer default.
Reports to Securityholders
With each distribution to holders of any class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series, the servicer, the master servicer or the trustee, as provided in the prospectus supplement, will forward or cause to be forwarded to each holder, to the depositor and to any other parties as may be specified in the related Agreement, a statement containing the information specified in the prospectus supplement, or if no information is specified in the prospectus supplement, generally setting forth, in each case to the extent applicable and available:
(1)
the amount of that distribution to holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that class applied to reduce the Security Balance of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable;
(2)
the amount of that distribution to holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that class allocable to Accrued Security Interest;
(3)
the amount of that distribution allocable to Prepayment Premiums;
(4)
the amount of related servicing compensation and any other customary information as is required to enable securityholders to prepare their tax returns;
(5)
the total amount of advances included in that distribution, and the total amount of unreimbursed advances at the close of business on that Distribution Date;
(6)
the total principal balance of the Assets at the close of business on that Distribution Date;
(7)
the number and total principal balance of mortgage loans in respect of which
(a) one scheduled payment is delinquent,
(b) two scheduled payments are delinquent,
(c) three or more scheduled payments are delinquent and
(d) foreclosure proceedings have begun;
(8)
for any mortgage loan liquidated during the related Due Period, (a) the portion of the related liquidation proceeds payable or reimbursable to a servicer (or any other entity) in respect of that mortgage loan and (b) the amount of any loss to securityholders;
(9)
with respect to collateral acquired by the issuing entity through foreclosure or otherwise (an “REO Property”) relating to a mortgage loan and included in the issuing entity as of the end of the related Due Period, the date of acquisition;
(10)
for each REO Property relating to a mortgage loan and included in the issuing entity as of the end of the related Due Period,
(a) the book value,
(b) the principal balance of the related mortgage loan immediately following that Distribution Date (calculated as if that mortgage loan were still outstanding taking into account limited modifications to the terms of the mortgage loan specified in the Agreement),
(c) the total amount of unreimbursed servicing expenses and unreimbursed advances in respect of the REO Property and
(d) if applicable, the total amount of interest accrued and payable on related servicing expenses and related advances;
(11)
for any REO Property sold during the related Due Period
(a) the total amount of sale proceeds,
(b) the portion of those sales proceeds payable or reimbursable to the master servicer in respect of that REO Property or the related mortgage loan and
(c) the amount of any loss to securityholders in respect of the related mortgage loan;
(12)
the total Security Balance or notional amount, as the case may be, of each class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable (including any class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, not offered by this prospectus) at the close of business on that Distribution Date, separately identifying any reduction in that Security Balance due to the allocation of any loss and increase in the Security Balance of a class of Accrual Securities, if any Accrued Security Interest has been added to that balance;
(13)
the total amount of principal prepayments made during the related Due Period;
(14)
the amount deposited in the reserve fund, if any, on that Distribution Date;
(15)
the amount remaining in the reserve fund, if any, as of the close of business on that Distribution Date;
(16)
the total unpaid Accrued Security Interest, if any, on each class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, at the close of business on that Distribution Date;
(17)
in the case of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, with a variable Interest Rate, the Interest Rate applicable to that Distribution Date, and, if available, the immediately succeeding Distribution Date, as calculated in accordance with the method specified in the prospectus supplement;
(18)
in the case of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, with an adjustable Interest Rate, for statements to be distributed in any month in which an adjustment date occurs, the adjustable Interest Rate applicable to that Distribution Date, if available, and the immediately succeeding Distribution Date as calculated in accordance with the method specified in the prospectus supplement;
(19)
as to any series that includes credit support, the amount of coverage of each instrument of credit support included as of the close of business on that Distribution Date;
(20)
during the Pre-Funding Period, the remaining Pre-Funded Amount and the portion of the Pre-Funding Amount used to acquire Subsequent Assets since the preceding Distribution Date;
(21)
during the Pre-Funding Period, the amount remaining in the Capitalized Interest Account; and
(22)
the total amount of payments by the borrowers of
(a) default interest,
(b) late charges and
(c) assumption and modification fees collected during the related Due Period.
Reports, whether monthly or annual, will be transmitted in paper format to the holder of record of the class of securities contemporaneously with the distribution on that particular class. In addition, the monthly reports will be posted on a website as described below under “Available Information.”
Within a reasonable period of time after the end of each calendar year, the servicer, the master servicer or the trustee, as provided in the prospectus supplement, will furnish to each securityholder of record at any time during the calendar year the information required by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”) and applicable regulations under the Code to enable securityholders to prepare their tax returns. See “Description of the Securities—Book-Entry Registration and Definitive Securities.”
Termination
The obligations created by the related Agreement for each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will terminate upon the payment to securityholders of that series of all amounts held in the Collection Accounts or by a servicer, the master servicer, if any, or the trustee and required to be paid to them pursuant to that Agreement following the earlier of (1) the final payment or other liquidation of the last Asset subject to the related Agreement or the disposition of all property acquired upon foreclosure of any mortgage loan subject to the Agreement and (2) the purchase of all of the assets of the issuing entity by the party entitled to effect that termination, under the circumstances and in the manner set forth in the prospectus supplement. In no event, however, will the issuing entity continue beyond the date specified in the prospectus supplement. Written notice of termination of the Agreement will be given to each securityholder, and the final distribution will be made only upon presentation and surrender of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, at the location to be specified in the notice of termination.
If specified in the prospectus supplement, a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be subject to optional early termination through the purchase of the Assets in the related issuing entity by the party specified in the prospectus supplement, under the circumstances and in the manner set forth in the prospectus supplement. If so provided in the prospectus supplement, upon the reduction of the Security Balance of a specified class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, by a specified percentage, the party specified in the prospectus supplement will solicit bids for the purchase of all assets of the issuing entity, or of a sufficient portion of those assets to retire that class or classes or purchase that class or classes at a price set forth in the prospectus supplement, in each case, under the circumstances and in the manner set forth in the prospectus supplement. T hat price will at least equal the outstanding Security Balances and any accrued and unpaid interest on the Security Balances (including any unpaid interest shortfalls for prior Distribution Dates). Any sale of the Assets of the issuing entity will be without recourse to the issuing entity or the securityholders. Any purchase or solicitation of bids may be made only when the total Security Balance of that class or classes declines to a percentage of the Initial Security Balance of those Notes or Certificates, as applicable (not to exceed 10%), specified in the prospectus supplement. In addition, if so provided in the prospectus supplement, some classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be purchased or redeemed in the manner set forth in the prospectus supplement at a price at least equal to the outstanding Security Balance of each class so purchased or redeemed and any accrued and unpaid interest on the Security Balance (including any unpaid interest shortfalls for prior Distribut ion Dates). In the event that any series of certificates or notes which provides for such a purchase, the certificates or notes will use the word “Callable” in their title.
Optional Purchases
Subject to the provisions of the applicable Agreement, the depositor, the servicer or any other party specified in the prospectus supplement may, at that party’s option, repurchase any mortgage loan that is in default or as to which default is reasonably foreseeable if, in the depositor’s, the servicer’s or any other party’s judgment, the related default is not likely to be cured by the borrower or default is not likely to be averted, at a price equal to the unpaid principal balance of the mortgage loan plus accrued interest on the mortgage loan and under the conditions set forth in the prospectus supplement.
Book-Entry Registration and Definitive Securities
General
If provided for in the prospectus supplement, one or more classes of the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, of any series will be issued as Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, and each of these classes will be represented by one or more single Notes or Certificates, as applicable, registered in the name of a nominee for the depository, The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) and, if provided in the prospectus supplement, additionally through Clearstream Luxembourg, société anonyme (“Clearstream Luxembourg”) or the Euroclear System (“Euroclear”). Each class of Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, will be issued in one or more certificates or notes, as the case may be, that equal the initial principal amount of the related class of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, and will init ially be registered in the name of Cede & Co.
No person acquiring an interest in a Book-Entry Security (each, a “Beneficial Owner”) will be entitled to receive a Definitive Security, except as set forth below under “—Definitive Securities.” Unless and until Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, are issued for the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, under the limited circumstances described in the applicable prospectus supplement or this prospectus, all references to actions by securityholders with respect to the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, will refer to actions taken by DTC, Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear upon instructions from their Participants (as defined below), and all references in this prospectus to distributions, notices, reports and statements to securityholders with respect to the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, a s applicable, will refer to distributions, notices, reports and statements to DTC, Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear, as applicable, for distribution to Beneficial Owners by DTC in accordance with the procedures of DTC and if applicable, Clearstream Luxembourg and Euroclear.
Beneficial Owners will hold their Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, through DTC in the United States, or, if the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, are offered for sale globally, through Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear in Europe if they are participating organizations (“Participants”) of those systems. Participants include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies and clearing corporations and may include some other organizations. Indirect access to the DTC, Clearstream Luxembourg and Euroclear systems also is available to others, such as banks, brokers, dealers and trust companies that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with a Participant, either directly or indirectly (“Indirect Participants”).
DTC
DTC is a limited-purpose trust company organized under the laws of the State of New York, a member of the Federal Reserve System, a “clearing corporation” within the meaning of the Uniform Commercial Code (“UCC”) and a “clearing agency” registered pursuant to the provisions of Section 17A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). DTC was created to hold securities for its Participants, some of which (and/or their representatives) own DTC, and facilitate the clearance and settlement of securities transactions between its Participants through electronic book-entry changes in their accounts, thus eliminating the need for physical movement of securities. In accordance with its normal procedures, DTC is expected to record the positions held by each of its Participants in the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, whether held for its own account or as a nominee for another person. In general, beneficial ownership of Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, will be subject to the rules, regulations and procedures governing DTC and its Participants as in effect from time to time.
Clearstream Luxembourg
Clearstream Banking, société anonyme, 67 Bd Grande-Duchesse Charlotte, L-2967 Luxembourg (“Clearstream, Luxembourg”), was incorporated in 1970 as “Cedel S.A.”, a company with limited liability under Luxembourg law (a société anonyme). Cedel S.A. subsequently changed its name to Cedelbank. On January 10, 2000, Cedelbank’s parent company, Cedel International, société anonyme (“CI”) merged its clearing, settlement and custody business with that of Deutsche Börse Clearing AG (“DBC”). The merger involved the transfer by CI of substantially all of its assets and liabilities (including its shares in CB) to a new Luxembourg company, New Cedel International, société anonyme (“New CI”), which is 50% owned by CI and 50% owned by DBC’s parent company Deutsche Börse AG. The sharehol ders of these two entities are banks, securities dealers and financial institutions. Cedel International currently has 92 shareholders, including U.S. financial institutions or their subsidiaries. No single entity may own more than 5 percent of Cedel International’s stock.
Further to the merger, the Board of Directors of New Cedel International decided to rename the companies in the group in order to give them a cohesive brand name. The new brand name that was chosen is “Clearstream”. With effect from January 14, 2000 New CI has been renamed “Clearstream International, société anonyme”. On January 18, 2000, Cedelbank was renamed “Clearstream Banking, société anonyme”, and Cedel Global Services was renamed “Clearstream Services, société anonyme”.
On January 17, 2000 DBC was renamed “Clearstream Banking AG”. This means that there are now two entities in the corporate group headed by Clearstream International which share the name “Clearstream Banking”, the entity previously named “Cedelbank” and the entity previously named “Deutsche Börse Clearing AG”.
Clearstream, Luxembourg holds securities for its customers (“Clearstream, Luxembourg Participants”) and facilitates the clearance and settlement of securities transactions between Clearstream, Luxembourg customers through electronic book-entry changes in accounts of Clearstream, Luxembourg customers, thereby eliminating the need for physical movement of certificates. Transactions may be settled by Clearstream, Luxembourg in any of 36 currencies, including United States Dollars. Clearstream, Luxembourg provides to its customers, among other things, services for safekeeping, administration, clearance and settlement of internationally traded securities and securities lending and borrowing. Clearstream, Luxembourg also deals with domestic securities markets in over 30 countries through established depository and custodial relationships. Clearstream, Luxembourg is registered as a bank in Luxembourg, and as such is subject to regulation by the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier, “CSSF”, which supervises Luxembourg banks. Clearstream, Luxembourg’s customers are world-wide financial institutions including underwriters, securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies and clearing corporations. Clearstream, Luxembourg’s U.S. customers are limited to securities brokers and dealers, and banks. Currently, Clearstream, Luxembourg has approximately 2,000 customers located in over 80 countries, including all major European countries, Canada, and the United States. Indirect access to Clearstream, Luxembourg is available to other institutions that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with an account holder of Clearstream, Luxembourg. Clearstream, Luxembourg has established an electronic bridge with Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York as the Operator of the Euroclear System (MGT/EOC) in Brussels to facilitate settlement of trade s between Clearstream, Luxembourg and MGT/EOC.
Euroclear
Euroclear was created in 1968 to hold securities for its Participants and to clear and settle transactions between its Participants through simultaneous electronic book-entry delivery against payment, thus eliminating the need for physical movement of securities and any risk from lack of simultaneous transfers of securities and cash. Transactions may be settled in any of 32 currencies, including United States dollars. Euroclear includes various other services, including securities lending and borrowing, and interfaces with domestic markets in several countries generally similar to the arrangements for cross-market transfers with DTC described above. Euroclear is operated by the Brussels, Belgium office of Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York (the “Euroclear Operator”), under contract with Euroclear Clearance Systems S.C., a Belgian cooperative corporation (the “Coop erative Corporation”). All operations are conducted by the Euroclear Operator, and all Euroclear securities clearance accounts and Euroclear cash accounts are accounts with the Euroclear Operator, not the Cooperative Corporation. The Cooperative Corporation establishes policy for Euroclear on behalf of its Participants. Euroclear Participants include banks (including central banks), securities brokers and dealers and other professional financial intermediaries. Indirect access to Euroclear is also available to other firms that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with a Participant of Euroclear, either directly or indirectly.
The Euroclear Operator is the Belgian branch of a New York banking corporation that is a member bank of the Federal Reserve System, and is regulated and examined by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the New York State Banking Department, as well as the Belgian Banking Commission.
Securities clearance accounts and cash accounts with the Euroclear Operator are governed by the Terms and Conditions Governing Use of Euroclear and the related Operating Procedures of the Euroclear System and applicable Belgian law (collectively, the “Terms and Conditions”). The Terms and Conditions govern transfers of securities and cash within Euroclear, withdrawals of securities and cash from Euroclear, and receipts of payments with respect to securities in Euroclear. All securities in Euroclear are held on a fungible basis without attribution of specific securities to specific securities clearance accounts. The Euroclear Operator acts under the Terms and Conditions only on behalf of its Participants, and has no record of or relationship with persons holding through Participants of Euroclear.
Clearstream Luxembourg and Euroclear will hold omnibus positions on behalf of their Participants through customers’ securities accounts in Clearstream Luxembourg’s and Euroclear’s names on the books of their respective depositaries which in turn will hold positions in customers’ securities accounts in the depositaries names on the books of DTC. Citibank will act as depositary for Clearstream Luxembourg and JPMorgan Chase Bank will act as depositary for Euroclear (individually the “Relevant Depositary” and collectively, the “European Depositaries”).
Beneficial Ownership of Book–Entry Securities
Except as described below, no Beneficial Owner will be entitled to receive a physical certificate representing a Certificate, or note representing a Note. Unless and until Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, are issued, it is anticipated that the only “securityholder” of the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, will be Cede & Co., as nominee of DTC. Beneficial Owners will not be “Certificateholders” as that term is used in any Agreement, nor “Noteholders” as that term is used in any indenture. Beneficial Owners are only permitted to exercise their rights indirectly through Participants, DTC, Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear, as applicable.
The Beneficial Owner’s ownership of a Book-Entry Security will be recorded on the records of the brokerage firm, bank, thrift institution or other financial intermediary (each, a “Financial Intermediary”) that maintains the Beneficial Owner’s account for that purpose. In turn, the Financial Intermediary’s ownership of a Book-Entry Security will be recorded on the records of DTC (or of a Participant that acts as agent for the Financial Intermediary, whose interest will in turn be recorded on the records of DTC, if the Beneficial Owner’s Financial Intermediary is not a Participant of DTC and on the records of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear, as appropriate).
Beneficial Owners will receive all distributions of principal of, and interest on, the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, from the trustee through DTC and its Participants. While the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, are outstanding (except under the circumstances described below), under the rules, regulations and procedures creating and affecting DTC and its operations (the “Rules”), DTC is required to make book-entry transfers among Participants on whose behalf it acts with respect to the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, and is required to receive and transmit distributions of principal of, and interest on, the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable. Participants and Indirect Participants with whom Beneficial Owners have accounts with respect to Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, are simi larly required to make book-entry transfers and receive and transmit distributions on behalf of their respective Beneficial Owners. Accordingly, although Beneficial Owners will not possess certificates or notes, the Rules provide a mechanism by which Beneficial Owners will receive distributions and will be able to transfer their interest.
Beneficial Owners will not receive or be entitled to receive certificates or notes representing their respective interests in the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, except under the limited circumstances described below. Unless and until Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, are issued, Beneficial Owners who are not Participants may transfer ownership of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, only through Participants and Indirect Participants by instructing the Participants and Indirect Participants to transfer Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, by book-entry transfer, through DTC for the account of the purchasers of the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, which account is maintained with their respective Participants. Under the Rules and in accordance with DTC’s normal procedures, transfer of ownership of Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, will be executed through DTC and the accounts of the respective Participants at DTC will be debited and credited. Similarly, the Participants and Indirect Participants will make debits or credits, as the case may be, on their records on behalf of the selling and purchasing Beneficial Owners.
Because of time zone differences, any credits of securities received in Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear as a result of a transaction with a Participant will be made during subsequent securities settlement processing and dated the business day following the DTC settlement date. These credits or any transactions in securities settled during this processing will be reported to the relevant Participants of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear on that business day. Cash received in Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear as a result of sales of securities by or through a Participant of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear to a Participant of DTC will be received with value on the DTC settlement date but will be available in the relevant Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear cash account only as of the business day following settlement in DTC. For information with respect to tax documentation pr ocedures relating to the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, see “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations-Tax Treatment of Foreign Investors” in this prospectus and, if the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, are globally offered and the prospectus supplement so provides, see “Global Clearance, Settlement and Tax Documentation Procedures — Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Documentation Requirements” in Annex I to the prospectus supplement.
Transfers between Participants of DTC will occur in accordance with DTC Rules. Transfers between Participants of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear will occur in accordance with their respective rules and operating procedures.
Cross-market transfers between persons holding directly or indirectly through DTC, on the one hand, and directly or indirectly through Participants of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear, on the other, will be effected in DTC in accordance with the DTC Rules on behalf of the relevant European international clearing system by the Relevant Depositary; however, cross-market transactions will require delivery of instructions to the relevant European international clearing system by the counterparty in that system in accordance with its rules and procedures and within its established deadlines (European time). The relevant European international clearing system will, if the transaction meets its settlement requirements, deliver instructions to the Relevant Depositary to take action to effect final settlement on its behalf by delivering or receiving securities in DTC, and making or receiving payment in accordance with normal procedures for same day funds settlement applicable to DTC. Participants of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear may not deliver instructions directly to the European Depositaries.
Distributions on the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, will be made on each Distribution Date by the Trustee to DTC. DTC will be responsible for crediting the amount of each distribution to the accounts of the applicable Participants of DTC in accordance with DTC’s normal procedures. Each Participant of DTC will be responsible for disbursing the distribution to the Beneficial Owners of the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, that it represents and to each Financial Intermediary for which it acts as agent. Each Financial Intermediary will be responsible for disbursing funds to the Beneficial Owners of the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, that it represents.
Under a book-entry format, Beneficial Owners of the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, may experience some delay in their receipt of payments, because the distributions will be forwarded by the Trustee to Cede & Co. Any distributions on Notes or Certificates, as applicable, held through Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear will be credited to the cash accounts of Participants of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear in accordance with the relevant system’s rules and procedures, to the extent received by the Relevant Depositary. These distributions will be subject to tax reporting in accordance with relevant United States tax laws and regulations. See “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations — REMICs — Taxation of Certain Foreign Investors” in this prospectus. Because DTC can only act on behalf of Financial Intermediaries, the ability of a Beneficial Owner to pledge Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, to persons or entities that do not participate in the depository system, or otherwise take actions in respect of Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, may be limited due to the lack of physical securities for the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable. In addition, issuance of the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, in book-entry form may reduce the liquidity of the securities in the secondary market since potential investors may be unwilling to purchase Notes or Certificates, as applicable, for which they cannot obtain physical securities.
Monthly and annual reports will be provided to Cede & Co., as nominee of DTC, and may be made available by Cede & Co. to Beneficial Owners upon request, in accordance with the rules, regulations and procedures creating and affecting the depository, and to the Financial Intermediaries to whose DTC accounts the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, of Beneficial Owners are credited.
Generally, DTC will advise the applicable trustee that unless and until Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, are issued, DTC will take any action permitted to be taken by the holders of the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, under the Agreement or indenture, as applicable, only at the direction of one or more Financial Intermediaries to whose DTC accounts the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, are credited, to the extent that actions are taken on behalf of Financial Intermediaries whose holdings include the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable. If the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, are globally offered, Clearstream Luxembourg or the Euroclear Operator, as the case may be, will take any other action permitted to be taken by a securityholder under the Agreement or indenture, as applicable, on behalf of a Participant of Clearstream Luxembourg or Euroclear only in accordance with its relevant rules and procedures and subject to the ability of the Relevant Depositary to effect those actions on its behalf through DTC. DTC may take actions, at the direction of the related Participants, with respect to some Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, that conflict with actions taken with respect to other Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable.
Although DTC, Clearstream Luxembourg and Euroclear have agreed to the foregoing procedures in order to facilitate transfers of Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, among Participants of DTC, Clearstream Luxembourg and Euroclear, they are under no obligation to perform or continue to perform these procedures and the procedures may be discontinued at any time.
None of the depositor, any master servicer, any servicer, the trustee, any securities registrar or paying agent or any of their affiliates will have any responsibility for any aspect of the records relating to or payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests of the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, or for maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to those beneficial ownership interests.
Definitive Securities
Notes or Certificates, as applicable, initially issued in book-entry form will be issued as Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, to Beneficial Owners or their nominees, rather than to DTC or its nominee only
(1)
if the depositor advises the trustee in writing that DTC is no longer willing or able to properly discharge its responsibilities as depository for the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, and the depositor is unable to locate a qualified successor,
(2)
if the depositor, at its option, in writing, with the consent of the applicable Participants, elects to end the book-entry system through DTC or
(3)
in accordance with any other provisions described in the prospectus supplement.
Upon the occurrence of any of the events described in the immediately preceding paragraph, DTC is required to notify all Participants of the availability through DTC of Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, for the Beneficial Owners. Upon surrender by DTC of the security or securities representing the Book-Entry Notes or Book-Entry Certificates, as applicable, together with instructions for registration, the trustee will issue (or cause to be issued) to the Beneficial Owners identified in those instructions the Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, to which they are entitled, and thereafter the trustee will recognize the holders of those Definitive Notes or Definitive Certificates, as applicable, as securityholders under the Agreement.
Description of the Agreements
Agreements Applicable to a Series
REMIC Securities and Grantor Trust Securities
Notes or Certificates, as applicable, representing interests in an issuing entity, or a portion of an issuing entity, that the trustee will elect to have treated as a real estate mortgage investment conduit (“REMIC”) under Sections 860A through 860G of the Code (“REMIC Securities”), or Grantor Trust Securities (as defined in this prospectus), will be issued, and the related issuing entity will be created, pursuant to a pooling and servicing agreement or trust agreement (in either case, generally referred to in this prospectus as the “pooling and servicing agreement”) among the depositor, the trustee and the sole servicer or master servicer, as applicable. The Assets of that issuing entity will be transferred to the issuing entity and thereafter serviced in accordance with the terms of the pooling and servicing agreement. In the event there are multiple servicers of the Assets of that issuing entity, or in the event the Securities consist of Notes, each servicer will perform its servicing functions pursuant to a related underlying servicing agreement. Forms of the agreements have been filed as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. However, the provisions of each agreement will vary depending upon the nature of the related securities and the nature of the related issuing entity. The summaries included herein describe provisions that may appear in a pooling and servicing agreement with respect to a series of Certificates or in either the servicing agreement or indenture with respect to a series of Notes. The prospectus supplement for a series of securities will describe material provisions of the related agreements that differ from and supplement the description thereof set forth below. The depositor will provide a copy of each agreement (without exhibits) that relates to any series of securities without charge upon written r equest of a holder of an offered security of the series addressed to it at its principal executive offices specified in this prospectus under “The Depositor”. As to each series of securities, the related agreements will be filed with the Commission in a current report on Form 8-K following the issuance of the securities to the extent required to comply with the Securities Act of 1933 and Regulation AB.
Securities That Are Partnership Interests for Tax Purposes and Notes
Certificates, as applicable, that are intended to be treated as partnership interests for tax purposes will be issued, and the related issuing entity will be created, pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement or trust agreement.
A series of Notes issued by an issuing entity that is intended to be treated as a partnership or disregarded entity for tax purposes will be issued pursuant to an indenture between the related issuing entity and an indenture trustee named in the prospectus supplement. The issuing entity will be established either as a statutory business trust under the law of the State of Delaware or as a common law trust under the law of the State of New York pursuant to a trust agreement between the depositor and an owner trustee specified in the prospectus supplement relating to that series of Notes. The Assets securing payment on the Notes will be serviced in accordance with a sale and servicing agreement or servicing agreement.
Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Servicing Agreements
General
The following summaries describe the material provisions that may appear in each pooling and servicing agreement, sale and servicing agreement or servicing agreement (each an “Agreement”). The prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will describe any provision of the Agreement relating to that series that materially differs from the description of those provisions contained in this prospectus. The summaries do not purport to be complete and are subject to, and are qualified by reference to, all of the provisions of the Agreement for each issuing entity and the description of those provisions in the prospectus supplement. The provisions of each Agreement will vary depending on the nature of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, to be issued under the Agreement and the nature of the related issuing entity. As used in this prospectus for any series, the term “Security” refers to all of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that series, whether or not offered by this prospectus and by the prospectus supplement, unless the context otherwise requires. A form of a pooling and servicing agreement has been filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement of which this prospectus is a part. The depositor will provide a copy of the pooling and servicing agreement (without exhibits) relating to any series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, without charge upon written request of a securityholder of that series addressed to ACE Securities Corp., 6525 Morrison Boulevard, Suite 318, Charlotte, North Carolina 28211, Attention: Evelyn Echevarria.
The servicer or master servicer and the trustee for any series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be named in the prospectus supplement. In the event there are multiple servicers for the Assets in an issuing entity, a master servicer will perform some of the administration, calculation and reporting functions for that issuing entity and will supervise the related servicers pursuant to a pooling and servicing agreement. For a series involving a master servicer, references in this prospectus to the servicer will apply to the master servicer where non-servicing obligations are described. If specified in the prospectus supplement, a manager or administrator may be appointed pursuant to the pooling and servicing agreement for any issuing entity to administer that issuing entity.
Assignment of Assets; Repurchases
At the time of issuance of any series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, the depositor will assign (or cause to be assigned) to the designated trustee the Assets to be included in the related issuing entity, together with all principal and interest to be received on or with respect to those Assets after the Cut-off Date, other than principal and interest due on or before the Cut-off Date and other than any Retained Interest. The trustee will, concurrently with that assignment, deliver the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, to the depositor in exchange for the Assets and the other assets comprising the issuing entity for that series. Each Asset will be identified in a schedule appearing as an exhibit to the related Agreement. That schedule will include detailed information to the extent available and relevant
(1)
in respect of each mortgage loan included in the related issuing entity, including the city and state of the related Mortgaged Property and type of that property, the mortgage rate and, if applicable, the applicable index, margin, adjustment date and any rate cap information, the original and remaining term to maturity, the original and outstanding principal balance and balloon payment, if any, the Loan-to-Value Ratio as of the date indicated and payment and prepayment provisions, if applicable,
(2)
in respect of each contract included in the related issuing entity, including the outstanding principal amount and the contract rate; and
(3)
in respect of each Mortgage Security and Agency Security, the original and outstanding principal amount, if any, and the interest rate on the Mortgage Security or Agency Security.
For each mortgage loan, except as otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement, the depositor will deliver or cause to be delivered to the trustee (or to the custodian hereinafter referred to) particular loan documents, which will generally include the original mortgage note endorsed, without recourse, in blank or to the order of the trustee, the original Mortgage (or a certified copy of the original Mortgage) with evidence of recording indicated on the original Mortgage and an assignment of the Mortgage to the trustee in recordable form. However, an issuing entity may include mortgage loans where the original mortgage note is not delivered to the trustee if the depositor delivers to the trustee or the custodian a copy or a duplicate original of the mortgage note, together with an affidavit certifying that the original of the mortgage note has been lost or destroyed. For those mortgage l oans, the trustee (or its nominee) may not be able to enforce the mortgage note against the related borrower. The Asset Seller or other entity specified in the prospectus supplement will be required to agree to repurchase, or substitute for, each of these mortgage loans that is subsequently in default if the enforcement thereof or of the related Mortgage is materially adversely affected by the absence of the original mortgage note. The related Agreement will generally require the depositor or another party specified in the prospectus supplement to promptly cause each of these assignments of Mortgage to be recorded in the appropriate public office for real property records, except in the State of California or in other states where, in the opinion of counsel acceptable to the trustee, recording is not required to protect the trustee’s interest in the related mortgage loan against the claim of any subsequent transferee or any successor to or creditor of the depositor, the servicer, the relevan t Asset Seller or any other prior holder of the mortgage loan.
The trustee (or a custodian) will review the mortgage loan documents within a specified period of days after receipt of the mortgage loan documents, and the trustee (or a custodian) will hold those documents in trust for the benefit of the securityholders. If any of these documents are found to be missing or defective in any material respect, the trustee (or that custodian) will immediately notify the servicer and the depositor, and the servicer will immediately notify the relevant Asset Seller or other entity specified in the prospectus supplement. If the Asset Seller cannot cure the omission or defect within a specified number of days after receipt of that notice, then the Asset Seller or other entity specified in the prospectus supplement will be obligated, within a specified number of days of receipt of that notice, to either (1) repurchase the related mortgage loan from the trustee at a price equal to the sum of the unpaid principal balance of the mortgage loan, plus unpaid accrued interest at the interest rate for that Asset from the date as to which interest was last paid to the due date in the Due Period in which the relevant purchase is to occur, plus servicing expenses that are payable to the servicer, or another price as specified in the prospectus supplement (the “Purchase Price”) or (2) substitute a new mortgage loan. There can be no assurance that an Asset Seller or other named entity will fulfill this repurchase or substitution obligation, and neither the servicer nor the depositor will be obligated to repurchase or substitute for that mortgage loan if the Asset Seller or other named entity defaults on its obligation.
This repurchase or substitution obligation constitutes the sole remedy available to the securityholders or the trustee for omission of, or a material defect in, a constituent document. To the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, in lieu of curing any omission or defect in the Asset or repurchasing or substituting for that Asset, the Asset Seller or other named entity may agree to cover any losses suffered by the issuing entity as a result of that breach or defect.
Notwithstanding the preceding three paragraphs, the documents for Home Equity Loans will be delivered to the trustee (or a custodian) only to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement. Generally these documents will be retained by the servicer, which may also be the Asset Seller. In addition, assignments of the related Mortgages to the trustee will be recorded only to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement.
Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities will be registered in the name of the trustee or its nominee on the books of the issuer or guarantor or its agent or, in the case of Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities issued only in book-entry form, through the depository with respect to the Mortgage Securities and Agency Securities, in accordance with the procedures established by the issuer or guarantor for registration of those certificates, and distributions on those securities to which the issuing entity is entitled will be made directly to the trustee.
Representations and Warranties; Repurchases
To the extent provided in the prospectus supplement the depositor will, for each Asset, assign representations and warranties, as of a specified date (the person making those representations and warranties, the “Warranting Party”) covering, by way of example, the following types of matters:
•
the accuracy of the information set forth for that Asset on the schedule of Assets appearing as an exhibit to the related Agreement;
•
in the case of a mortgage loan, the existence of title insurance insuring the lien priority of the mortgage loan;
•
the authority of the Warranting Party to sell the Asset;
•
the payment status of the Asset;
•
in the case of a mortgage loan, the existence of customary provisions in the related mortgage note and Mortgage to permit realization against the Mortgaged Property of the benefit of the security of the Mortgage; and
•
the existence of hazard and extended perils insurance coverage on the Mortgaged Property.
Any Warranting Party shall be an Asset Seller or an affiliate of the Asset Seller or any other person acceptable to the depositor and will be identified in the prospectus supplement.
Representations and warranties made in respect of an Asset may have been made as of a date before the applicable Cut-off Date. A substantial period of time may have elapsed between that date and the date of initial issuance of the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, evidencing an interest in that Asset. In the event of a breach of any of these representations or warranties, the Warranting Party will be obligated to reimburse the issuing entity for losses caused by that breach or either cure that breach or repurchase or replace the affected Asset as described below. Since the representations and warranties may not address events that may occur following the date as of which they were made, the Warranting Party will have a reimbursement, cure, repurchase or substitution obligation in connection with a breach of that representation and warranty only if the relevant eve nt that causes that breach occurs before that date. That party would have no obligations if the relevant event that causes that breach occurs after that date.
Each Agreement will provide that the servicer and/or trustee or another entity identified in the prospectus supplement will be required to notify promptly the relevant Warranting Party of any breach of any representation or warranty made by it in respect of an Asset that materially and adversely affects the value of that Asset or the interests in the prospectus supplement of the securityholders. If the Warranting Party cannot cure that breach within a specified period following the date on which that party was notified of that breach, then the Warranting Party will be obligated to repurchase that Asset from the trustee within a specified period from the date on which the Warranting Party was notified of that breach, at the Purchase Price therefor. If so provided in the prospectus supplement for a series, a Warranting Party, rather than repurchase an Asset as to which a breach has occurred, w ill have the option, within a specified period after initial issuance of that series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, to cause the removal of that Asset from the issuing entity and substitute in its place one or more other Assets, as applicable, in accordance with the standards described in the prospectus supplement. If so provided in the prospectus supplement for a series, a Warranting Party, rather than repurchase or substitute an Asset as to which a breach has occurred, will have the option to reimburse the issuing entity or the securityholders for any losses caused by that breach. This reimbursement, repurchase or substitution obligation will constitute the sole remedy available to securityholders or the trustee for a breach of representation by a Warranting Party.
Neither the depositor (except to the extent that it is the Warranting Party) nor the servicer will be obligated to purchase or substitute for an Asset if a Warranting Party defaults on its obligation to do so, and no assurance can be given that the Warranting Parties will carry out those obligations with respect to the Assets.
A servicer will make representations and warranties regarding its authority to enter into, and its ability to perform its obligations under, the related Agreement. A breach of any representation of the servicer that materially and adversely affects the interests of the securityholders and which continues unremedied for the number of days specified in the Agreement after the discovery of the breach by the servicer or the receipt of written notice of that breach by the servicer from the trustee, the depositor or the holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, evidencing not less than 25% of the voting rights or other percentage specified in the related Agreement, will constitute an Event of Default under that Agreement. See “—Events of Default under the Agreement” and “—Rights Upon Event of Default under the Agreements.”
Collection Account and Related Accounts
General. The servicer and/or the trustee will, as to each issuing entity, establish and maintain or cause to be established and maintained one or more separate accounts for the collection of payments on the related Assets (collectively, the “Collection Account”), which must be an account or accounts that either:
•
are insured by the Bank Insurance Fund or the Savings Association Insurance Fund of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) (to the limits established by the FDIC) and the uninsured deposits in which are otherwise secured so that the securityholders have a claim with respect to the funds in the Collection Account or a perfected first priority security interest against any collateral securing those funds that is superior to the claims of any other depositors or general creditors of the institution with which the Collection Account is maintained, or
•
are maintained with a bank or trust company, and in a manner satisfactory to the rating agency or agencies rating any class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that series.
Investment of amounts in the Collection Account is limited to United States government securities and other investment grade obligations specified in the Agreement (“Permitted Investments”). A Collection Account may be maintained as an interest bearing or a non-interest bearing account and the funds held in the Collection Account may be invested pending each succeeding Distribution Date in short-term Permitted Investments. The master servicer will have sole discretion to determine the particular investments made so long as it complies with the investment terms of the related pooling and servicing agreement or the related servicing agreement and indenture. Any interest or other income earned on funds in the Collection Account will, unless otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement, be paid to the servicer or its designee as additional servicing compensation. The Co llection Account may be maintained with an institution that is an affiliate of the servicer, if applicable, provided that that institution meets the standards imposed by the rating agency or agencies. If permitted by the rating agency or agencies, a Collection Account may contain funds relating to more than one series of mortgage pass-through certificates and may contain other funds respecting payments on mortgage loans belonging to the servicer or serviced or master serviced by it on behalf of others.
Deposits. A servicer or the trustee will deposit or cause to be deposited in the Collection Account for one or more issuing entities on a daily basis, or any other period provided in the related Agreement, the following payments and collections received, or advances made, by the servicer or the trustee or on its behalf after the Cut-off Date (other than payments due on or before the Cut-off Date, and exclusive of any amounts representing a Retained Interest), except as otherwise provided in the Agreement:
(1)
all payments on account of principal, including principal prepayments, on the Assets;
(2)
all payments on account of interest on the Assets, including any default interest collected, in each case net of any portion retained by a servicer as its servicing compensation and net of any Retained Interest;
(3)
Liquidation Proceeds and Insurance Proceeds, together with the net proceeds on a monthly basis with respect to any Assets acquired for the benefit of securityholders;
(4)
any amounts paid under any instrument or drawn from any fund that constitutes credit support for the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, as described under “Description of Credit Support;”
(5)
any advances made as described under “Description of the Securities—Advances in Respect of Delinquencies;”
(6)
any amounts paid under any Cash Flow Agreement, as described under “Description of the Issuing Entities—Cash Flow Agreements;”
(7)
all proceeds of any Asset or, with respect to a mortgage loan, property acquired in respect of the mortgage loan purchased by the depositor, any Asset Seller or any other specified person as described above under “—Assignment of Assets; Repurchases” and “—Representations and Warranties; Repurchases,” all proceeds of any defaulted mortgage loan purchased as described below under “—Realization Upon Defaulted Assets,” and all proceeds of any Asset purchased as described under “Description of the Securities—Termination;”
(8)
any amounts paid by a servicer to cover interest shortfalls arising out of the prepayment of Assets in the issuing entity as described below under “—Retained Interest; Servicing Compensation and Payment of Expenses;”
(9)
to the extent that any of these items do not constitute additional servicing compensation to a servicer, any payments on account of modification or assumption fees, late payment charges or Prepayment Premiums on the Assets;
(10)
all payments required to be deposited in the Collection Account with respect to any deductible clause in any blanket insurance policy described below under “—Hazard Insurance Policies;”
(11)
any amount required to be deposited by a servicer or the trustee in connection with losses realized on investments for the benefit of the servicer or the trustee, as the case may be, of funds held in the Collection Account; and
(12)
any other amounts required to be deposited in the Collection Account as provided in the related Agreement and described in the prospectus supplement.
Withdrawals. A servicer or the trustee may, from time to time as provided in the related Agreement, make withdrawals from the Collection Account for each issuing entity for any of the following purposes, except as otherwise provided in the Agreement:
(1)
to make distributions to the securityholders on each Distribution Date;
(2)
to reimburse a servicer for unreimbursed amounts advanced as described under “Description of the Securities—Advances in Respect of Delinquencies,” which reimbursement is to be made out of amounts received that were identified and applied by the servicer as late collections of interest (net of related servicing fees and Retained Interest) on and principal of the particular Assets for which the advances were made or out of amounts drawn under any form of credit support with respect to those Assets;
(3)
to reimburse a servicer for unpaid servicing fees earned and unreimbursed servicing expenses incurred with respect to Assets and properties acquired in respect of the Assets, which reimbursement is to be made out of amounts that represent Liquidation Proceeds and Insurance Proceeds collected on the particular Assets and properties, and net income collected on the particular properties, which fees were earned or expenses were incurred or out of amounts drawn under any form of credit support for those Assets and properties;
(4)
to reimburse a servicer for any advances described in clause (2) above and any servicing expenses described in clause (3) above which, in the servicer’s good faith judgment, will not be recoverable from the amounts described in those clauses, which reimbursement is to be made from amounts collected on other Assets or, if and to the extent so provided by the related Agreement and described in the prospectus supplement, just from that portion of amounts collected on other Assets that is otherwise distributable on one or more classes of Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, if any, remain outstanding, and otherwise any outstanding class of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of the related series;
(5)
if and to the extent described in the prospectus supplement, to pay a servicer interest accrued on the advances described in clause (2) above and the servicing expenses described in clause (3) above while those advances and servicing expenses remain outstanding and unreimbursed;
(6)
to reimburse a servicer, the depositor, or any of their respective directors, officers, employees and agents, as the case may be, for expenses, costs and liabilities incurred by these parties, as and to the extent described below under “—Certain Matters Regarding Servicers, the Master Servicer and the Depositor;”
(7)
if and to the extent described in the prospectus supplement, to pay (or to transfer to a separate account for purposes of escrowing for the payment of) the trustee’s fees;
(8)
to reimburse the trustee or any of its directors, officers, employees and agents, as the case may be, for expenses, costs and liabilities incurred by these parties, as and to the extent described below under “—Certain Matters Regarding the Trustee;”
(9)
to pay a servicer, as additional servicing compensation, interest and investment income earned in respect of amounts held in the Collection Account;
(10)
to pay the person so entitled any amounts deposited in the Collection Account that were identified and applied by the servicer as recoveries of Retained Interest;
(11)
to pay for costs reasonably incurred in connection with the proper management and maintenance of any Mortgaged Property acquired for the benefit of securityholders by foreclosure or by deed in lieu of foreclosure or otherwise, which payments are to be made out of income received on that property;
(12)
if one or more elections have been made to treat the issuing entity or designated portions of the issuing entity as a REMIC, to pay any federal, state or local taxes imposed on the issuing entity or its assets or transactions, as and to the extent described under “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations—REMICs—Taxes That May Be Imposed on the REMIC Pool” or in the prospectus supplement, respectively;
(13)
to pay for the cost of an independent appraiser or other expert in real estate matters retained to determine a fair sale price for a defaulted mortgage loan or a property acquired in respect of a mortgage loan in connection with the liquidation of that mortgage loan or property;
(14)
to pay for the cost of various opinions of counsel obtained pursuant to the related Agreement for the benefit of securityholders;
(15)
to pay for the costs of recording the related Agreement if that recordation materially and beneficially affects the interests of securityholders, provided that the payment shall not constitute a waiver with respect to the obligation of the Warranting Party to remedy any breach of representation or warranty under the Agreement;
(16)
to pay the person so entitled any amounts deposited in the Collection Account in error, including amounts received on any Asset after its removal from the issuing entity whether by reason of purchase or substitution as contemplated above under “—Assignment of Assets; Repurchase” and “—Representations and Warranties; Repurchases” or otherwise;
(17)
to make any other withdrawals permitted by the related Agreement; and
(18)
to clear and terminate the Collection Account at the termination of the issuing entity.
Other Collection Accounts. If specified in the prospectus supplement, the Agreement for any series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may provide for the establishment and maintenance of a separate collection account into which the servicer will deposit on a daily basis, or any other period as provided in the related Agreement, the amounts described under “—Deposits” above for one or more series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable. Any amounts on deposit in any of these collection accounts will be withdrawn from these collection accounts and deposited into the appropriate Collection Account by a time specified in the prospectus supplement. To the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, any amounts that could be withdrawn from the Collection Account as described under “—Withdrawals” above may also be withdrawn from any of these collection accounts. The prospectus supplement will set forth any restrictions for any of these collection accounts, including investment restrictions and any restrictions for financial institutions with which any of these collection accounts may be maintained.
The servicer will establish and maintain with the indenture trustee an account, in the name of the indenture trustee on behalf of the holders of Notes, into which amounts released from the Collection Account for distribution to the holders of Notes will be deposited and from which all distributions to the holders of Notes will be made.
Collection and Other Servicing Procedures. The servicer is required to make reasonable efforts to collect all scheduled payments under the Assets and will follow or cause to be followed those collection procedures that it would follow with respect to assets that are comparable to the Assets and held for its own account, provided that those procedures are consistent with
(1)
the terms of the related Agreement and any related hazard insurance policy or instrument of credit support, if any, included in the related issuing entity described in this prospectus or under “Description of Credit Support,”
(2)
applicable law and
(3)
the general servicing standard specified in the prospectus supplement or, if no standard is so specified, its normal servicing practices (in either case, the “Servicing Standard”).
In connection, the servicer will be permitted in its discretion to waive any late payment charge or penalty interest in respect of a late payment on an Asset.
Each servicer will also be required to perform other customary functions of a servicer of comparable assets, including maintaining hazard insurance policies as described in this prospectus and in any prospectus supplement, and filing and settling claims under these policies; maintaining, to the extent required by the Agreement, escrow or impoundment accounts of borrowers for payment of taxes, insurance and other items required to be paid by any borrower pursuant to the terms of the Assets; processing assumptions or substitutions in those cases where the servicer has determined not to enforce any applicable due-on-sale clause; attempting to cure delinquencies; supervising foreclosures or repossessions; inspecting and managing Mortgaged Properties under some circumstances; and maintaining accounting records relating to the Assets. The servicer or any other entity specified in the prospectus suppleme nt will be responsible for filing and settling claims in respect of particular Assets under any applicable instrument of credit support. See “Description of Credit Support.”
The servicer may agree to modify, waive or amend any term of any Asset in a manner consistent with the Servicing Standard so long as the modification, waiver or amendment will not (1) affect the amount or timing of any scheduled payments of principal or interest on the Asset or (2) in its judgment, materially impair the security for the Asset or reduce the likelihood of timely payment of amounts due on the Asset. The servicer also may agree to any modification, waiver or amendment that would so affect or impair the payments on, or the security for, an Asset if (1) in its judgment, a material default on the Asset has occurred or a payment default is reasonably foreseeable and (2) in its judgment, that modification, waiver or amendment is reasonably likely to produce a greater recovery with respect to the Asset on a present value basis than would liquidation. In the event of any modification, waiver or amendment of any Asset, the servicer will furnish a copy of that modification, waiver or amendment to the trustee (or its custodian).
In the case of multifamily loans, a borrower’s failure to make required mortgage loan payments may mean that operating income is insufficient to service the mortgage loan debt, or may reflect the diversion of that income from the servicing of the mortgage loan debt. In addition, a borrower under a multifamily loan that is unable to make mortgage loan payments may also be unable to make timely payment of all required taxes and otherwise to maintain and insure the related Mortgaged Property. In general, the servicer will be required to monitor any multifamily loan that is in default, evaluate whether the causes of the default can be corrected over a reasonable period without significant impairment of the value of related Mortgaged Property, initiate corrective action in cooperation with the borrower if cure is likely, inspect the related Multifamily Property and take those other actions a s are consistent with the related Agreement. A significant period of time may elapse before the servicer is able to assess the success of servicer, can make the initial determination of appropriate action, evaluate the success of corrective action, develop additional initiatives, institute foreclosure proceedings and actually foreclose may vary considerably depending on the particular multifamily loan, the Multifamily Property, the borrower, the presence of an acceptable party to assume the multifamily loan and the laws of the jurisdiction in which the Multifamily Property is located.
Realization Upon Defaulted Assets
Generally, the servicer is required to monitor any Asset that is in default, initiate corrective action in cooperation with the borrower if cure is likely, inspect the Asset and take any other actions as are consistent with the Servicing Standard. A significant period of time may elapse before the servicer is able to assess the success of that corrective action or the need for additional initiatives.
Any Agreement relating to an issuing entity that includes mortgage loans may grant to the servicer and/or the holder or holders of some classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, a right of first refusal to purchase from the issuing entity at a predetermined purchase price any mortgage loan as to which a specified number of scheduled payments under the Agreement are delinquent. Any right of first refusal granted to the holder of an Offered Security will be described in the prospectus supplement. The prospectus supplement will also describe any similar right granted to any person if the predetermined purchase price is less than the Purchase Price described above under “—Representations and Warranties; Repurchases.”
If specified in the prospectus supplement, the servicer may offer to sell any defaulted mortgage loan described in the preceding paragraph and not otherwise purchased by any person having a right of first refusal with respect to that defaulted mortgage loan, if and when the servicer determines, consistent with the Servicing Standard, so that a sale would produce a greater recovery on a present value basis than would liquidation through foreclosure, repossession or similar proceedings. The related Agreement will provide that any offering be made in a commercially reasonable manner for a specified period and that the servicer accept the highest cash bid received from any person (including itself, an affiliate of the servicer or any securityholder) that constitutes a fair price for that defaulted mortgage loan. If there is no bid that is determined to be fair, the servicer will proceed with res pect to that defaulted mortgage loan as described below. Any bid in an amount at least equal to the Purchase Price described above under “—Representations and Warranties; Repurchases” will in all cases be deemed fair.
The servicer, on behalf of the trustee, may at any time institute foreclosure proceedings, exercise any power of sale contained in any mortgage, obtain a deed in lieu of foreclosure, or otherwise acquire title to a Mortgaged Property securing a mortgage loan by operation of law or otherwise, if that action is consistent with the Servicing Standard and a default on that mortgage loan has occurred or, in the servicer’s judgment, is imminent.
If title to any Mortgaged Property is acquired by an issuing entity as to which a REMIC election has been made, the servicer, on behalf of the issuing entity, will be required to sell the Mortgaged Property within three years from the close of the calendar year of acquisition, unless (1) the Internal Revenue Service grants an extension of time to sell that property or (2) the trustee receives an opinion of independent counsel to the effect that the holding of the property by the issuing entity longer than three years after the close of the calendar year of its acquisition will not result in the imposition of a tax on the issuing entity or cause the issuing entity to fail to qualify as a REMIC under the Code at any time that any Notes or Certificates, as applicable, are outstanding. Subject to the foregoing, the servicer will be required to (A) solicit bids for any Mortgaged Property so acquired in that manner as will be reasonably likely to realize a fair price for that property and (B) accept the first (and, if multiple bids are contemporaneously received, the highest) cash bid received from any person that constitutes a fair price.
The limitations imposed by the related Agreement and the REMIC provisions of the Code (if a REMIC election has been made for the related issuing entity) on the ownership and management of any Mortgaged Property acquired on behalf of the issuing entity may result in the recovery of an amount less than the amount that would otherwise be recovered.
If recovery on a defaulted Asset under any related instrument of credit support is not available, the servicer nevertheless will be obligated to follow or cause to be followed those normal practices and procedures as it deems necessary or advisable to realize upon the defaulted Asset. If the proceeds of any liquidation of the property securing the defaulted Asset are less than the outstanding principal balance of the defaulted Asset plus interest accrued on the defaulted Asset at the applicable interest rate, plus the total amount of expenses incurred by the servicer in connection with those proceedings and which are reimbursable under the Agreement, the issuing entity will realize a loss in the amount of that difference. The servicer will be entitled to withdraw or cause to be withdrawn from the Collection Account out of the Liquidation Proceeds recovered on any defaulted Asset, before the distribution of those Liquidation Proceeds to securityholders, amounts representing its normal servicing compensation on the Security, unreimbursed servicing expenses incurred with respect to the Asset and any unreimbursed advances of delinquent payments made with respect to the Asset.
If any property securing a defaulted Asset is damaged the servicer is not required to expend its own funds to restore the damaged property unless it determines (1) that restoration will increase the proceeds to securityholders on liquidation of the Asset after reimbursement of the servicer for its expenses and (2) that its expenses will be recoverable by it from related Insurance Proceeds or Liquidation Proceeds.
The pooling and servicing agreement will require the trustee, if it has not received a distribution for any Mortgage Security or Agency Security by the fifth business day after the date on which that distribution was due and payable pursuant to the terms of that Agency Security, to request the issuer or guarantor, if any, of that Mortgage Security or Agency Security to make that payment as promptly as possible and legally permitted to take legal action against that issuer or guarantor as the trustee deems appropriate under the circumstances, including the prosecution of any claims in connection therewith. The reasonable legal fees and expenses incurred by the trustee in connection with the prosecution of this legal action will be reimbursable to the trustee out of the proceeds of that action and will be retained by the trustee before the deposit of any remaining proceeds in the Collection Account pending distribution of the Collection Account to securityholders of the related series. If the proceeds of any legal action are insufficient to reimburse the trustee for its legal fees and expenses, the trustee will be entitled to withdraw from the Collection Account an amount equal to its expenses, and the issuing entity may realize a loss in that amount.
As servicer of the Assets, a servicer, on behalf of itself, the trustee and the securityholders, will present claims to the borrower under each instrument of credit support, and will take those reasonable steps as are necessary to receive payment or to permit recovery under these instruments for defaulted Assets.
If a servicer or its designee recovers payments under any instrument of credit support for any defaulted Assets, the servicer will be entitled to withdraw or cause to be withdrawn from the Collection Account out of those proceeds, before distribution of the Collection Account to securityholders, amounts representing its normal servicing compensation on that Asset, unreimbursed servicing expenses incurred for the Asset and any unreimbursed advances of delinquent payments made with respect to the Asset. See “—Hazard Insurance Policies” and “Description of Credit Support.”
Hazard Insurance Policies
Mortgage Loans. Generally, each Agreement for an issuing entity composed of mortgage loans will require the servicer to cause the borrower on each mortgage loan to maintain a hazard insurance policy (including flood insurance coverage, if obtainable, to the extent the property is located in a federally designated flood area, in an amount as is required under applicable guidelines) providing for the level of coverage that is required under the related Mortgage or, if any Mortgage permits its holder to dictate to the borrower the insurance coverage to be maintained on the related Mortgaged Property, then the level of coverage that is consistent with the Servicing Standard. That coverage will be in general in an amount equal to the lesser of the principal balance owing on that mortgage loan (but not less than the amount necessary to avoid the application of any co-insurance clause contained in the hazard insurance policy) and the amount necessary to fully compensate for any damage or loss to the improvements on the Mortgaged Property on a replacement cost basis or any other amount specified in the prospectus supplement. The ability of the servicer to assure that hazard insurance proceeds are appropriately applied may be dependent upon its being named as an additional insured under any hazard insurance policy and under any other insurance policy referred to below, or upon the extent to which information in this regard is furnished by borrowers. All amounts collected by the servicer under any of these policies (except for amounts to be applied to the restoration or repair of the Mortgaged Property or released to the borrower in accordance with the servicer’s normal servicing procedures, subject to the terms and conditions of the related Mortgage and mortgage note) will be deposited in the Collection Account in accordance with the related Agreement.
The Agreement may provide that the servicer may satisfy its obligation to cause each borrower to maintain a hazard insurance policy by the servicer’s maintaining a blanket policy insuring against hazard losses on the mortgage loans. If the blanket policy contains a deductible clause, the servicer will be required to deposit in the Collection Account from its own funds all sums that would have been deposited in the Collection Account but for that clause.
In general, the standard form of fire and extended coverage policy covers physical damage to or destruction of the improvements of the property by fire, lightning, explosion, smoke, windstorm and hail, and riot, strike and civil commotion, subject to the conditions and exclusions specified in each policy. Although the policies relating to the mortgage loans will be underwritten by different insurers under different state laws in accordance with different applicable state forms, and therefore will not contain identical terms and conditions, the basic terms of the policies are dictated by respective state laws, and most of these policies typically do not cover any physical damage resulting from war, revolution, governmental actions, floods and other water-related causes, earth movement (including earthquakes, landslides and mudflows), wet or dry rot, vermin, domestic animals and other kinds of unins ured risks.
The hazard insurance policies covering the Mortgaged Properties securing the mortgage loans will typically contain a coinsurance clause that in effect requires the insured at all times to carry insurance of a specified percentage (generally 80% to 90%) of the full replacement value of the improvements on the property to recover the full amount of any partial loss. If the insured’s coverage falls below this specified percentage, the coinsurance clause generally provides that the insurer’s liability in the event of partial loss does not exceed the lesser of (1) the replacement cost of the improvements less physical depreciation and (2) that proportion of the loss as the amount of insurance carried bears to the specified percentage of the full replacement cost of those improvements.
Each Agreement for an issuing entity composed of mortgage loans will require the servicer to cause the borrower on each mortgage loan to maintain all other insurance coverage for the related Mortgaged Property as is consistent with the terms of the related Mortgage and the Servicing Standard, which insurance may typically include flood insurance (if the related Mortgaged Property was located at the time of origination in a federally designated flood area).
Any cost incurred by the servicer in maintaining any insurance policy will be added to the amount owing under the mortgage loan where the terms of the mortgage loan so permit; provided, however, that the addition of that cost will not be taken into account for purposes of calculating the distribution to be made to securityholders. Those costs may be recovered by the servicer from the Collection Account, with interest, as provided by the Agreement.
Under the terms of the mortgage loans, borrowers will generally be required to present claims to insurers under hazard insurance policies maintained on the related Mortgaged Properties. The servicer, on behalf of the trustee and securityholders, is obligated to present or cause to be presented claims under any blanket insurance policy insuring against hazard losses on Mortgaged Properties securing the mortgage loans. However, the ability of the servicer to present or cause to be presented those claims is dependent upon the extent to which information in this regard is furnished to the servicer by borrowers.
FHA Insurance and VA Guarantees
FHA loans will be insured by the FHA as authorized under the Housing Act. Some FHA loans will be insured under various FHA programs including the standard FHA 203(b) program to finance the acquisition of one- to four-family housing units, the FHA 245 graduated payment mortgage program and the FHA Title I Program. These programs generally limit the principal amount and interest rates of the mortgage loans insured. The prospectus supplement for Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of each series evidencing interests in an issuing entity including FHA loans will set forth additional information regarding the regulations governing the applicable FHA insurance programs. Except as otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement, the following describes FHA insurance programs and regulations as generally in effect for FHA loans.
The insurance premiums for FHA loans are collected by lenders approved by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) or by the servicer and are paid to the FHA. The regulations governing FHA single-family mortgage insurance programs provide that insurance benefits are payable either upon foreclosure (or other acquisition of possession) and conveyance of the mortgaged premises to the United States of America or upon assignment of the defaulted loan to the United States of America. For a defaulted FHA loan, the servicer is limited in its ability to initiate foreclosure proceedings. When it is determined, either by the servicer or HUD, that default was caused by circumstances beyond the borrower’s control, the servicer is expected to make an effort to avoid foreclosure by entering, if feasible, into one of a number of available forms of forbearance plans with t he borrower. Those plans may involve the reduction or suspension of regular mortgage payments for a specified period, with those payments to be made on or before the maturity date of the mortgage, or the recasting of payments due under the mortgage up to or, other than FHA loans originated under the FHA Title I Program, beyond the maturity date. In addition, when a default caused by those circumstances is accompanied by other criteria, HUD may provide relief by making payments to the servicer in partial or full satisfaction of amounts due under the FHA loan (which payments are to be repaid by the borrower to HUD) or by accepting assignment of the loan from the servicer. With some exceptions, at least three full monthly installments must be due and unpaid under the FHA loan, and HUD must have rejected any request for relief from the borrower before the servicer may initiate foreclosure proceedings.
HUD has the option, in most cases, to pay insurance claims in cash or in debentures issued by HUD. Currently, claims are being paid in cash, and claims have not been paid in debentures since 1965. HUD debentures issued in satisfaction of FHA insurance claims bear interest at the applicable HUD debentures interest rate. To the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, the servicer of each single family FHA loan will be obligated to purchase any debenture issued in satisfaction of that FHA loan upon default for an amount equal to the principal amount of that debenture.
Other than in relation to the FHA Title I Program, the amount of insurance benefits generally paid by the FHA is equal to the entire unpaid principal amount of the defaulted FHA loan adjusted to reimburse the servicer for some of its costs and expenses and to deduct amounts received or retained by the servicer after default. When entitlement to insurance benefits results from foreclosure (or other acquisition of possession) and conveyance to HUD, the servicer is compensated for no more than two-thirds of its foreclosure costs, and is compensated for interest accrued and unpaid before that date but in general only to the extent it was allowed pursuant to a forbearance plan approved by HUD. When entitlement to insurance benefits results from assignment of the FHA loan to HUD, the insurance payment includes full compensation for interest accrued and unpaid to the assignment date. The insurance paymen t itself, upon foreclosure of an FHA loan, bears interest from a date 30 days after the borrower’s first uncorrected failure to perform any obligation to make any payment due under the mortgage and, upon assignment, from the date of assignment to the date of payment of the claim, in each case at the same interest rate as the applicable HUD debenture interest rate as described above.
VA loans will be partially guaranteed by the VA under the Serviceman’s Readjustment Act (a “VA Guaranty Policy”). For a defaulted VA loan, the servicer is, absent exceptional circumstances, authorized to announce its intention to foreclose only when the default has continued for three months. Generally, a claim for the guarantee is submitted after liquidation of the Mortgaged Property.
The amount payable under the guarantee will be the percentage of the VA loan originally guaranteed applied to indebtedness outstanding as of the applicable date of computation specified in the VA regulations. Payments under the guarantee will be equal to the unpaid principal amount of that VA loan, interest accrued on the unpaid balance of that VA loan to the appropriate date of computation and limited expenses of the mortgagee, but in each case only to the extent that those amounts have not been recovered through liquidation of the Mortgaged Property. The amount payable under the guarantee may in no event exceed the amount of the original guarantee.
Fidelity Bonds and Errors and Omissions Insurance
Each Agreement will require that the servicer obtain and maintain in effect a fidelity bond or similar form of insurance coverage (which may provide blanket coverage) or any combination of these insuring against loss occasioned by fraud, theft or other intentional misconduct of the officers, employees and agents of the servicer. The related Agreement will allow the servicer to self-insure against loss occasioned by the errors and omissions of the officers, employees and agents of the servicer so long as the criteria set forth in the Agreement are met.
Due-on-Sale Clauses
The mortgage loans may contain clauses requiring the consent of the mortgagee to any sale or other transfer of the related Mortgaged Property, or due-on-sale clauses entitling the mortgagee to accelerate payment of the mortgage loan upon any sale, transfer or conveyance of the related Mortgaged Property. The servicer will generally enforce any due-on-sale clause to the extent it has knowledge of the conveyance or proposed conveyance of the underlying Mortgaged Property and it is entitled to do so under applicable law; provided, however, that the servicer will not take any action in relation to the enforcement of any due-on-sale clause that would:
•
adversely affect or jeopardize coverage under any applicable insurance policy or
•
materially increase the risk of default or delinquency on, or materially impair the security for, that mortgage loan.
Any fee collected by or on behalf of the servicer for entering into an assumption agreement will be retained by or on behalf of the servicer as additional servicing compensation. See “Certain Legal Aspects of Mortgage Loans—Due-on-Sale Clauses.”
The contracts may also contain clauses requiring the consent of the mortgagee to any sale or other transfer of the related mortgaged property, or due-on-sale clauses. The servicer will generally permit that transfer so long as the transferee satisfies the servicer’s then applicable underwriting standards. The purpose of those transfers is often to avoid a default by the transferring borrower.
Retained Interest; Servicing Compensation and Payment of Expenses
The prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will specify whether there will be any Retained Interest in the Assets, and, if so, the initial owner of this Retained Interest. If so, the Retained Interest will be established on a loan-by-loan basis and will be specified on an exhibit to the related Agreement. A “Retained Interest” in an Asset represents a specified portion of the interest payable on the Asset. The Retained Interest will be deducted from borrower payments as received and will not be part of the related issuing entity.
The servicer’s primary servicing compensation for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will come from the periodic payment to it of a portion of the interest payment on each Asset or any other amount specified in the prospectus supplement. Since any Retained Interest and a servicer’s primary compensation are percentages of the principal balance of each Asset, those amounts will decrease in accordance with the amortization of the Assets. The prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, evidencing interests in an issuing entity that includes mortgage loans may provide that, as additional compensation, the servicer may retain all or a portion of assumption fees, modification fees, late payment charges or Prepayment Premiums collected from borrowers and any interest or other income that may be earned on funds held in the Collection Account or any account established by a servicer pursuant to the Agreement.
The servicer may, to the extent provided in the prospectus supplement, pay from its servicing compensation expenses incurred in connection with its servicing and managing of the Assets, including payment of the fees and disbursements of the trustee and independent accountants, payment of expenses incurred in connection with distributions and reports to securityholders, and payment of any other expenses described in the prospectus supplement. Some other expenses, including expenses relating to defaults and liquidations on the Assets and, to the extent so provided in the prospectus supplement, interest on these expenses at the rate specified in the prospectus supplement may be borne by the issuing entity.
If and to the extent provided in the prospectus supplement, the servicer may be required to apply a portion of the servicing compensation otherwise payable to it in respect of any Due Period to interest shortfalls resulting from the voluntary prepayment of any Assets in the related issuing entity during that period before their due dates.
Evidence as to Compliance
Each pooling and servicing agreement and servicing agreement will provide that on or before a specified date in March of each year, beginning with the first year after the year in which the cut-off date occurs, each party responsible for the servicing function will provide to the depositor and the trustee a report on an assessment of compliance with the minimum servicing criteria established in Item 1122(a) of Regulation AB (the “AB Servicing Criteria”). The AB Servicing Criteria include specific criteria relating to the following areas: general servicing considerations, cash collection and administration, investor remittances and reporting, and pool asset administration. Such report will indicate that the AB Servicing Criteria were used to test compliance on a platform level basis and will set out any material instances of noncompliance.
Each pooling and servicing agreement and servicing agreement will also provide that the each party responsible for the servicing function will deliver along with its report on assessment of compliance, an attestation report from a firm of independent public accountants on the assessment of compliance with the AB Servicing Criteria.
Each pooling and servicing agreement and servicing agreement will also provide for delivery to the trustee, on or before a specified date in March of each year, of a separate annual statement of compliance from each entity responsible for the servicing function to the effect that, to the best knowledge of the signing officer, the servicer has fulfilled in all material respects its obligations under the pooling and servicing agreement or servicing agreement throughout the preceding year or, if there has been a material failure in the fulfillment of any obligation, the statement shall specify such failure and the nature and status thereof. This statement may be provided as a single form making the required statements as to more than one pooling and servicing agreement or servicing agreement.
Copies of the annual reports of assessment of compliance, attestation reports, and statements of compliance may be obtained by securityholders without charge upon written request to the master servicer or trustee. These items will be filed with the issuing entity’s annual report on Form 10-K, to the extent required under Regulation AB.
Certain Matters Regarding Servicers, the Master Servicer and the Depositor
The servicer or master servicer under each Agreement will be named in the prospectus supplement. The entities serving as servicer or master servicer may be affiliates of the depositor and may have other normal business relationships with the depositor or the depositor’s affiliates. If applicable, reference in this prospectus to the servicer will also be deemed to be to the master servicer. Each Agreement will provide, in general, that:
•
The servicer may resign from its obligations and duties under the Agreement only upon a determination that its duties under the Agreement are no longer permissible under applicable law or are in material conflict by reason of applicable law with any other activities carried on by it, the other activities of the servicer so causing that conflict being of a type and nature carried on by the servicer at the date of the Agreement. No resignation will become effective until the trustee or a successor servicer has assumed the servicer’s obligations and duties under the Agreement.
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Neither any servicer, the depositor nor any director, officer, employee, or agent of a servicer or the depositor will be under any liability to the related issuing entity or securityholders for any action taken, or for refraining from the taking of any action, in good faith pursuant to the Agreement; provided, however, that neither a servicer, the depositor nor any other person will be protected against any breach of a representation, warranty or covenant made in the related Agreement, or against any liability specifically imposed by the Agreement, or against any liability that would otherwise be imposed by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of obligations or duties under the Agreement or by reason of reckless disregard of obligations and duties under the Agreement.
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Any servicer, the depositor and any director, officer, employee or agent of a servicer or the depositor will be entitled to indemnification by the related issuing entity and will be held harmless against any loss, liability or expense incurred in connection with any legal action relating to the Agreement or the Notes or Certificates, as applicable,; provided, however, that that indemnification will not extend to any loss, liability or expense
(1)
specifically imposed by that Agreement or otherwise incidental to the performance of obligations and duties under the Agreement, including, in the case of a servicer, the prosecution of an enforcement action in respect of any specific mortgage loan or mortgage loans or contract or contracts (except as any loss, liability or expense will be otherwise reimbursable pursuant to that Agreement);
(2)
incurred in connection with any breach of a representation, warranty or covenant made in that Agreement;
(3)
incurred by reason of misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of obligations or duties under the Agreement, or by reason of reckless disregard of those obligations or duties;
(4)
incurred in connection with any violation of any state or federal securities law; or
(5)
imposed by any taxing authority if that loss, liability or expense is not specifically reimbursable pursuant to the terms of the related Agreement.
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Neither any servicer nor the depositor will be under any obligation to appear in, prosecute or defend any legal action that is not incidental to its respective responsibilities under the Agreement and which in its opinion may involve it in any expense or liability. Any servicer or the depositor may, however, in its discretion undertake any action which it may deem necessary or desirable with respect to the Agreement and the rights and duties of the parties to the Agreement and the interests of the securityholders under the Agreement. In that event, the legal expenses and costs of that action and any liability resulting will be expenses, costs and liabilities of the securityholders, and the servicer or the depositor, as the case may be, will be entitled to be reimbursed therefor and to charge the Collection Account.
Any person into which the servicer or the depositor may be merged or consolidated, or any person resulting from any merger or consolidation to which the servicer or the depositor is a party, or any person succeeding to the business of the servicer or the depositor, may be the successor of the servicer or the depositor, as the case may be, under the terms of the related Agreement.
Special Servicers
If and to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, a special servicer (a “Special servicer”) may be a party to the related Agreement or may be appointed by the servicer or another specified party to perform specified duties in respect of servicing the related mortgage loans that would otherwise be performed by the servicer (for example, the workout and/or foreclosure of defaulted mortgage loans). The rights and obligations of any Special servicer will be specified in the prospectus supplement, and the servicer will be liable for the performance of a Special servicer only if, and to the extent, set forth in the prospectus supplement.
Events of Default under the Agreement
Events of default under the related Agreement will generally include:
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any failure by the servicer to distribute or cause to be distributed to securityholders, or to remit to the trustee for distribution to securityholders, any required payment that continues after a grace period, if any;
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any failure by the servicer duly to observe or perform in any material respect any of its other covenants or obligations under the Agreement that continues unremedied for 30 days after written notice of that failure has been given to the servicer by the trustee or the depositor, or to the servicer, the depositor and the trustee by securityholders evidencing not less than 25% of the voting rights for that series;
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any breach of a representation or warranty made by the servicer under the Agreement that materially and adversely affects the interests of securityholders and which continues unremedied for 30 days after written notice of that breach has been given to the servicer by the trustee or the depositor, or to the servicer, the depositor and the trustee by the holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, evidencing not less than 25% of the voting rights for that series; and
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some events of insolvency, readjustment of debt, marshaling of assets and liabilities or similar proceedings and actions by or on behalf of the servicer indicating its insolvency or inability to pay its obligations.
Material variations to the foregoing events of default (other than to shorten cure periods or eliminate notice requirements) will be specified in the prospectus supplement. The trustee will, not later than the later of 60 days or any other period specified in the prospectus supplement after the occurrence of any event that constitutes or, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute an event of default and five days after specific officers of the trustee become aware of the occurrence of that event, transmit by mail to the depositor and all securityholders of the applicable series notice of that occurrence, unless that default has been cured or waived.
Rights Upon Event of Default under the Agreements
So long as an event of default under an Agreement remains unremedied, the depositor or the trustee may, and at the direction of holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, evidencing not less than 51% (or any other percentage specified in the Agreement) of the voting rights for that series, the trustee will terminate all of the rights and obligations of the servicer under the Agreement and in and to the mortgage loans (other than as a securityholder or as the owner of any Retained Interest), whereupon the trustee will succeed to all of the responsibilities, duties and liabilities of the servicer under the Agreement (except that if the trustee is prohibited by law from obligating itself to make advances regarding delinquent Assets, or if the prospectus supplement so specifies, then the trustee will not be obligated to make those advances) and will be entitled to similar compensation arrangements. &n bsp;If the trustee is unwilling or unable so to act, it may or, at the written request of the holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, entitled to at least 51% (or any other percentage specified in the Agreement) of the voting rights for that series, it must appoint, or petition a court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of, a loan servicing institution acceptable to the rating agency with a net worth at the time of that appointment of at least $15,000,000 (or any other amount specified in the Agreement) to act as successor to the servicer under the Agreement. Pending that appointment, the trustee is obligated to act in that capacity. The trustee and any successor servicer may agree upon the servicing compensation to be paid, which in no event may be greater than the compensation payable to the servicer under the Agreement.
The holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, representing at least 66 2/3% (or any other percentage specified in the Agreement) of the voting rights allocated to the respective classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, affected by any event of default will be entitled to waive that event of default; provided, however, that an Event of Default involving a failure to distribute a required payment to securityholders described in clause (1) under “—Events of Default under the Agreements” may be waived only by all of the securityholders. Upon any waiver of an event of default, that event of default will cease to exist and will be deemed to have been remedied for every purpose under the Agreement.
No securityholders will have the right under any Agreement to institute any proceeding with respect to the Agreement unless that holder previously has given to the trustee written notice of default and unless the holders of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, evidencing not less than 25% (or any other percentage specified in the Agreement) of the voting rights have made written request upon the trustee to institute that proceeding in its own name as trustee under the Agreement and have offered to the trustee reasonable indemnity, and the trustee for 60 days (or any other number of days specified in the Agreement) has neglected or refused to institute any proceeding. The trustee, however, is under no obligation to exercise any of the trusts or powers vested in it by any Agreement or to make any investigation of matters arising under the Agreement or to institute, conduct or defend any litigation under the Agreement or in relation to the Agreement at the request, order or direction of any of the securityholders covered by that Agreement, unless those securityholders have offered to the trustee reasonable security or indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities that may be incurred.
The manner of determining the voting rights of a Security or class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be specified in the Agreement.
Amendment
In general, each Agreement may be amended by the parties to it, without the consent of any securityholders covered by the Agreement, to
(1)
cure any ambiguity or mistake;
(2)
correct, modify or supplement any provision in the Agreement that may be inconsistent with any other provision in the Agreement or with the prospectus supplement;
(3)
make any other provisions with respect to matters or questions arising under the Agreement that are not materially inconsistent with the provisions of the Agreement; or
(4)
comply with any requirements imposed by the Code; provided that, in the case of clause (3), that amendment will not adversely affect in any material respect the interests of any securityholders covered by the Agreement as evidenced either by an opinion of counsel to that effect or the delivery to the trustee of written notification from each rating agency that provides, at the request of the depositor, a rating for the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, of the related series to the effect that that amendment or supplement will not cause that rating agency to lower or withdraw the then current rating assigned to those Notes or Certificates, as applicable.
In general, each Agreement may also be amended by the depositor, the servicer, if any, and the trustee, with the consent of the securityholders affected by the amendment evidencing not less than 51% (or any other percentage specified in the Agreement) of the voting rights, for any purpose; provided, however, no amendment may (1) reduce in any manner the amount of, or delay the timing of, payments received or advanced on Assets that are required to be distributed on any Security without the consent of the securityholder or (2) reduce the consent percentages described in this paragraph without the consent of all the securityholders covered by the Agreement then outstanding. However, for any series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, as to which a REMIC election is to be made, the trustee will not consent to any amendment of the Agreement unless it has first have received an opinion of independent cou nsel to the effect that that amendment will not result in the imposition of a tax on the related issuing entity or, if applicable, cause the related issuing entity to fail to qualify as a REMIC, at any time that the related Notes or Certificates, as applicable, are outstanding.
The Trustee
The trustee under each Agreement will be named in the prospectus supplement. The commercial bank, national banking association, banking corporation or trust company serving as trustee may have a banking relationship with the depositor and its affiliates, with any servicer and its affiliates and with any master servicer and its affiliates. To the extent consistent with its fiduciary obligations as trustee, the trustee may delegate its duties to one or more agents as provided in the Agreement.
Duties of the Trustee
The trustee will make no representations as to the validity or sufficiency of any Agreement, the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, or any Asset or related document and is not accountable for the use or application by or on behalf of any servicer of any funds paid to the master servicer or its designee in respect of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, or the Assets, or deposited into or withdrawn from the Collection Account or any other account by or on behalf of the servicer. If no Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the trustee is required to perform only those duties specifically required under the related Agreement, as applicable. However, upon receipt of the various certificates, reports or other instruments required to be furnished to it, the trustee is required to examine those documents and to determine whether they conform to the requirements of the Agreement.
If an Event of Default shall occur, the trustee shall, at the direction of 51% of the holders of the Certificates, by notice in writing to the master servicer and to the Depositor, with a copy to each Rating Agency, terminate all of the rights and obligations of the master servicer in its capacity as Master Servicer under the related pooling and servicing agreement, to the extent permitted by law, and in and to the mortgage loans and the proceeds thereof. On or after the receipt by the master servicer of such written notice, all authority and power of the master servicer with respect to the Certificates (other than as a holder of any Certificate) or the mortgage loans or otherwise including, without limitation, the compensation payable to the master servicer under the related pooling and servicing agreement, shall pass to and be vested in the trustee, and, without limitation, the trustee shall be author ized and empowered, as attorney-in-fact or otherwise, to execute and deliver, on behalf of and at the expense of the master servicer, any and all documents and other instruments and to do or accomplish all other acts or things necessary or appropriate to effect the purposes of such notice of termination, whether to complete the transfer and endorsement or assignment of the mortgage loans and related documents, or otherwise.
To the extent that the costs and expenses of the trustee related to the termination of the master servicer, appointment of a successor master servicer or the transfer and assumption of the master servicing by the trustee (including, without limitation, (i) all legal costs and expenses and all due diligence costs and expenses associated with an evaluation of the potential termination of the master servicer as a result of an event of default and (ii) all costs and expenses associated with the complete transfer of the master servicing, including all servicing files and all servicing data and the completion, correction or manipulation of such servicing data as may be required by the successor master servicer to correct any errors or insufficiencies in the servicing data or otherwise to enable the successor master servicer to master service the mortgage loans in accordance with the related pooling and servic ing agreement) are not fully and timely reimbursed by the terminated master servicer, the trustee shall be entitled to reimbursement of such costs and expenses from the Distribution Account.
Certain Matters Regarding the Trustee
The trustee and any director, officer, employee or agent of the trustee will be entitled to indemnification out of the Collection Account for any loss, liability or expense (including costs and expenses of litigation, and of investigation, counsel fees, damages, judgments and amounts paid in settlement) incurred in connection with the trustee’s
(1)
enforcing its rights and remedies and protecting the interests of the securityholders during the continuance of an Event of Default,
(2)
defending or prosecuting any legal action in respect of the related Agreement or series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable,
(3)
being the mortgagee of record for the mortgage loans in an issuing entity and the owner of record for any Mortgaged Property acquired in respect thereof for the benefit of securityholders, or
(4)
acting or refraining from acting in good faith at the direction of the holders of the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, entitled to not less than 25% (or any other percentage as is specified in the related Agreement for any particular matter) of the voting rights for that series;
provided, however, that this indemnification will not extend to any loss, liability or expense that constitutes a specific liability of the trustee pursuant to the related Agreement, or to any loss, liability or expense incurred by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or negligence on the part of the trustee in the performance of its obligations and duties under the Agreement, or by reason of its reckless disregard of those obligations or duties, or as may arise from a breach of any representation, warranty or covenant of the trustee made in the Agreement.
Resignation and Removal of the Trustee
The trustee may resign at any time, in which event the depositor will be obligated to appoint a successor trustee. The depositor may also remove the trustee if the trustee ceases to be eligible to continue under the pooling and servicing agreement or if the trustee becomes insolvent. Upon becoming aware of the circumstances, the depositor will be obligated to appoint a successor trustee. The trustee may also be removed at any time by the holders of securities evidencing not less a majority of the aggregate undivided interests (or, if applicable, voting rights) in the related issuing entity. Any resignation or removal of the trustee and appointment of a successor trustee will not become effective until acceptance of the appointment by the successor trustee. If the trustee resigns or is removed by the depositor, the expenses associated with the change of trustees will be paid by the former trustee a nd reimbursed from the Distribution Account. If the trustee is removed by holders of securities, such holders shall be responsible for paying any compensation payable to a successor trustee, in excess of the amount paid to the predecessor trustee.
Material Terms of the Indenture
General
The following summary describes the material provisions that may appear in each indenture. The prospectus supplement for a series of Notes will describe any provision of the indenture relating to that series that materially differs from the description of that provision contained in this prospectus. The summaries do not purport to be complete and are subject to, and are qualified by reference to, all of the provisions of the indenture for a series of Notes. A form of an indenture has been filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement of which this prospectus is a part. The depositor will provide a copy of the indenture (without exhibits) relating to any series of Notes without charge upon written request of a securityholder of that series addressed to ACE Securities Corp., 6525 Morrison Boulevard, Suite 318, Charlotte, North Carolina 28211, Attention: Evelyn Echevarria.
Events of Default
Events of default under the indenture for each series of Notes will generally include:
•
a default for thirty days (or any other number of days specified in the prospectus supplement) or more in the payment of any principal of or interest on a Note of that series, to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement;
•
failure to perform any other covenant of the depositor or the issuing entity in the indenture that continues for a period of sixty days (or any other number of days specified in the prospectus supplement or the indenture) after notice of the failure is given in accordance with the procedures described in the prospectus supplement;
•
any representation or warranty made by the depositor or the issuing entity in the indenture or in any certificate or other writing delivered pursuant to the indenture or in connection with the indenture with respect to or affecting that series having been incorrect in a material respect as of the time made, and that breach is not cured within sixty days (or any other number of days specified in the prospectus supplement) after notice of the breach is given in accordance with the procedures described in the prospectus supplement;
•
specified events of bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or liquidation of the issuing entity; or
•
any other event of default provided with respect to Notes of that series.
If an event of default with respect to the Notes of any series at the time outstanding occurs and is continuing, subject to and in accordance with the terms of the indenture, either the indenture trustee or the holders of a majority of the then total outstanding amount of the Notes of that series may declare the principal amount (or, if the Notes of that series are Accrual Securities, that portion of the principal amount as may be specified in the terms of that series, as provided in the indenture) of all the Notes of that series to be due and payable immediately. That declaration may, under some circumstances, be rescinded and annulled by the securityholders of a majority in total outstanding amount of the Notes of that series.
If, following an event of default with respect to any series of Notes, the Notes of that series have been declared to be due and payable, the indenture trustee may, in its discretion, notwithstanding that acceleration, elect to maintain possession of the collateral securing the Notes of that series and to continue to apply distributions on that collateral as if there had been no declaration of acceleration if that collateral continues to provide sufficient funds for the payment of principal of and interest on the Notes of that series as they would have become due if there had not been that declaration. In addition, the indenture trustee may not sell or otherwise liquidate the collateral securing the Notes of a series following an event of default, other than a default in the payment of any principal or interest on any Note of that series for thirty days or more, unless
(1)
the holders of 100% (or any other percentage specified in the indenture) of the then total outstanding amount of the Notes of that series consent to that sale;
(2)
the proceeds of that sale or liquidation are sufficient to pay in full the principal of and accrued interest, due and unpaid, on the outstanding Notes of that series at the date of that sale; or
(3)
the indenture trustee determines that that collateral would not be sufficient on an ongoing basis to make all payments on the Notes as those payments would have become due if the Notes had not been declared due and payable, and the indenture trustee obtains the consent of the holders of 66 2/3% (or any other percentage specified in the indenture) of the then total outstanding amount of the Notes of that series.
If so specified in the prospectus supplement, only holders of particular classes of Notes will have the right to declare the Notes of that series to be immediately due and payable in the event of a payment default, as described above, and to exercise the remedies described above.
If the indenture trustee liquidates the collateral in connection with an event of default involving a default for thirty days (or any other number of days specified in the indenture) or more in the payment of principal of or interest on the Notes of a series, the indenture provides that the indenture trustee will have a prior lien on the proceeds of any liquidation for unpaid fees and expenses. As a result, upon the occurrence of that event of default, the amount available for distribution to the securityholders would be less than would otherwise be the case. However, the indenture trustee may not institute a proceeding for the enforcement of its lien except in connection with a proceeding for the enforcement of the lien of the indenture for the benefit of the securityholders after the occurrence of that event of default.
To the extent provided in the prospectus supplement, in the event the principal of the Notes of a series is declared due and payable, as described above, the holders of any Notes issued at a discount from par may be entitled to receive no more than an amount equal to the unpaid principal amount of the Notes less the amount of the discount that is unamortized.
Subject to the provisions of the indenture relating to the duties of the indenture trustee, in case an event of default occurs and continues for a series of Notes, the indenture trustee will be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers under the indenture at the request or direction of any of the securityholders of that series, unless those holders offer to the indenture trustee security or indemnity satisfactory to it against the costs, expenses and liabilities that might be incurred by it in complying with that request or direction. Subject to those provisions for indemnification and some limitations contained in the indenture, the holders of a majority of the then total outstanding amount of the Notes of that series will have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the indenture trustee or exercising any trust or power conferred on the indenture trustee with respect to the Notes of that series, and the holders of a majority of the then total outstanding amount of the Notes of that series may, in some cases, waive any default with respect to the Notes, except a default in the payment of principal or interest or a default in respect of a covenant or provision of the indenture that cannot be modified without the waiver or consent of all the holders of the outstanding Notes of that series affected.
Discharge of Indenture
The indenture will be discharged, subject to the provisions of the indenture, for a series of Notes (except for continuing rights specified in the indenture) upon the delivery to the indenture trustee for cancellation of all the Notes of that series or, with some limitations, upon deposit with the indenture trustee of funds sufficient for the payment in full of all of the Notes of that series.
With some limitations, the indenture will provide that, if specified for the Notes of any series, the related issuing entity will be discharged from any and all obligations in respect of the Notes of that series (except for obligations specified in the indenture including obligations relating to temporary Notes and exchange of Notes, to register the transfer of or exchange Notes of that series, to replace stolen, lost or mutilated Notes of that series, to maintain paying agencies and to hold monies for payment in trust) upon the deposit with the indenture trustee, in trust, of money and/or direct obligations of or obligations guaranteed by the United States of America which through the payment of interest and principal in respect of the Notes in accordance with their terms will provide money in an amount sufficient to pay the principal of and each installment of interest on the Notes of that series on t he maturity date for those Notes and any installment of interest on those Notes in accordance with the terms of the indenture and the Notes of that series. In the event of any defeasance and discharge of Notes of that series, holders of Notes of that series would be able to look only to that money and/or those direct obligations for payment of principal and interest, if any, on their Notes until maturity.
Indenture Trustee’s Annual Report
The indenture trustee for each series of Notes will be required to mail each year to all related securityholders a brief report, as provided in the indenture, relating to its eligibility and qualification to continue as indenture trustee under the related indenture, any amounts advanced by it under the indenture, the amount, interest rate and maturity date of indebtedness owing by that Trust to the applicable indenture trustee in its individual capacity, the property and funds physically held by the indenture trustee in its capacity as indenture trustee and any action taken by it that materially affects the Notes and that has not been previously reported.
The Indenture Trustee
The indenture trustee for a series of Notes will be specified in the prospectus supplement. The indenture trustee for any series may resign at any time in accordance with the terms of the indenture, in which event the depositor or the appropriate party designated in the indenture will be obligated to appoint a successor trustee for that series. The depositor or the appropriate party designated in the indenture may also remove any indenture trustee if that indenture trustee ceases to be eligible to continue as the indenture trustee under the related indenture, if that indenture trustee becomes insolvent or for any other grounds specified in the indenture. In those circumstances the depositor or the appropriate party designated in the indenture will be obligated to appoint a successor trustee for the applicable series of Notes. Any resignation or removal of the indenture trustee an d appointment of a successor trustee for any series of Notes does not become effective until acceptance of the appointment by the successor trustee for that series.
The bank or trust company serving as indenture trustee may have a banking relationship with the depositor or any of its affiliates, a servicer or any of its affiliates or the master servicer or any of its affiliates. To the extent consistent with its fiduciary obligations as indenture trustee, the indenture trustee may delegate its duties to one or more agents as provided in the indenture and the Agreement.
Description of Credit Support
General
For any series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, credit support may be provided for one or more classes of the series or the related Assets. Credit support only may be in the form of one or more of the following features:
•
letters of credit;
•
Pool Insurance Policies;
•
special hazard insurance policies;
•
Bankruptcy Bonds;
•
guarantees; or
•
the establishment of one or more reserve funds.
Alternatively, the prospectus supplement relating to a series of securities will specify if credit support may be provided by subordination of one or more classes of securities or by overcollateralization, in combination with or in lieu of any one or more of the instruments set forth above.
Any form of credit support may be structured so as to be drawn upon by more than one series to the extent described in the prospectus supplement.
The coverage provided by any credit support will be described in the prospectus supplement. Generally, that coverage will not provide protection against all risks of loss and will not guarantee repayment of the entire Security Balance of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, and interest on the Security Balance. If losses or shortfalls occur that exceed the amount covered by credit support or that are not covered by credit support, securityholders will bear their allocable share of deficiencies. Moreover, if a form of credit support covers more than one series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable (each, a “Covered Trust”), securityholders evidencing interests in any of those Covered Trusts will be subject to the risk that the credit support will be exhausted by the claims of other Covered Trusts before that Covered Trust receiving any of its intended share of that cove rage.
If credit support is provided for one or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series, or the related Assets, the prospectus supplement will include a description of
(a)
the nature and amount of coverage under that credit support,
(b)
any conditions to payment under the prospectus supplement not otherwise described in this prospectus,
(c)
the conditions (if any) under which the amount of coverage under that credit support may be reduced and under which that credit support may be terminated or replaced and
(d)
the material provisions relating to that credit support.
Additionally, the prospectus supplement will set forth information with respect to the obligor under any financial guaranty insurance policy, letter of credit, guarantee or similar instrument of credit support, including
(1)
a brief description of its principal business activities,
(2)
its principal place of business, place of incorporation and the jurisdiction under which it is chartered or licensed to do business,
(3)
if applicable, the identity of regulatory agencies that exercise primary jurisdiction over the conduct of its business and
(4)
its total assets, and its stockholders’ or policyholders’ surplus, if applicable, as of the date specified in the prospectus supplement.
Subordinate Securities
One or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series may be Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, if specified in the prospectus supplement. The rights of the holders of Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, to receive distributions of principal and interest from the Collection Account on any Distribution Date will be subordinated to those rights of the holders of Senior Notes or Senior Certificates, as applicable. The subordination of a class may apply only in the event of (or may be limited to) particular types of losses or shortfalls. The prospectus supplement will set forth information concerning the amount of subordination of a class or classes of Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, in a series, the circumstances in which that subordination will be applicable and the manner, if any, in wh ich the amount of subordination will be effected.
Cross-Support Provisions
If the Assets for a series are divided into separate groups, each supporting a separate class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series, credit support may be provided by cross-support provisions requiring that distributions be made on Senior Notes or Senior Certificates, as applicable, evidencing interests in one group of mortgage loans before distributions on Subordinate Notes or Subordinate Certificates, as applicable, evidencing interests in a different group of mortgage loans within the issuing entity. The prospectus supplement for a series that includes a cross-support provision will describe the manner and conditions for applying those provisions.
Limited Guarantee
If specified in the prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, credit enhancement may be provided in the form of a limited guarantee issued by a guarantor named in the prospectus supplement. Any guarantee specified in the prospectus supplement, if any, will be exempt from registration under the Securities Act.
Financial Guaranty Insurance Policy or Surety Bond
Credit enhancement may be provided in the form of a financial guaranty insurance policy or a surety bond issued by an insurer named in the policy or surety bond, if specified in the prospectus supplement.
Letter of Credit
Alternative credit support for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be provided by the issuance of a letter of credit by the bank or financial institution specified in the prospectus supplement. The coverage, amount and frequency of any reduction in coverage provided by a letter of credit issued for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to that series.
Pool Insurance Policies
If specified in the prospectus supplement relating to a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, a pool insurance policy for the mortgage loans in the related issuing entity will be obtained. The pool insurance policy will cover any loss (subject to the limitations described in the prospectus supplement) by reason of default to the extent a related mortgage loan is not covered by any primary mortgage insurance policy. The amount and principal terms of any pool insurance coverage will be set forth in the prospectus supplement.
Special Hazard Insurance Policies
A special hazard insurance policy may also be obtained for the related issuing entity, if specified in the prospectus supplement, in the amount set forth in the prospectus supplement. The special hazard insurance policy will, subject to the limitations described in the prospectus supplement, protect against loss by reason of damage to Mortgaged Properties caused by hazards not insured against under the standard form of hazard insurance policy for the respective states, in which the Mortgaged Properties are located. The amount and principal terms of any special hazard insurance coverage will be set forth in the prospectus supplement.
Borrower Bankruptcy Bond
Losses resulting from a bankruptcy proceeding relating to a borrower affecting the mortgage loans in an issuing entity for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will, if specified in the prospectus supplement, be covered under a borrower bankruptcy bond (or any other instrument that will not result in a downgrading of the rating of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series by the rating agency or agencies that rate that series). Any borrower bankruptcy bond or any other instrument will provide for coverage in an amount meeting the criteria of the rating agency or agencies rating the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of the related series, which amount will be set forth in the prospectus supplement. The amount and principal terms of any borrower bankruptcy coverage will be set forth in the prospectus supplement.
Reserve Funds
If so provided in the prospectus supplement for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, deficiencies in amounts otherwise payable on those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, or specific classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be covered by one or more reserve funds in which cash, a letter of credit, Permitted Investments, a demand note or a combination of these will be deposited, in the amounts so specified in the prospectus supplement. The reserve funds for a series may also be funded over time by depositing a specified amount of the distributions received on the related Assets as specified in the prospectus supplement.
Amounts on deposit in any reserve fund for a series, together with the reinvestment income on these amounts, if any, will be applied for the purposes, in the manner, and to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement. A reserve fund may be provided to increase the likelihood of timely distributions of principal of and interest on the Notes or Certificates, as applicable. If specified in the prospectus supplement, reserve funds may be established to provide limited protection against only some types of losses and shortfalls. Following each Distribution Date amounts in a reserve fund in excess of any amount required to be maintained in the reserve fund may be released from the reserve fund under the conditions and to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement and will not be available for further application to the Notes or Certificates, as applicable.
Money deposited in any reserve funds will be invested in Permitted Investments, to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement. To the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, any reinvestment income or other gain from those investments will be credited to the related reserve fund for that series, and any loss resulting from those investments will be charged to the reserve fund. However, that income may be payable to any related servicer or another service provider or other entity. To the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, the reserve fund, if any, for a series will not be a part of the issuing entity.
Additional information concerning any reserve fund will be set forth in the prospectus supplement, including the initial balance of the reserve fund, the balance required to be maintained in the reserve fund, the manner in which the required balance will decrease over time, the manner of funding the reserve fund, the purposes for which funds in the reserve fund may be applied to make distributions to securityholders and use of investment earnings from the reserve fund, if any.
Overcollateralization
If specified in the prospectus supplement, subordination provisions of an issuing entity may be used to accelerate to a limited extent the amortization of one or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, relative to the amortization of the related Assets. The accelerated amortization is achieved by the application of excess interest to the payment of principal of one or more classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable. This acceleration feature creates, for the Assets or groups of Assets, overcollateralization, which is the excess of the total principal balance of the related Assets, or a group of related Assets, over the principal balance of the related class or classes of Notes or Certificates, as applicable. This acceleration may continue for the life of the related Security, or may be limited. In the case of limited acceleration, once the required level of ove rcollateralization is reached, and subject to the provisions specified in the prospectus supplement, the limited acceleration feature may cease, unless necessary to maintain the required level of overcollateralization.
Primary Mortgage Insurance Policies
The servicer will maintain or cause to be maintained with respect to each mortgage loan, a primary mortgage insurance policy in accordance with the underwriting standards described in the related prospectus supplement. Although the terms and conditions of primary mortgage insurance policies differ, each primary mortgage insurance policy will generally cover losses up to an amount equal to the excess of the unpaid principal amount of a defaulted mortgage loan, plus accrued and unpaid interest thereon and approved expenses, over a specified percentage of the value of the related mortgaged property.
As conditions to the filing or payment of a claim under a primary mortgage insurance policy, the insured will typically be required, in the event of default by the borrower, to:
•
advance or discharge (a) hazard insurance premiums and (b) as necessary and approved in advance by the insurer, real estate taxes, property protection and preservation expenses and foreclosure and related costs,
•
in the event of any physical loss or damage to the mortgaged property, have the mortgaged property restored to at least its condition at the effective date of the primary mortgage insurance policy, ordinary wear and tear excepted, and
•
tender to the insurer good and merchantable title to, and possession of, the mortgaged property
Certain Legal Aspects of Mortgage Loans
The following discussion contains summaries, which are general in nature, of legal aspects of loans secured by single-family residential properties. Because these legal aspects are governed primarily by applicable state law (which laws may differ substantially), the summaries do not purport to be complete nor to reflect the laws of any particular state, nor to encompass the laws of all states in which the security for the mortgage loans is situated. The summaries are qualified in their entirety by reference to the applicable federal and state laws governing the mortgage loans. In this regard, the following discussion does not fully reflect federal regulations for FHA loans and VA loans. See “Description of The Issuing Entities—FHA Loans and VA Loans,” “Description of the Agreements—Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreements and Underlying Serv icing Agreements—FHA Insurance and VA Guarantees” and “Description of the Issuing Entities—Assets.”
General
All of the mortgage loans are evidenced by a note or bond and secured by instruments granting a security interest in real property which may be mortgages, deeds of trust, security deeds or deeds to secure debt, depending on the prevailing practice and law in the state in which the Mortgaged Property is located. Mortgages, deeds of trust and deeds to secure debt are in this prospectus collectively referred to as “mortgages.” Any of the foregoing types of mortgages will create a lien upon, or grant a title interest in, the subject property, the priority of which will depend on the terms of the particular security instrument, as well as separate, recorded, contractual arrangements with others holding interests in the mortgaged property, the knowledge of the parties to that instrument as well as the order of recordation of the instrument in the appropriate public recording office. &nbs p;However, recording does not generally establish priority over governmental claims for real estate taxes and assessments and other charges imposed under governmental police powers.
Types of Mortgage Instruments
A mortgage either creates a lien against or constitutes a conveyance of real property between two parties—a borrower (usually the owner of the subject property) and a mortgagee (the lender). In contrast, a deed of trust is a three-party instrument, among a trustor (the equivalent of a borrower), a trustee to whom the mortgaged property is conveyed, and a beneficiary (the lender) for whose benefit the conveyance is made. As used in this prospectus, unless the context otherwise requires, “borrower” includes the trustor under a deed of trust and a grantor under a security deed or a deed to secure debt.
Under a deed of trust, the borrower grants the property, irrevocably until the debt is paid, in trust, generally with a power of sale as security for the indebtedness evidenced by the related note. A deed to secure debt typically has two parties. By executing a deed to secure debt, the grantor conveys title to, as opposed to merely creating a lien upon, the subject property to the grantee until the underlying debt is repaid, generally with a power of sale as security for the indebtedness evidenced by the related mortgage note.
In case the borrower under a mortgage is a land trust, there would be an additional party because legal title to the property is held by a land trustee under a land trust agreement for the benefit of the borrower. At origination of a mortgage loan involving a land trust, the borrower executes a separate undertaking to make payments on the mortgage note. The mortgagee’s authority under a mortgage, the trustee’s authority under a deed of trust and the grantee’s authority under a deed to secure debt are governed by the express provisions of the mortgage, the law of the state in which the real property is located, some federal laws (including the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Civil Relief Act of 1940) and, in some cases, in deed of trust transactions, the directions of the beneficiary.
The mortgages that encumber multifamily properties may contain an assignment of rents and leases, pursuant to which the borrower assigns to the lender the borrower’s right, title and interest as landlord under each lease and the income derived therefrom, while retaining a revocable license to collect the rents for so long as there is no default. If the borrower defaults, the license terminates and the lender is entitled to collect the rents. Local law may require that the lender take possession of the property and/or obtain a court-appointed receiver before becoming entitled to collect the rents.
Interest in Real Property
The real property covered by a mortgage, deed of trust, security deed or deed to secure debt is most often the fee estate in land and improvements. However, that instrument may encumber other interests in real property such as a tenant’s interest in a lease of land or improvements, or both, and the leasehold estate created by that lease. An instrument covering an interest in real property other than the fee estate requires special provisions in the instrument creating that interest or in the mortgage, deed of trust, security deed or deed to secure debt, to protect the mortgagee against termination of that interest before the mortgage, deed of trust, security deed or deed to secure debt is paid. The depositor, the Asset Seller or other entity specified in the prospectus supplement will make representations and warranties in the Agreement or representations and warranties will be as signed to the trustee for any mortgage loans secured by an interest in a leasehold estate. Those representation and warranties, if applicable, will be set forth in the prospectus supplement.
Cooperative Loans
If specified in the prospectus supplement, the mortgage loans may also consist of cooperative apartment loans (“Cooperative Loans”) secured by security interests in shares issued by a cooperative housing corporation (a “Cooperative”) and in the related proprietary leases or occupancy agreements granting exclusive rights to occupy specific dwelling units in the cooperatives’ buildings. The security agreement will create a lien upon, or grant a title interest in, the property that it covers, the priority of which will depend on the terms of the particular security agreement as well as the order of recordation of the agreement in the appropriate recording office. That lien or title interest is not prior to the lien for real estate taxes and assessments and other charges imposed under governmental police powers.
Each Cooperative owns in fee or has a leasehold interest in all the real property and owns in fee or leases the building and all separate dwelling units in the building. The Cooperative is directly responsible for property management and, in most cases, payment of real estate taxes, other governmental impositions and hazard and liability insurance. If there is a blanket mortgage or mortgages on the cooperative apartment building or underlying land, as is generally the case, or an underlying lease of the land, as is the case in some instances, the Cooperative, as property borrower, or lessee, as the case may be, is also responsible for meeting these mortgage or rental obligations. A blanket mortgage is ordinarily incurred by the cooperative in connection with either the construction or purchase of the Cooperative’s apartment building or obtaining of capital by the Cooperative. &nbs p;The interest of the occupant under proprietary leases or occupancy agreements as to which that Cooperative is the landlord are generally subordinate to the interest of the holder of a blanket mortgage and to the interest of the holder of a land lease.
If the Cooperative is unable to meet the payment obligations (1) arising under a blanket mortgage, the mortgagee holding a blanket mortgage could foreclose on that mortgage and terminate all subordinate proprietary leases and occupancy agreements or (2) arising under its land lease, the holder of the landlord’s interest under the land lease could terminate it and all subordinate proprietary leases and occupancy agreements. Also, a blanket mortgage on a cooperative may provide financing in the form of a mortgage that does not fully amortize, with a significant portion of principal being due in one final payment at maturity. The inability of the Cooperative to refinance a mortgage and its consequent inability to make that final payment could lead to foreclosure by the mortgagee. Similarly, a land lease has an expiration date and the inability of the Cooperative to extend its term or , in the alternative, to purchase the land could lead to termination of the Cooperative’s interest in the property and termination of all proprietary leases and occupancy agreement. In either event, a foreclosure by the holder of a blanket mortgage or the termination of the underlying lease could eliminate or significantly diminish the value of any collateral held by the lender that financed the purchase by an individual tenant stockholder of cooperative shares or, in the case of the mortgage loans, the collateral securing the Cooperative Loans.
The Cooperative is owned by tenant-stockholders who, through ownership of stock or shares in the corporation, receive proprietary lease or occupancy agreements that confer exclusive rights to occupy specific units. Generally, a tenant-stockholder of a Cooperative must make a monthly payment to the Cooperative representing that tenant-stockholder’s pro rata share of the Cooperative’s payments for its blanket mortgage, real property taxes, maintenance expenses and other capital or ordinary expenses. An ownership interest in a Cooperative and accompanying occupancy rights are financed through a Cooperative Loan evidenced by a promissory note and secured by an assignment of and a security interest in the occupancy agreement or proprietary lease and a security interest in the related Cooperative shares. The lender generally takes possession of the share certificate and a counterpa rt of the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement and a financing statement covering the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement and the cooperative shares is filed in the appropriate state and local offices to perfect the lender’s interest in its collateral. Subject to the limitations discussed below, upon default of the tenant-stockholder, the lender may sue for judgment on the promissory note, dispose of the collateral at a public or private sale or otherwise proceed against the collateral or tenant-stockholder as an individual as provided in the security agreement covering the assignment of the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement and the pledge of Cooperative shares. See “—Foreclosure—Cooperative Loans” below.
Land Sale Contracts
Under an installment land sale contract for the sale of real estate (a “land sale contract”) the contract seller (hereinafter referred to as the “contract lender”) retains legal title to the property and enters into an agreement with the contract purchaser (hereinafter referred to as the “contract borrower”) for the payment of the purchase price, plus interest, over the term of the land sale contract. Only after full performance by the borrower of the contract is the contract lender obligated to convey title to the real estate to the purchaser. As with mortgage or deed of trust financing, during the effective period of the land sale contract, the contract borrower is responsible for maintaining the property in good condition and for paying real estate taxes, assessments and hazard insurance premiums associated with the property.
The method of enforcing the rights of the contract lender under an installment contract varies on a state-by-state basis depending on the extent to which state courts are willing, or able pursuant to state statute, to enforce the contract strictly according to its terms. The terms of land sale contracts generally provide that upon default by the contract borrower, the borrower loses his or her right to occupy the property, the entire indebtedness is accelerated, and the buyer’s equitable interest in the property is forfeited. The contract lender in that situation does not have to foreclose to obtain title to the property, although in some cases a quiet title action is in order if the contract borrower has filed the land sale contract in local land records and an ejectment action may be necessary to recover possession.
In a few states, particularly in cases of contract borrower default during the early years of a land sale contract, the courts will permit ejectment of the buyer and a forfeiture of his or her interest in the property. However, most state legislatures have enacted provisions by analogy to mortgage law protecting borrowers under land sale contracts from the harsh consequences of forfeiture. Under those statues, a judicial contract may be reinstated upon full payment of the default amount and the borrower may have a post-foreclosure statutory redemption right. In other states, courts in equity may permit a contract borrower with significant investment in the property under a land sale contract for the sale of real estate to share the proceeds of sale of the property after the indebtedness is repaid or may otherwise refuse to enforce the forfeiture clause. Nevertheless, generally speaking , the contract lender’s procedures for obtaining possession and clear title under a land sale contract for the sale of real estate in a particular state are simpler and less time consuming and costly than are the procedures for foreclosing and obtaining clear title to a mortgaged property.
Foreclosure
General
Foreclosure is a legal procedure that allows the mortgagee to recover its mortgage debt by enforcing its rights and available legal remedies under the mortgage. If the mortgagor defaults in payment or performance of its obligations under the note or mortgage, the mortgagee has the right to institute foreclosure proceedings to sell the mortgaged property at public auction to satisfy the indebtedness.
Foreclosure procedures for the enforcement of a mortgage vary from state to state. Two primary methods of foreclosing a mortgage are judicial foreclosure and non-judicial foreclosure pursuant to a power of sale granted in the mortgage instrument. There are several other foreclosure procedures available in some states that are either infrequently used or available only in some limited circumstances, such as strict foreclosure.
Judicial Foreclosure
A judicial foreclosure proceeding is conducted in a court having jurisdiction over the mortgaged property. Generally, the action is initiated by the service of legal pleadings upon all parties having an interest of record in the real property. Delays in completion of the foreclosure may occasionally result from difficulties in locating defendants. When the lender’s right to foreclose is contested, the legal proceedings can be time-consuming. Upon successful completion of a judicial foreclosure proceeding, the court generally issues a judgment of foreclosure and appoints a referee or other officer to conduct a public sale of the mortgaged property, the proceeds of which are used to satisfy the judgment. Those sales are made in accordance with procedures that vary from state to state.
Equitable Limitations on Enforceability of Certain Provisions
United States courts have traditionally imposed general equitable principles to limit the remedies available to a mortgagee in connection with foreclosure. These equitable principles are generally designed to relieve the borrower from the legal effect of mortgage defaults, to the extent that the effect is perceived as harsh or unfair. Relying on those principles, a court may alter the specific terms of a loan to the extent it considers necessary to prevent or remedy an injustice, undue oppression or overreaching, or may require the lender to undertake affirmative and expensive actions to determine the cause of the borrower’s default and the likelihood that the borrower will be able to reinstate the loan.
In some cases, courts have substituted their judgment for the lender’s and have required that lenders reinstate loans or recast payment schedules to accommodate borrowers who are suffering from a temporary financial disability. In other cases, courts have limited the right of the lender to foreclose if the default under the mortgage is not monetary, e.g., the borrower failed to maintain the mortgaged property adequately or the borrower executed a junior mortgage on the mortgaged property. The exercise by the court of its equity powers will depend on the individual circumstances of each case presented to it. Finally, some courts have been faced with the issue of whether federal or state constitutional provisions reflecting due process concerns for adequate notice require that a borrower receive notice in addition to statutorily-prescribed minimum notice. For the most part, th ese cases have upheld the reasonableness of the notice provisions or have found that a public sale under a mortgage providing for a power of sale does not involve sufficient state action to afford constitutional protections to the borrower.
Non-Judicial Foreclosure/Power of Sale
Foreclosure of a deed of trust is generally accomplished by a non-judicial trustee’s sale pursuant to the power of sale granted in the deed of trust. A power of sale is typically granted in a deed of trust. It may also be contained in any other type of mortgage instrument. A power of sale allows a non-judicial public sale to be conducted generally following a request from the beneficiary/lender to the trustee to sell the property upon any default by the borrower under the terms of the mortgage note or the mortgage instrument and after notice of sale is given in accordance with the terms of the mortgage instrument, as well as applicable state law.
In some states, before the sale, the trustee under a deed of trust must record a notice of default and notice of sale and send a copy to the borrower and to any other party who has recorded a request for a copy of a notice of default and notice of sale. In addition, in some states the trustee must provide notice to any other party having an interest of record in the real property, including junior lienholders. A notice of sale must be posted in a public place and, in most states, published for a specified period of time in one or more newspapers. The borrower or junior lienholder may then have the right, during a reinstatement period required in some states, to cure the default by paying the entire actual amount in arrears (without acceleration) plus the expenses incurred in enforcing the obligation. In other states, the borrower or the junior lienholder is not provided a period to reinstate the loan, but has only the right to pay off the entire debt to prevent the foreclosure sale. Generally, the procedure for public sale, the parties entitled to notice, the method of giving notice and the applicable time periods are governed by state law and vary among the states. Foreclosure of a deed to secure debt is also generally accomplished by a non-judicial sale similar to that required by a deed of trust, except that the lender or its agent, rather than a trustee, is typically empowered to perform the sale in accordance with the terms of the deed to secure debt and applicable law.
Public Sale
A third party may be unwilling to purchase a mortgaged property at a public sale because of the difficulty in determining the value of that property at the time of sale, due to, among other things, redemption rights that may exist and the possibility of physical deterioration of the property during the foreclosure proceedings. For these reasons, it is common for the lender to purchase the mortgaged property for an amount equal to or less than the underlying debt and accrued and unpaid interest plus the expenses of foreclosure. Generally, state law controls the amount of foreclosure costs and expenses that may be recovered by a lender. Thereafter, subject to the borrower’s right in some states to remain in possession during a redemption period, if applicable, the lender will become the owner of the property and have both the benefits and burdens of ownership of the mortgaged proper ty. For example, the lender will become obligated to pay taxes, obtain casualty insurance and to make those repairs at its own expense as are necessary to render the property suitable for sale. The lender will commonly obtain the services of a real estate broker and pay the broker’s commission in connection with the sale of the property. Depending on market conditions, the ultimate proceeds of the sale of the property may not equal the lender’s investment in the property. Moreover, a lender commonly incurs substantial legal fees and court costs in acquiring a mortgaged property through contested foreclosure and/or bankruptcy proceedings. Generally, state law controls the amount of foreclosure expenses and costs, including attorneys’ fees, that may be recovered by a lender.
A junior mortgagee may not foreclose on the property securing the junior mortgage unless it forecloses subject to senior mortgages and any other prior liens, in which case it may be obliged to make payments on the senior mortgages to avoid their foreclosure. In addition, if the foreclosure of a junior mortgage triggers the enforcement of a “due-on-sale” clause contained in a senior mortgage, the junior mortgagee may be required to pay the full amount of the senior mortgage to avoid its foreclosure. Accordingly, for those mortgage loans, if any, that are junior mortgage loans, if the lender purchases the property the lender’s title will be subject to all senior mortgages, prior liens and specific governmental liens.
The proceeds received by the referee or trustee from the sale are applied first to the costs, fees and expenses of sale and then in satisfaction of the indebtedness secured by the mortgage under which the sale was conducted. Any proceeds remaining after satisfaction of senior mortgage debt are generally payable to the holders of junior mortgages and other liens and claims in order of their priority, whether or not the borrower is in default. Any additional proceeds are generally payable to the borrower. The payment of the proceeds to the holders of junior mortgages may occur in the foreclosure action of the senior mortgage or a subsequent ancillary proceeding or may require the institution of separate legal proceedings by those holders.
Rights of Redemption
The purposes of a foreclosure action are to enable the mortgagee to realize upon its security and to bar the borrower, and all persons who have an interest in the property that is subordinate to the mortgage being foreclosed, from exercise of their “equity of redemption.” The doctrine of equity of redemption provides that, until the property covered by a mortgage has been sold in accordance with a properly conducted foreclosure and foreclosure sale, those having an interest that is subordinate to that of the foreclosing mortgagee have an equity of redemption and may redeem the property by paying the entire debt with interest. In addition, in some states, when a foreclosure action has begun, the redeeming party must pay some of the costs of that action. Those having an equity of redemption must generally be made parties and joined in the foreclosure proceeding in order for their equ ity of redemption to be cut off and terminated.
The equity of redemption is a common-law (non-statutory) right that exists before completion of the foreclosure, is not waivable by the borrower, must be exercised before foreclosure sale and should be distinguished from the post-sale statutory rights of redemption. In some states, after sale pursuant to a deed of trust or foreclosure of a mortgage, the borrower and foreclosed junior lienors are given a statutory period in which to redeem the property from the foreclosure sale. In some states, statutory redemption may occur only upon payment of the foreclosure sale price. In other states, redemption may be authorized if the former borrower pays only a portion of the sums due. The effect of a statutory right of redemption is to diminish the ability of the lender to sell the foreclosed property. The exercise of a right of redemption would defeat the title of any purchaser fro m a foreclosure sale or sale under a deed of trust. Consequently, the practical effect of the redemption right is to force the lender to maintain the property and pay the expenses of ownership until the redemption period has expired. In some states, a post-sale statutory right of redemption may exist following a judicial foreclosure, but not following a trustee’s sale under a deed of trust.
Under the REMIC Provisions currently in effect, property acquired by foreclosure generally must not be held for more than three years from the close of the calendar year of its acquisition. For a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, for which an election is made to qualify the issuing entity or a part of the issuing entity as a REMIC, the Agreement will permit foreclosed property to be held for more than such three year period if the Internal Revenue Service grants an extension of time within which to sell the property or independent counsel renders an opinion to the effect that holding the property for that additional period is permissible under the REMIC Provisions.
Cooperative Loans
The Cooperative shares owned by the tenant-stockholder and pledged to the lender are, in almost all cases, subject to restrictions on transfer as set forth in the Cooperative’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws, as well as the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement, and may be canceled by the Cooperative for failure by the tenant-stockholder to pay rent or other obligations or charges owed by that tenant-stockholder, including mechanics’ liens against the cooperative apartment building incurred by that tenant-stockholder. The proprietary lease or occupancy agreement generally permit the Cooperative to terminate the lease or agreement in the event a borrower fails to make payments or defaults in the performance of covenants required under the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement. Typically, the lender and the Cooperative enter into a recognition agreement that establishe s the rights and obligations of both parties in the event of a default by the tenant-stockholder under the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement will usually constitute a default under the security agreement between the lender and the tenant-stockholder.
The recognition agreement generally provides that, if the tenant-stockholder has defaulted under the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement, the Cooperative will take no action to terminate that lease or agreement until the lender has been provided with an opportunity to cure the default. The recognition agreement typically provides that if the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement is terminated, the Cooperative will recognize the lender’s lien against proceeds from the sale of the Cooperative apartment, subject, however, to the Cooperative’s right to sums due under that proprietary lease or occupancy agreement. The total amount owed to the Cooperative by the tenant-stockholder, which the lender generally cannot restrict and does not monitor, could reduce the value of the collateral below the outstanding principal balance of the Cooperative Loan and accrued and unpaid interest on the Cooperative Loan.
Recognition agreements also provide that in the event of a foreclosure on a Cooperative Loan, the lender must obtain the approval or consent of the Cooperative as required by the proprietary lease before transferring the Cooperative shares or assigning the proprietary lease. Generally, the lender is not limited in any rights it may have to dispossess the tenant-stockholders.
In some states, foreclosure on the Cooperative shares is accomplished by a sale in accordance with the provisions of Article 9 of the UCC and the security agreement relating to those shares. Article 9 of the UCC requires that a sale be conducted in a “commercially reasonable” manner. Whether a foreclosure sale has been conducted in a “commercially reasonable” manner will depend on the facts in each case. In determining commercial reasonableness, a court will look to the notice given the debtor and the method, manner, time, place and terms of the foreclosure. Generally, a sale conducted according to the usual practice of banks selling similar collateral will be considered reasonably conducted.
Article 9 of the UCC provides that the proceeds of the sale will be applied first to pay the costs and expenses of the sale and then to satisfy the indebtedness secured by the lender’s security interest. The recognition agreement, however, generally provides that the lender’s right to reimbursement is subject to the right of the Cooperatives to receive sums due under the proprietary lease or occupancy agreement. If there are proceeds remaining, the lender must account to the tenant-stockholder for the surplus. Conversely, if a portion of the indebtedness remains unpaid, the tenant-stockholder is generally responsible for the deficiency.
In the case of foreclosure on a building that was converted from a rental building to a building owned by a Cooperative under a non-eviction plan, some states require that a purchaser at a foreclosure sale take the property subject to rent control and rent stabilization laws that apply to tenants who elected to remain in a building so converted.
Junior Mortgages
Some of the mortgage loans may be secured by junior mortgages or deeds of trust, that are subordinate to first or other senior mortgages or deeds of trust held by other lenders. The rights of the issuing entity as the holder of a junior deed of trust or a junior mortgage are subordinate in lien and in payment to those of the holder of the senior mortgage or deed of trust, including the prior rights of the senior mortgagee or beneficiary to receive and apply hazard insurance and condemnation proceeds and, upon default of the borrower, to cause a foreclosure on the property. Upon completion of the foreclosure proceedings by the holder of the senior mortgage or the sale pursuant to the deed of trust, the junior mortgagee’s or junior beneficiary’s lien will be extinguished unless the junior lienholder satisfies the defaulted senior loan or asserts its subordinate interest in a property in foreclosure proceedings. See “—Foreclosure” above.
Furthermore, because the terms of the junior mortgage or deed of trust are subordinate to the terms of the first mortgage or deed of trust, in the event of a conflict between the terms of the first mortgage or deed of trust and the junior mortgage or deed of trust, the terms of the first mortgage or deed of trust will generally govern. Upon a failure of the borrower or trustor to perform any of its obligations, the senior mortgagee or beneficiary, subject to the terms of the senior mortgage or deed of trust, may have the right to perform the obligation itself. Generally, all sums so expended by the mortgagee or beneficiary become part of the indebtedness secured by the mortgage or deed of trust. To the extent a first mortgagee expends these sums, these sums will generally have priority over all sums due under the junior mortgage.
Anti-Deficiency Legislation and Other Limitations on Lenders
Statutes in some states limit the right of a beneficiary under a deed of trust or a mortgagee under a mortgage to obtain a deficiency judgment against the borrower following foreclosure or sale under a deed of trust. A deficiency judgment would be a personal judgment against the former borrower equal to the difference between the net amount realized upon the public sale of the real property and the amount due to the lender.
Some states require the lender to exhaust the security afforded under a mortgage by foreclosure in an attempt to satisfy the full debt before bringing a personal action against the borrower. In some other states, the lender has the option of bringing a personal action against the borrower on the debt without first exhausting that security; however, in some of these states, the lender, following judgment on the personal action, may be deemed to have elected a remedy and may be precluded from exercising remedies with respect to the security. In some cases, a lender will be precluded from exercising any additional rights under the note or mortgage if it has taken any prior enforcement action. Consequently, the practical effect of the election requirement, in those states permitting that election, is that lenders will usually proceed against the security first rather than bringing a person al action against the borrower. Finally, other statutory provisions limit any deficiency judgment against the former borrower following a judicial sale to the excess of the outstanding debt over the fair market value of the property at the time of the public sale. The purpose of these statutes is generally to prevent a lender from obtaining a large deficiency judgment against the former borrower as a result of low or no bids at the judicial sale.
In addition to anti-deficiency and related legislation, numerous other federal and state statutory provisions, including the federal bankruptcy laws and state laws affording relief to debtors, may interfere with or affect the ability of a secured mortgage lender to realize upon its security. For example, numerous statutory provisions under the United States Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. Sections 101 et seq. (the “Bankruptcy Code”), may interfere with or affect the ability of the secured mortgage lender to obtain payment of a mortgage loan, to realize upon collateral and/or enforce a deficiency judgment. Under federal bankruptcy law, virtually all actions (including foreclosure actions and deficiency judgment proceedings) are automatically stayed upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition, and often no interest or principal payments are made during the course of the bankruptcy proceeding . In a case under the Bankruptcy Code, the secured party is precluded from foreclosing without authorization from the bankruptcy court. In addition, a court with federal bankruptcy jurisdiction may permit a debtor through his or her Chapter 11 or Chapter 13 plan to cure a monetary default in respect of a mortgage loan by paying arrearages within a reasonable time period and reinstating the original mortgage loan payment schedule even though the lender accelerated the mortgage loan and final judgment of foreclosure had been entered in state court (provided no foreclosure sale had yet occurred) before the filing of the debtor’s petition. Some courts with federal bankruptcy jurisdiction have approved plans, based on the particular facts of the case, that affected the curing of a mortgage loan default by paying arrearages over a number of years.
If a mortgage loan is secured by property not consisting solely of the debtor’s principal residence, the Bankruptcy Code also permits that mortgage loan to be modified. These modifications may include reducing the amount of each monthly payment, changing the rate of interest, altering the repayment schedule, and reducing the lender’s security interest to the value of the property, thus leaving the lender in the position of a general unsecured creditor for the difference between the value of the property and the outstanding balance of the mortgage loan. Some courts have permitted these modifications when the mortgage loan is secured both by the debtor’s principal residence and by personal property.
Some tax liens arising under the Code may in some circumstances provide priority over the lien of a mortgage or deed of trust. In addition, substantive requirements are imposed upon mortgage lenders in connection with the origination and the servicing of mortgage loans by numerous federal and some state consumer protection laws. These laws include the federal Truth-in-Lending Act, Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Fair Credit Billing Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act and related statutes. These federal laws impose specific statutory liabilities upon lenders who originate mortgage loans and who fail to comply with the provisions of the law. In some cases this liability may affect assignees of the mortgage loans.
Generally, Article 9 of the UCC governs foreclosure on Cooperative shares and the related proprietary lease or occupancy agreement. Some courts have interpreted Section 9-504 of the UCC to prohibit a deficiency award unless the creditor establishes that the sale of the collateral (which, in the case of a Cooperative Loan, would be the shares of the Cooperative and the related proprietary lease or occupancy agreement) was conducted in a commercially reasonable manner.
Environmental Considerations
A lender may be subject to unforeseen environmental risks when taking a security interest in real or personal property. Property subject to a security interest may be subject to federal, state, and local laws and regulations relating to environmental protection. These laws may regulate, among other things: emissions of air pollutants; discharges of wastewater or storm water; generation, transport, storage or disposal of hazardous waste or hazardous substances; operation, closure and removal of underground storage tanks; removal and disposal of asbestos-containing materials; and/or management of electrical or other equipment containing polychlorinated biphenyls (“PCBs”). Failure to comply with these laws and regulations may result in significant penalties, including civil and criminal fines. Under the laws of some states, environmental contamination on a property may giv e rise to a lien on the property to ensure the availability and/or reimbursement of cleanup costs. Generally all subsequent liens on that property are subordinated to the environmentally-related lien and, in some states, even prior recorded liens are subordinated to these liens (“Superliens”). In the latter states, the security interest of the trustee in a property that is subject to a Superlien could be adversely affected.
Under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, as amended (“CERCLA”), and under state law in some states, a secured party that takes a deed in lieu of foreclosure, purchases a mortgaged property at a foreclosure sale, operates a mortgaged property or undertakes particular types of activities that may constitute management of the mortgaged property may become liable in some circumstances for the cleanup costs of remedial action if hazardous wastes or hazardous substances have been released or disposed of on the property. These cleanup costs may be substantial. CERCLA imposes strict, as well as joint and several, liability for environmental remediation and/or damage costs on several classes of “potentially responsible parties,” including current “owners and/or operators” of property, irrespective of whether those owners or operators caused or contributed to the contamination on the property. In addition, owners and operators of properties that generate hazardous substances that are disposed of at other “off-site” locations may be held strictly, jointly and severally liable for environmental remediation and/or damages at those off-site locations. Many states also have laws that are similar to CERCLA. Liability under CERCLA or under similar state law could exceed the value of the property itself as well as the total assets of the property owner.
Although some provisions of the Asset Conservation Act (as defined in this prospectus) apply to trusts and fiduciaries, the law is somewhat unclear as to whether and under what precise circumstances cleanup costs, or the obligation to take remedial actions, could be imposed on a secured lender, such as the issuing entity. Under the laws of some states and under CERCLA, a lender may be liable as an “owner or operator” for costs of addressing releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances on a mortgaged property if that lender or its agents or employees have “participated in the management” of the operations of the borrower, even though the environmental damage or threat was caused by a prior owner or current owner or operator or other third party. Excluded from CERCLA’s definition of “owner or operator” is a person “who without participating in the management of . . . [the] facility, holds indicia of ownership primarily to protect his security interest” (the “secured-creditor exemption”). This exemption for holders of a security interest such as a secured lender applies only to the extent that a lender seeks to protect its security interest in the contaminated facility or property. Thus, if a lender’s activities begin to encroach on the actual management of that facility or property, the lender faces potential liability as an “owner or operator” under CERCLA. Similarly, when a lender forecloses and takes title to a contaminated facility or property, the lender may incur potential CERCLA liability in various circumstances, including among others, when it holds the facility or property as an investment (including leasing the facility or property to a third party), fails to market the property in a timely fashion or fails to properly address environmental conditions at the property or facility.
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, as amended (“RCRA”), contains a similar secured-creditor exemption for those lenders who hold a security interest in a petroleum underground storage tank (“UST”) or in real estate containing a UST, or that acquire title to a petroleum UST or facility or property on which a UST is located. As under CERCLA, a lender may lose its secured-creditor exemption and be held liable under RCRA as a UST owner or operator if that lender or its employees or agents participate in the management of the UST. In addition, if the lender takes title to or possession of the UST or the real estate containing the UST, under some circumstances the secured-creditor exemption may be deemed to be unavailable.
A decision in May 1990 of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in United States v. Fleet Factors Corp. very narrowly construed CERCLA’s secured-creditor exemption. The court’s opinion suggested that a lender need not have involved itself in the day-to-day operations of the facility or participated in decisions relating to hazardous waste to be liable under CERCLA; rather, liability could attach to a lender if its involvement with the management of the facility were broad enough to support the inference that the lender had the capacity to influence the borrower’s treatment of hazardous waste. The court added that a lender’s capacity to influence these decisions could be inferred from the extent of its involvement in the facility’s financial management. A subsequent decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in re Bergsoe Metal Corp., apparently disagreeing with, but not expressly contradicting, the Fleet Factors court, held that a secured lender had no liability absent “some actual management of the facility” on the part of the lender.
Court decisions have taken varying views of the scope of the secured-creditor exemption, leading to administrative and legislative efforts to provide guidance to lenders on the scope of activities that would trigger CERCLA and/or RCRA liability. Until recently, these efforts have failed to provide substantial guidance.
On September 28, 1996, however, Congress enacted, and on September 30, 1996, the President signed into law the Asset Conservation Lender Liability and Deposit Insurance Protection Act of 1996 (the “Asset Conservation Act”). The Asset Conservation Act was intended to clarify the scope of the secured creditor exemption under both CERCLA and RCRA. The Asset Conservation Act more explicitly defined the kinds of “participation in management” that would trigger liability under CERCLA and specified activities that would not constitute “participation in management” or otherwise result in a forfeiture of the secured-creditor exemption before foreclosure or during a workout period. The Asset Conservation Act also clarified the extent of protection against liability under CERCLA in the event of foreclosure and authorized specific regulatory clarifications of the scop e of the secured-creditor exemption for purposes of RCRA, similar to the statutory protections under CERCLA. However, since the courts have not yet had the opportunity to interpret the new statutory provisions, the scope of the additional protections offered by the Asset Conservation Act is not fully defined. It also is important to note that the Asset Conservation Act does not offer complete protection to lenders and that the risk of liability remains.
If a secured lender does become liable, it may be entitled to bring an action for contribution against the owner or operator who created the environmental contamination or against some other liable party, but that person or entity may be bankrupt or otherwise judgment-proof. It is therefore possible that cleanup or other environmental liability costs could become a liability of the issuing entity and occasion a loss to the issuing entity and to securityholders in some circumstances. The new secured creditor amendments to CERCLA, also, would not necessarily affect the potential for liability in actions by either a state or a private party under other federal or state laws that may impose liability on “owners or operators” but do not incorporate the secured-creditor exemption.
Traditionally, residential mortgage lenders have not taken steps to evaluate whether hazardous wastes or hazardous substances are present with respect to any mortgaged property before the origination of the mortgage loan or before foreclosure or accepting a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. Neither the depositor nor any servicer makes any representations or warranties or assumes any liability with respect to: environmental conditions of the Mortgaged Property; the absence, presence or effect of hazardous wastes or hazardous substances on, near or emanating from the Mortgaged Property; the impact on securityholders of any environmental condition or presence of any substance on or near the Mortgaged Property; or the compliance of any Mortgaged Property with any environmental laws. In addition, no agent, person or entity otherwise affiliated with the depositor is authorized or able to make any repre sentation, warranty or assumption of liability relative to any Mortgaged Property.
Due-on-Sale Clauses
The mortgage loans may contain due-on-sale clauses. These clauses generally provide that the lender may accelerate the maturity of the loan if the borrower sells, transfers or conveys the related Mortgaged Property. The enforceability of due-on-sale clauses has been the subject of legislation or litigation in many states and, in some cases, the enforceability of these clauses was limited or denied. However, for some loans the Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act of 1982 (the “Garn-St. Germain Act”) preempts state constitutional, statutory and case law that prohibits the enforcement of due-on-sale clauses and permits lenders to enforce these clauses in accordance with their terms, subject to limited exceptions. Due-on-sale clauses contained in mortgage loans originated by federal savings and loan associations of federal savings banks are fully enforceable pursuant to r egulations of the United States Federal Home Loan Bank Board, as succeeded by the Office of Thrift Supervision, which preempt state law restrictions on the enforcement of those clauses. Similarly, “due-on-sale” clauses in mortgage loans made by national banks and federal credit unions are now fully enforceable pursuant to preemptive regulations of the Comptroller of the Currency and the National Credit Union Administration, respectively.
The Garn-St. Germain Act also sets forth nine specific instances in which a mortgage lender covered by the act (including federal savings and loan associations and federal savings banks) may not exercise a “due-on-sale” clause, notwithstanding the fact that a transfer of the property may have occurred. These include intra-family transfers, some transfers by operation of law, leases of fewer than three years and the creation of a junior encumbrance. Regulations promulgated under the Garn-St. Germain Act also prohibit the imposition of a prepayment penalty upon the acceleration of a loan pursuant to a due-on-sale clause. The inability to enforce a “due-on-sale” clause may result in a mortgage that bears an interest rate below the current market rate being assumed by a new home buyer rather than being paid off, which may affect the average life of the mortgage loans an d the number of mortgage loans which may extend to maturity.
Prepayment Charges and Late Fees
Some state laws restrict the imposition of prepayment charges and late fees even when the loans expressly provide for the collection of those charges. Although the Alternative Mortgage Transaction Parity Act of 1982 (the “Parity Act”), permits the collection of prepayment charges and late fees in connection with some types of eligible loans preempting any contrary state law prohibitions, some states may not recognize the preemptive authority of the Parity Act or have formally opted out of the Parity Act. As a result, it is possible that prepayment charges and late fees may not be collected even on loans that provide for the payment of those charges unless otherwise specified in the accompanying prospectus supplement. The related servicer or another entity identified in the accompanying prospectus supplement will be entitled to all prepayment charges and late payment charges r eceived on the loans and those amounts will not be available for payment on the certificates. The Office of Thrift Supervision (“OTS”), the agency that administers the Parity Act for unregulated housing creditors, withdrew its favorable Parity Act regulations and Chief Counsel Opinions that previously authorized lenders to charge prepayment charges and late fees in certain circumstances notwithstanding contrary state law, effective with respect to loans originated on or after July 1, 2003. However, the OTS’s ruling does not retroactively affect loans originated before July 1, 2003.
Subordinate Financing
Where a borrower encumbers mortgaged property with one or more junior liens, the senior lender is subjected to additional risks, such as:
•
The borrower may have difficulty repaying multiple loans. In addition, if the junior loan permits recourse to the borrower (as junior loans often do) and the senior loan does not, a borrower may be more likely to repay sums due on the junior loan than those on the senior loan.
•
Acts of the senior lender that prejudice the junior lender or impair the junior lender’s security may create a superior equity in favor of the junior lender. For example, if the borrower and the senior lender agree to an increase in the principal amount of or the interest rate payable on the senior loan, the senior lender may lose its priority to the extent any existing junior lender is harmed or the borrower is additionally burdened.
•
If the borrower defaults on the senior loan and/or any junior loan or loans, the existence of junior loans and actions taken by junior lenders can impair the security available to the senior lender and can interfere with or delay the taking of action by the senior lender. Moreover, the bankruptcy of a junior lender may operate to stay foreclosure or similar proceedings by the senior lender.
Applicability of Usury Laws
Title V of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980, enacted in March 1980 (“Title V”), provides that state usury limitations will not apply to some types of residential first mortgage loans originated by lenders after March 31, 1980. A similar federal statute was in effect for mortgage loans made during the first three months of 1980. The Office of Thrift Supervision is authorized to issue rules and regulations and to publish interpretations governing implementation of Title V. The statute authorized any state to reimpose interest rate limits by adopting, before April 1, 1983, a law or constitutional provision that expressly rejects application of the federal law. In addition, even where Title V is not so rejected, any state is authorized by the law to adopt a provision limiting discount points or other charges on mortgage loans covered by Title V. Some states have taken action to reimpose interest rate limits and/or to limit discount points or other charges.
The depositor believes that a court interpreting Title V would hold that residential first mortgage loans that are originated on or after January 1, 1980, are subject to federal preemption. Therefore, in a state that has not taken the requisite action to reject application of Title V or to adopt a provision limiting discount points or other charges before origination of those mortgage loans, any limitation under that state’s usury law would not apply to those mortgage loans.
In any state in which application of Title V has been expressly rejected or a provision limiting discount points or other charges is adopted, no mortgage loan originated after the date of that state action will be eligible for inclusion in an issuing entity unless (1) the mortgage loan provides for the interest rate, discount points and charges as are permitted in that state or (2) the mortgage loan provides that its terms will be construed in accordance with the laws of another state under which the interest rate, discount points and charges would not be usurious and the borrower’s counsel has rendered an opinion that the choice of law provision would be given effect.
Statutes differ in their provisions as to the consequences of a usurious loan. One group of statutes requires the lender to forfeit the interest due above the applicable limit or impose a specified penalty. Under this statutory scheme, the borrower may cancel the recorded mortgage or deed of trust upon paying its debt with lawful interest, and the lender may foreclose, but only for the debt plus lawful interest. A second group of statutes is more severe. A violation of this type of usury law results in the invalidation of the transaction, thus permitting the borrower to cancel the recorded mortgage or deed of trust without any payment or prohibiting the lender from foreclosing.
Alternative Mortgage Instruments
Alternative mortgage instruments, including adjustable rate mortgage loans and early ownership mortgage loans, originated by non-federally chartered lenders have historically been subject to a variety of restrictions. Those restrictions differed from state to state, resulting in difficulties in determining whether a particular alternative mortgage instrument originated by a state-chartered lender was in compliance with applicable law. These difficulties were alleviated substantially as a result of the enactment of Title VIII of the Garn-St. Germain Act (“Title VIII”). Title VIII provides that, notwithstanding any state law to the contrary, state-chartered banks may originate alternative mortgage instruments in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Comptroller of the Currency with respect to origination of alternative mortgage instruments by national banks; state-char tered credit unions may originate alternative mortgage instruments in accordance with regulations promulgated by the National Credit Union Administration with respect to origination of alternative mortgage instruments by federal credit unions; and all other non-federally chartered housing creditors, including state-chartered savings and loan associations, state-chartered savings banks and mutual savings banks and mortgage banking companies, may originate alternative mortgage instruments in accordance with the regulations promulgated by the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, predecessor to the Office of Thrift Supervision, with respect to origination of alternative mortgage instruments by federal savings and loan associations. Title VIII provides that any state may reject applicability of the provisions of Title VIII by adopting, before October 15, 1985, a law or constitutional provision expressly rejecting the applicability of those provisions. Some states have taken that action.
Servicemembers’ Civil Relief Act
Under the terms of the Servicemembers’ Civil Relief Act and similar state and local laws (the “Relief Act”), a borrower who enters military service after the origination of the borrower’s mortgage loan (including a borrower who was in reserve status and is called to active duty after origination of the mortgage loan) may not be charged interest (including fees and charges) above an annual rate of 6% during the period of the borrower’s active duty status, unless a court orders otherwise upon application of the lender. The Relief Act applies to borrowers who are members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, National Guard, Reserves, Coast Guard and officers of the U.S. Public Health Service assigned to duty with the military. Because the Relief Act applies to borrowers who enter military service (including reservists who are called to active duty) after origination of the related mortgage loan, no information can be provided as to the number of loans that may be affected by the Relief Act.
Application of the Relief Act would adversely affect, for an indeterminate period of time, the ability of the servicer to collect full amounts of interest on some of the mortgage loans. Any shortfalls in interest collections resulting from the application of the Relief Act would result in a reduction of the amounts distributable to the holders of the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, and would not be covered by advances. These shortfalls will be covered by the credit support provided in connection with the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, only to the extent provided in the prospectus supplement. In addition, the Relief Act imposes limitations that would impair the ability of the servicer to foreclose on an affected mortgage loan during the borrower’s period of active duty status, and, under some circumstances, during an additional three month period ther eafter. Thus, if an affected mortgage loan goes into default, there may be delays and losses occasioned thereby.
Forfeitures in Drug and RICO Proceedings
Federal law provides that property owned by persons convicted of drug-related crimes or of criminal violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (“RICO”) statute can be seized by the government if the property was used in, or purchased with the proceeds of, those crimes. Under procedures contained in the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984 (the “Crime Control Act”), the government may seize the property even before conviction. The government must publish notice of the forfeiture proceeding and may give notice to all parties “known to have an alleged interest in the property,” including the holders of mortgage loans.
A lender may avoid forfeiture of its interest in the property if it establishes that: (1) its mortgage was executed and recorded before commission of the crime upon which the forfeiture is based, or (2) the lender was, at the time of execution of the mortgage, “reasonably without cause to believe” that the property was used in, or purchased with the proceeds of, illegal drug or RICO activities.
Material Federal Income Tax Considerations
General
The following discussion represents the opinion of McKee NelsonLLP and Thacher Proffitt & WoodLLP as to the material federal income tax consequences of the purchase, ownership and disposition of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, offered under this prospectus. These opinions assume compliance with all provisions of the Agreements pursuant to which the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, are issued. This discussion is directed solely to securityholders that hold the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, as capital assets within the meaning of Section 1221 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and does not purport to discuss all federal income tax consequences that may be applicable to particular categories of investors, some of which (such as banks, insurance companies, investors that do not buy in the original offering and foreign invest ors) may be subject to special rules. Further, the authorities on which this discussion, and the opinions referred to below, are based are subject to change or differing interpretations, which could apply retroactively.
In addition to the federal income tax consequences described in this prospectus, potential investors are encouraged to consider the state, local and other tax consequences, if any, of the purchase, ownership and disposition of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable. See “State and Other Tax Considerations.” The depositor recommends that securityholders consult their own tax advisors concerning the federal, state, local or other tax consequences to them of the purchase, ownership and disposition of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, offered under this prospectus.
The following discussion addresses securities of four general types:
securities (“REMIC Securities”) representing interests in an issuing entity, or a portion of an issuing entity, that the trustee will elect to have treated as a real estate mortgage investment conduit (“REMIC”) under Sections 860A through 860G (the “REMIC Provisions”) of the Code;
securities (“Grantor Trust Securities”) representing interests in a trust fund (a “Grantor Trust Fund”) as to which no election will be made;
securities (“Partnership Certificates”) representing equity interests in a trust fund (a “Partnership Trust Fund”) which is treated as a partnership for federal income tax purposes; and
securities (“Debt Securities”) representing indebtedness of a Partnership Trust Fund or a trust fund which is disregarded as a separate entity from the owner of its equity for federal income tax purposes.
The prospectus supplement for each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will indicate which of the foregoing treatments will apply to that series and, if a REMIC election (or elections) will be made for the related issuing entity, will identify all “regular interests” and “residual interests” in the REMIC. For purposes of this tax discussion,
1.
references to a “securityholder” or a “holder” are to the beneficial owner of a Security,
2.
references to “REMIC Pool” are to an entity or portion thereof as to which a REMIC election will be made and
3.
to the extent specified in the prospectus supplement, references to “mortgage loans” include Contracts.
The following discussion is based in part upon the rules governing original issue discount that are set forth in Sections 1271 through 1275 of the Code and in the Treasury regulations promulgated thereunder (the “OID Regulations”), and in part upon the REMIC Provisions and the Treasury regulations promulgated thereunder (the “REMIC Regulations”). In addition, the OID Regulations do not adequately address some issues relevant to, and in some instances provide that they are not applicable to, prepayable securities such as the Notes or Certificates, as applicable.
Taxable Mortgage Pools
Corporate income tax can be imposed on the net income of some entities issuing non-REMIC debt obligations secured by real estate mortgages (“Taxable Mortgage Pools”). Any entity other than a REMIC will be considered a Taxable Mortgage Pool if
(1)
substantially all of the assets of the entity consist of debt obligations and more than 50% of those obligations (determined by adjusted tax basis) consist of “real estate mortgages,”
(2)
that entity is the borrower under debt obligations with two or more maturities, and
(3)
under the terms of the debt obligations on which the entity is the borrower, payments on those obligations bear a relationship to payments on the obligations held by the entity.
Furthermore, a group of assets held by an entity can be treated as a separate Taxable Mortgage Pool if the assets are expected to produce significant cash flow that will support one or more of the entity’s issues of debt obligations. The depositor generally will structure offerings of non-REMIC Securities to avoid the application of the Taxable Mortgage Pool rules.
REMICs
Classification of REMICs
For each series of REMIC Securities, McKee NelsonLLP or Thacher Proffitt & WoodLLP (as applicable, “Federal Tax Counsel”) will deliver an opinion that, assuming compliance with all provisions of the related pooling and servicing agreement, the related issuing entity (or each applicable portion of the issuing entity) will qualify as a REMIC and the REMIC Securities offered with respect thereto will be considered to evidence ownership of “regular interests” (“Regular Securities”) or “residual interests” (“Residual Securities”) in the REMIC within the meaning of the REMIC Provisions.
In order for the REMIC Pool to qualify as a REMIC, there must be ongoing compliance on the part of the REMIC Pool with the requirements set forth in the Code. The REMIC Pool must fulfill an asset test, which requires that no more than a de minimis portion of the assets of the REMIC Pool, as of the close of the third calendar month beginning after the “Startup Day” (which for purposes of this discussion is the date of issuance of the REMIC Securities) and at all times thereafter, consist of assets other than “qualified mortgages” and “permitted investments.” The REMIC Regulations provide a safe harbor pursuant to which the de minimis requirement will be met if at all times the total adjusted basis of the nonqualified assets is less than 1% of the total adjusted basis of all the REMIC Pool’s assets. An entity that fails to meet the safe harbor may nevertheless demonstrate that it holds no mo re than a de minimis amount of nonqualified assets. A REMIC Pool also must provide “reasonable arrangements” to prevent its residual interests from being held by “disqualified organizations” or agents of “disqualified organizations” and must furnish applicable tax information to transferors or agents that violate this requirement. The pooling and servicing agreement for each series of REMIC Securities will contain provisions meeting these requirements. See “—Taxation of Owners of Residual Securities—Tax-Related Restrictions on Transfer of Residual Securities—Disqualified Organizations” below.
A qualified mortgage is any obligation that is principally secured by an interest in real property and that is transferred to the REMIC Pool on the Startup Day, is purchased by the REMIC Pool within a three-month period thereafter pursuant to a fixed price contract in effect on the Startup Day or is attributable to an advance made to the mortgagor pursuant to the original terms of the obligation and is purchased by the REMIC pursuant to a fixed price contract in effect on the Startup Day. Qualified mortgages include whole mortgage loans and, certain certificates of beneficial interest in a grantor trust that holds mortgage loans and regular interests in another REMIC, such as lower-tier regular interests in a tiered REMIC. The REMIC Regulations specify that loans secured by timeshare interests, shares held by a tenant stockholder in a cooperative housing corporation, and manufactured housing that qualifies as a “single famil y residence” under Code Section 25(e)(10) can be qualified mortgages. A qualified mortgage includes a qualified replacement mortgage, which is any property that would have been treated as a qualified mortgage if it were transferred to the REMIC Pool on the Startup Day and that is received either:
(1)
in exchange for any qualified mortgage within a three-month period from the Startup Day; or
(2)
in exchange for a “defective obligation” within a two-year period from the Startup Day.
A “defective obligation” includes:
(1)
a mortgage in default or as to which default is reasonably foreseeable;
(2)
a mortgage as to which a customary representation or warranty made at the time of transfer to the REMIC Pool has been breached;
(3)
a mortgage that was fraudulently procured by the borrower; and
(4)
a mortgage that was not in fact principally secured by real property (but only if the sponsor had a reasonable belief the mortgage loan was principally secured by real estate at the time the mortgage was acquired by the REMIC and the mortgage is disposed of within 90 days of discovery of this defect).
A mortgage loan that is “defective” as described in clause (4) above that is not sold or, if within two years of the Startup Day, sold or exchanged, within 90 days of discovery, ceases to be a qualified mortgage after that 90-day period.
Permitted investments include cash flow investments, qualified reserve assets, and foreclosure property. A cash flow investment is an investment, earning a return in the nature of interest, of amounts received on or with respect to qualified mortgages for a temporary period, not exceeding 13 months, until the next scheduled distribution to holders of interests in the REMIC Pool. A qualified reserve asset is any intangible property held for investment that is part of any reasonably required reserve maintained by the REMIC Pool to provide for payments of expenses of the REMIC Pool or amounts due on the regular or residual interests in the event of defaults (including delinquencies) on the qualified mortgages, lower than expected reinvestment returns, prepayment interest shortfalls and other contingencies. The reserve fund will be disqualified if more than 30% of the gross income from the assets in that fund for the year is de rived from the sale or other disposition of property held for less than three months, unless required to prevent a default on the regular interests caused by a default on one or more qualified mortgages. A reserve fund must be reduced “promptly and appropriately” to the extent no longer reasonably required. Foreclosure property is real property acquired by the REMIC Pool in connection with the default or imminent default of a qualified mortgage and generally may not be held for more than three taxable years after the taxable year of acquisition unless an extension of up to three additional years is granted by the Secretary of the Treasury.
In addition to the foregoing requirements, the various interests in a REMIC Pool also must meet specific requirements. All of the interests in a REMIC Pool must be either of the following: (1) one or more classes of regular interests or (2) a single class of residual interests on which distributions, if any, are made pro rata.
A regular interest is an interest in a REMIC Pool that is issued on the Startup Day with fixed terms, is designated as a regular interest, and unconditionally entitles the holder to receive a specified principal amount (or other similar amount), and provides that interest payments (or other similar amounts), if any, at or before maturity either are payable based on a fixed rate or a qualified variable rate, or consist of a specified, nonvarying portion of the interest payments on qualified mortgages. That specified portion may consist of a fixed number of basis points, a fixed percentage of the total interest, or a qualified variable rate, inverse variable rate or difference between two fixed or qualified variable rates on some or all of the qualified mortgages. The specified principal amount of a regular interest that provides for interest payments consisting of a specified, nonvarying portion of interest pay ments on qualified mortgages may be zero.
A residual interest is an interest in a REMIC Pool other than a regular interest that is issued on the Startup Day and that is designated as a residual interest.
An interest in a REMIC Pool may be treated as a regular interest even if payments of principal for that interest are subordinated to payments on other regular interests or the residual interest in the REMIC Pool, and are dependent on the absence of defaults or delinquencies on qualified mortgages or permitted investments, lower than reasonably expected returns on permitted investments, unanticipated expenses incurred by the REMIC Pool or prepayment interest shortfalls. Accordingly, except as disclosed in a related prospectus supplement, in the opinion of Federal Tax Counsel, the Regular Securities of a series will constitute one or more classes of regular interests, and the Residual Securities for that series will constitute a single class of residual interests for each REMIC Pool.
If an entity electing to be treated as a REMIC fails to comply with one or more of the ongoing requirements of the Code for that status during any taxable year, the Code provides that the entity will not be treated as a REMIC for that year and thereafter. In that event, that entity may be taxable as a corporation under Treasury regulations, and the related REMIC Securities may not be accorded the status or given the tax treatment described below. Although the Code authorizes the Treasury Department to issue regulations providing relief in the event of an inadvertent termination of REMIC status, none of these regulations have been issued. Any relief provided, moreover, may be accompanied by sanctions, such as the imposition of a corporate tax on all or a portion of the issuing entity’s income for the period in which the requirements for that status are not satisfied. The pooling and servicing agreement for each RE MIC Pool will include provisions designed to maintain the issuing entity’s status as a REMIC under the REMIC Provisions. It is not anticipated that the status of any issuing entity as a REMIC will be terminated.
Characterization of Investments in REMIC Securities
The REMIC Securities will be treated as “real estate assets” within the meaning of Section 856(c)(4)(A) of the Code and assets described in Section 7701(a)(19)(C) of the Code in the same proportion that the assets of the REMIC Pool underlying these Notes or Certificates, as applicable, would be so treated. Moreover, if 95% or more of the assets of the REMIC Pool qualify for either of the foregoing treatments at all times during a calendar year, the REMIC Securities will qualify for the corresponding status in their entirety for that calendar year.
Interest (including original issue discount) on the Regular Securities and income allocated to the class of Residual Securities will be interest described in Section 856(c)(3)(B) of the Code to the extent that the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, are treated as “real estate assets” within the meaning of Section 856(c)(4)(A) of the Code. In addition, the Regular Securities generally will be “qualified mortgages” within the meaning of Section 860G(a)(3) of the Code if transferred to another REMIC on its Startup Day in exchange for regular or residual interests in the REMIC.
The assets of the REMIC Pool will include, in addition to mortgage loans, payments on mortgage loans held pending distribution on the REMIC Securities and property acquired by foreclosure held pending sale, and may include amounts in reserve accounts. It is unclear whether property acquired by foreclosure held pending sale and amounts in reserve accounts would be considered to be part of the mortgage loans, or whether those assets (to the extent not invested in assets described in the foregoing sections) otherwise would receive the same treatment as the mortgage loans for purposes of all of the foregoing sections. The REMIC Regulations do provide, however, that payments on mortgage loans held pending distribution are considered part of the mortgage loans for purposes of Section 856(c)(4)(A) of the Code. Furthermore, foreclosure property generally will qualify as “real estate assets” under Section 856(c)(4)(A) of t he Code.
Tiered REMIC Structures
For some series of REMIC Securities, two or more separate elections may be made to treat designated portions of the related issuing entity as REMICs (“Tiered REMICs”) for federal income tax purposes. Upon the issuance of any of these series of REMIC Securities, Federal Tax Counsel will deliver its opinion that, assuming compliance with all provisions of the related pooling and servicing agreement, the Tiered REMICs will each qualify as a REMIC and the respective interests issued by each Tiered REMIC will be considered to evidence ownership of regular interests or residual interests in the related REMIC within the meaning of the REMIC Provisions.
Solely for purposes of determining whether the REMIC Securities will be “real estate assets” within the meaning of Section 856(c)(4)(A) of the Code and “loans secured by an interest in real property” under Section 7701(a)(19)(C) of the Code, and whether the income on those Notes or Certificates, as applicable, is interest described in Section 856(c)(3)(B) of the Code, the Tiered REMICs will be treated as one REMIC.
Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities
(1)
General
Except as otherwise indicated herein, the Regular Securities will be treated for federal income tax purposes as debt instruments that are issued by the REMIC and not as beneficial interests in the REMIC or the REMIC’s assets. Interest, original issue discount, and market discount (other than de minimis original issue discount market discount the holder does not elect to include currently) on a Regular Security will be treated as ordinary income to a holder of the Regular Security (the “Regular Securityholder”), and principal payments (other than payments treated as payments of accrued market discount not previously included in income) on a Regular Security will be treated as a return of capital to the extent of the Regular Securityholder’s basis in the Regular Security allocable thereto. Regular Securityholders must use the accrual method of accounting with regard to Regular Securities, regardless of the metho d of accounting otherwise used by that Regular Securityholder.
Payments of interest on Regular Securities may be based on a fixed rate, a variable rate as permitted by the REMIC Regulations, or may consist of a specified portion of the interest payments on qualified mortgages where such portion does not vary during the period the Regular Security is outstanding. The definition of a variable rate for purposes of the REMIC Regulations is based on the definition of a qualified floating rate for purposes of the rules governing original issue discount set forth in the OID Regulations, with certain modifications and permissible variations. See “—Variable Rate Regular Securities” below for a discussion of the definition of a qualified floating rate for purposes of the OID Regulations. A qualified floating rate, as defined above for purposes of the REMIC Regulations (a “REMIC qualified floating rate”), qualifies as a variable rate for purposes of the REMIC Regulations if suc h REMIC qualified floating rate is set at a “current rate” as defined in the OID Regulations. In addition, a rate equal to the highest, lowest or an average of two or more REMIC qualified floating rates qualifies as a variable rate for REMIC purposes. A Regular Security may also have a variable rate based on a weighted average of the interest rates on some or all of the qualified mortgages held by the REMIC where each qualified mortgage taken into account has a fixed rate or a variable rate that is permissible under the REMIC Regulations. Further, a Regular Security may have a rate that is the product of a REMIC qualified floating rate or a weighted average rate and a fixed multiplier, is a constant number of basis points more or less than a REMIC qualified floating rate or a weighted average rate, or is the product, plus or minus a constant number of basis points, of a REMIC qualified floating rate or a weighted average rate and a fixed multiplier. An otherwise permissible variab le rate for a Regular Security, described above, will not lose its character as such because it is subject to a floor or a cap, including a “funds available cap” as that term is defined in the REMIC Regulations. Lastly, a Regular Security will be considered as having a permissible variable rate if it has a fixed or otherwise permissible variable rate during one or more payment or accrual periods and different fixed or otherwise permissible variable rates during other payment or accrual periods.
(2)
Original Issue Discount
Accrual Securities will be, and other classes of Regular Securities may be, issued with “original issue discount” within the meaning of Code Section 1273(a). Holders of any Class or Subclass of Regular Securities having original issue discount generally must include original issue discount in ordinary income for federal income tax purposes as it accrues, in accordance with a constant yield method that takes into account the compounding of interest, in advance of the receipt of the cash attributable to that income. The following discussion is based in part on the OID Regulations and in part on the provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (the “1986 Act”). Regular Securityholders should be aware, however, that the OID Regulations do not adequately address some of the issues relevant to, and in some instances provide that they are not applicable to, securities, such as the Regular Securities. To the e xtent that those issues are not addressed in the regulations, the Seller intends to apply the methodology described in the Conference Committee Report to the 1986 Act. No assurance can be provided that the Internal Revenue Service will not take a different position as to those matters not currently addressed by the OID Regulations. Moreover, the OID Regulations include an anti-abuse rule allowing the Internal Revenue Service to apply or depart from the OID Regulations where necessary or appropriate to ensure a reasonable tax result because of the applicable statutory provisions. A tax result will not be considered unreasonable under the anti-abuse rule in the absence of an expected substantial effect on the present value of a taxpayer’s tax liability. Investors are advised to consult their own tax advisors as to the discussion in the OID Regulations and the appropriate method for reporting interest and original issue discount for the Regular Securities.
In limited circumstances multiple Regular Securities can be aggregated and treated as a single debt instrument for purposes of applying the original issue discount rules. Otherwise each Regular Security will be treated as a single installment obligation for purposes of determining the original issue discount includible in a Regular Securityholder’s income. The total amount of original issue discount on a Regular Security is the excess of the “stated redemption price at maturity” of the Regular Security over its “issue price.” The issue price of a Class of Regular Securities offered pursuant to this prospectus generally is the first price at which a substantial amount of that Class is sold to the public (excluding bond houses, brokers and underwriters). Although unclear under the OID Regulations, it is anticipated that the trustee will treat the issue price of a Class as to which there is no substant ial sale as of the issue date or that is retained by the depositor as the fair market value of the Class as of the issue date. The issue price of a Regular Security also includes any amount paid by an initial Regular Securityholder for accrued interest that relates to a period before the issue date of the Regular Security, unless the Regular Securityholder elects on its federal income tax return to exclude that amount from the issue price and to recover it on the first Distribution Date.
The stated redemption price at maturity of a Regular Security always includes the original principal amount of the Regular Security, but generally will not include distributions of interest if those distributions constitute “qualified stated interest.” Under the OID Regulations, qualified stated interest generally means interest payable at a single fixed rate or a qualified variable rate (as described below), provided that the interest payments are unconditionally payable at intervals of one year or less during the entire term of the Regular Security. Interest is unconditionally payable only if reasonable legal remedies exist to compel timely payment or the terms of the debt instrument otherwise make the likelihood of late payment (beyond a grace period) or non-payment sufficiently remote. Because there is no penalty or default remedy in the case of nonpayment of interest for a Regular Security, it is possible that no i nterest on any Class of Regular Securities will be treated as qualified stated interest. However, except as provided in the following three sentences or in the prospectus supplement, although there is no guidance directly addressing the issue, because the underlying mortgage loans provide for remedies in the event of default it is anticipated that the trustee will treat interest for the Regular Securities as qualified stated interest. Distributions of interest on an Accrual Security, or on other Regular Securities for which deferred interest will accrue, will not constitute qualified stated interest, in which case the stated redemption price at maturity of those Regular Securities includes all distributions of interest as well as principal on the Regular Securities. Likewise, although there is no guidance directly addressing the issue, it is anticipated that the trustee will treat an interest-only Class or a Class on which interest is substantially disproportionate to its principal amount (a so-c alled “super-premium” Class) as having no qualified stated interest. Where the interval between the issue date and the first Distribution Date on a Regular Security is shorter than the interval between subsequent Distribution Dates, the interest attributable to the additional days will be included in the stated redemption price at maturity.
Under a de minimis rule, original issue discount on a Regular Security will be considered to be zero if the original issue discount is less than 0.25% of the stated redemption price at maturity of the Regular Security multiplied by the weighted average maturity of the Regular Security. For this purpose, the weighted average maturity of the Regular Security is computed as the sum of the amounts determined by multiplying the number of full years (i.e., rounding down partial years) from the issue date until each distribution in reduction of stated redemption price at maturity is scheduled to be made by a fraction, the numerator of which is the amount of each distribution included in the stated redemption price at maturity of the Regular Security and the denominator of which is the stated redemption price at maturity of the Regular Security. The Conference Committee Report to the 1986 Act provides that the schedule of those distribut ions should be determined in accordance with the assumed rate of prepayment of the mortgage loans (the “Prepayment Assumption”) and the anticipated reinvestment rate, if any, relating to the Regular Securities. The Prepayment Assumption for a series of Regular Securities will be set forth in the prospectus supplement. Holders generally must report de minimis original issue discount pro rata as principal payments are received, and that income will generally be capital gain if the Regular Security is held as a capital asset. Under the OID Regulations, however, Regular Securityholders may elect to accrue all de minimis original issue discount as well as market discount and market premium, under the constant yield method. See “–Election to Treat All Interest Under the Constant Yield Method” below.
A Regular Securityholder generally must include in gross income for any taxable year the sum of the “daily portions,” as defined below, of the original issue discount on the Regular Security accrued during an accrual period for each day on which it holds the Regular Security, including the date of purchase but excluding the date of disposition. The trustee will treat the monthly period ending on the day before each Distribution Date as the accrual period. For each Regular Security, a calculation will be made of the original issue discount that accrues during each successive full accrual period (or shorter period from the date of original issue) that ends on the day before the related Distribution Date on the Regular Security. The Conference Committee Report to the 1986 Act states that the rate of accrual of original issue discount is intended to be based on the Prepayment Assumption. The original issue disco unt accruing in a full accrual period would be the excess, if any, of:
(1)
the sum of:
(a)
the present value of all of the remaining distributions to be made on the Regular Security as of the end of that accrual period and
(b)
the distributions made on the Regular Security during the accrual period that are included in the Regular Security’s stated redemption price at maturity, over
(2)
the adjusted issue price of the Regular Security at the beginning of the accrual period.
The present value of the remaining distributions referred to in the preceding sentence is calculated based on:
(1)
the yield to maturity of the Regular Security at the issue date; and
(2)
the Prepayment Assumption.
For these purposes, the adjusted issue price of a Regular Security at the beginning of any accrual period equals the issue price of the Regular Security, increased by the total amount of original issue discount for the Regular Security that accrued in all prior accrual periods and reduced by the amount of distributions included in the Regular Security’s stated redemption price at maturity that were made on the Regular Security in those prior periods. The original issue discount accruing during any accrual period (as determined in this paragraph) will then be divided by the number of days in the period to determine the daily portion of original issue discount for each day in the period. For an initial accrual period shorter than a full accrual period, the daily portions of original issue discount must be determined according to an appropriate allocation under any reasonable method.
Under the method described above, the daily portions of original issue discount required to be included in income by a Regular Securityholder generally will increase to take into account prepayments on the Regular Securities as a result of prepayments on the mortgage loans that exceed the Prepayment Assumption, and generally will decrease (but not below zero for any period) if the prepayments are slower than the Prepayment Assumption. An increase in prepayments on the mortgage loans for a series of Regular Securities can result in both a change in the priority of principal payments for some Classes of Regular Securities and either an increase or decrease in the daily portions of original issue discount for those Regular Securities.
(3)
Acquisition Premium
A purchaser of a Regular Security having original issue discount at a price greater than its adjusted issue price but less than its stated redemption price at maturity will be required to include in gross income the daily portions of the original issue discount on the Regular Security reduced pro rata by a fraction, the numerator of which is the excess of its purchase price over the adjusted issue price and the denominator of which is the excess of the remaining stated redemption price at maturity over the adjusted issue price. Alternatively, a purchaser may elect to treat all that acquisition premium under the constant yield method, as described below under the heading “—Election to Treat All Interest Under the Constant Yield Method” below.
(4)
Variable Rate Regular Securities
Regular Securities may provide for interest based on a variable rate. Under the OID Regulations, interest is treated as payable at a qualified variable rate if, generally, (1) the issue price does not exceed the original principal balance by more than a specified amount, (2) it does not provide for any principal payments that are contingent, within the meaning of the OID Regulations, except as provided in (1), and (3) the interest compounds or is payable at least annually at current values of
(a)
one or more “qualified floating rates,”
(b)
a single fixed rate and one or more qualified floating rates,
(c)
a single “objective rate,” or
(d)
single fixed rate and a single objective rate that is a “qualified inverse floating rate.”
A floating rate is a qualified floating rate if variations can reasonably be expected to measure contemporaneous variations in the cost of newly borrowed funds. A multiple of a qualified floating rate is considered a qualified floating rate only if the rate is equal to either (a) the product of a qualified floating rate and a fixed multiple that is greater than 0.65 but not more than 1.35 or (b) the product of a qualified floating rate and a fixed multiple that is greater than 0.65 but not more than 1.35, increased or decreased by a fixed rate. That rate may also be subject to a fixed cap or floor, or a cap or floor that is not reasonably expected as of the issue date to affect the yield of the instrument significantly. An objective rate is any rate (other than a qualified floating rate) that is determined using a single fixed formula and that is based on objective financial or economic information, provided that the information is not (1) wi thin the control of the issuer or a related party or (2) unique to the circumstances of the issuer or a related party. However, an objective rate does not include a rate if it is reasonably expected that the average value of such rate during the first half of the Regular Security’s term will be either significantly less than or significantly greater than the average value of the rate during the final half of the Regular Security’s term. A qualified inverse floating rate is a rate equal to a fixed rate minus a qualified floating rate that inversely reflects contemporaneous variations in the qualified floating rate; an inverse floating rate that is not a qualified inverse floating rate may nevertheless be an objective rate. A Class of Regular Securities may be issued under this prospectus that does not have a qualified variable rate under the foregoing rules, for example, a Class that bears different rates at different times during the period it is outstanding that it is considered significantly “front-loaded” or “back-loaded” within the meaning of the OID Regulations. It is possible that a Class may be considered to bear “contingent interest” within the meaning of the OID Regulations. The OID Regulations, as they relate to the treatment of contingent interest, are by their terms not applicable to Regular Securities. However, if final regulations dealing with contingent interest for Regular Securities apply the same principles as the OID Regulations, those regulations may lead to different timing of income inclusion than would be the case under the OID Regulations. Furthermore, application of those principles could lead to the characterization of gain on the sale of contingent interest Regular Securities as ordinary income. Investors are encouraged to consult their tax advisors regarding the appropriate treatment of any Regular Security that does not pay interest at a fixed rate or qualified variable rate as described in this paragraph.
The amount of original issue discount for a Regular Security bearing a qualified variable rate of interest will accrue in the manner described above under “—Original Issue Discount,” with the yield to maturity and future payments on that Regular Security generally to be determined by assuming that interest will be payable for the life of the Regular Security based on the initial rate (or, if different, the value of the applicable variable rate as of the pricing date) for the relevant Class, if the Class bears interest at a qualified floating rate or qualified inverse floating rate, or based on a fixed rate which reflects the reasonably expected yield for the relevant Class, if the Class bears interest at an objective rate (other than a qualified inverse floating rate). However, the qualified stated interest allocable to an accrual period will be increased (or decreased) if the interest actually paid during the accrual pe riod exceed (or is less than) the interest assumed to be paid under the rate just described. Unless required otherwise by applicable final regulations, although there is no guidance directly addressing the issue, it is anticipated that the trustee will treat interest, other than variable interest on an interest-only or super-premium Class, as qualified stated interest at the qualified variable rate.
(5)
A subsequent purchaser of a Regular Security also may be subject to the market discount rules of Code Sections 1276 through 1278. Under these sections and the principles applied by the OID Regulations in the context of original issue discount, “market discount” is the amount by which the purchaser’s original basis in the Regular Security (1) is exceeded by the remaining outstanding principal payments and interest payments other than qualified stated interest payments due on a Regular Security, or (2) in the case of a Regular Security having original issue discount, is exceeded by the adjusted issue price of that Regular Security at the time of purchase. The purchaser generally will be required to recognize ordinary income to the extent of accrued market discount on that Regular Security as distributions includible in the stated redemption price at maturity of the Regular Security are received, in an amount not exce eding that distribution. The market discount would accrue in a manner to be provided in Treasury regulations and should take into account the Prepayment Assumption. The Conference Committee Report to the 1986 Act provides that until these regulations are issued, the market discount would accrue either (1) on the basis of a constant interest rate, or (2) in the ratio of stated interest allocable to the relevant period to the sum of the interest for that period plus the remaining interest as of the end of that period, or in the case of a Regular Security issued with original issue discount, in the ratio of original issue discount accrued for the relevant period to the sum of the original issue discount accrued for that period plus the remaining original issue discount as of the end of that period. The purchaser also generally will be required to treat a portion of any gain on a sale or exchange of the Regular Security as ordinary income to the extent of the market discount accrued to the date of disposition under one of the foregoing methods, less any accrued market discount previously reported as ordinary income as partial distributions in reduction of the stated redemption price at maturity were received. The purchaser will be required to defer deduction of a portion of the excess of the interest paid or accrued on indebtedness incurred to purchase or carry a Regular Security over the interest distributable on the Regular Security. The deferred portion of the interest expense in any taxable year generally will not exceed the accrued market discount on the Regular Security for that year. Any deferred interest expense is, in general, allowed as a deduction not later than the year in which the related market discount income is recognized or the Regular Security is disposed of.
As an alternative to the inclusion of market discount in income on the foregoing basis, the Regular Securityholder may elect to include market discount in income currently as it accrues on all market discount instruments acquired by the Regular Securityholder in that taxable year or thereafter, in which case the interest deferral rule will not apply. See “—Election to Treat All Interest Under the Constant Yield Method” below regarding an alternative manner in which that election may be deemed to be made. A person who purchases a Regular Security at a price lower than the remaining amounts includible in the stated redemption price at maturity of the security, but higher than its adjusted issue price, does not acquire the Regular Security with market discount, but will be required to report original issue discount, appropriately adjusted to reflect the excess of the price paid over the adjusted issue price.
Market discount for a Regular Security will be considered to be zero if the market discount is less than 0.25% of the remaining stated redemption price at maturity of the Regular Security (or, in the case of a Regular Security having original issue discount, the adjusted issue price of that Regular Security) multiplied by the weighted average maturity of the Regular Security (presumably determined as described above in the third paragraph under “—Original Issue Discount” above) remaining after the date of purchase. It appears that de minimis market discount would be reported in a manner similar to de minimis original issue discount. See “—Original Issue Discount” above.
Treasury regulations implementing the market discount rules have not yet been issued, and uncertainty exists with respect to many aspects of those rules. Due to the substantial lack of regulatory guidance with respect to the market discount rules, it is unclear how those rules will affect any secondary market that develops for a particular Class of Regular Securities. Prospective investors in Regular Securities are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the application of the market discount rules to the Regular Securities and the elections to include market discount in income currently and to accrue market discount on the basis of the constant yield method.
(6)
Amortizable Premium
A Regular Security purchased at a cost greater than its remaining stated redemption price at maturity generally is considered to be purchased at a premium. If the Regular Securityholder holds that Regular Security as a “capital asset” within the meaning of Code Section 1221, the Regular Securityholder may elect under Code Section 171 to amortize the premium under a constant yield method that reflects compounding based on the interval between payments on the Regular Security. The election will apply to all taxable debt obligations (including REMIC regular interests) acquired by the Regular Securityholder at a premium held in that taxable year or thereafter, unless revoked with the permission of the Internal Revenue Service. The Conference Committee Report to the 1986 Act indicates a Congressional intent that the same rules that apply to the accrual of market discount on installment obligations will also apply to am ortizing bond premium under Code Section 171 on installment obligations as the Regular Securities, although it is unclear whether the alternatives to the constant interest method described above under “Market Discount” are available. Amortizable bond premium generally will be treated as an offset to interest income on a Regular Security, rather than as a separate deductible item. See “—Election to Treat All Interest Under the Constant Yield Method” below regarding an alternative manner in which the Code Section 171 election may be deemed to be made.
(7)
Election to Treat All Interest Under the Constant Yield Method
A holder of a debt instrument such as a Regular Security may elect to treat all interest that accrues on the instrument using the constant yield method, with none of the interest being treated as qualified stated interest. For purposes of applying the constant yield method to a debt instrument subject to this election, (1) “interest” includes stated interest, original issue discount, de minimis original issue discount, market discount and de minimis market discount, as adjusted by any amortizable bond premium or acquisition premium and (2) the debt instrument is treated as if the instrument were issued on the holder’s acquisition date in the amount of the holder’s adjusted basis immediately after acquisition. It is unclear whether, for this purpose, the initial Prepayment Assumption would continue to apply or if a new prepayment assumption as of the date of the holder’s acquisition would apply. A ho lder generally may make this election on an instrument by instrument basis or for a class or group of debt instruments. However, if the holder makes this election for a debt instrument with amortizable bond premium, the holder is deemed to have made elections to amortize bond premium currently as it accrues under the constant yield method for all premium bonds held by the holder in the same taxable year or thereafter. Alternatively, if the holder makes this election for a debt instrument with market discount, the holder is deemed to have made elections to report market discount income currently as it accrues under the constant yield method for all market discount bonds acquired by the holder in the same taxable year or thereafter. The election is made on the holder’s federal income tax return for the year in which the debt instrument is acquired and is irrevocable except with the approval of the Internal Revenue Service. Investors are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors regard ing the advisability of making this election.
(8)
Treatment of Losses
Regular Securityholders will be required to report income for Regular Securities on the accrual method of accounting, without giving effect to delays or reductions in distributions attributable to defaults or delinquencies on the mortgage loans, except to the extent it can be established that the losses are uncollectible. Accordingly, the holder of a Regular Security, particularly a Subordinate Security, may have income, or may incur a diminution in cash flow as a result of a default or delinquency, but may not be able to take a deduction (subject to the discussion below) for the corresponding loss until a subsequent taxable year. In this regard, investors are cautioned that while they may generally cease to accrue interest income if it reasonably appears that the interest will be uncollectible, the Internal Revenue Service may take the position that original issue discount must continue to be accrued in spite of its uncollectibi lity until the debt instrument is disposed of in a taxable transaction or becomes worthless in accordance with the rules of Code Section 166.
To the extent the rules of Code Section 166 regarding bad debts are applicable, it appears that Regular Securityholders that are corporations or that otherwise hold the Regular Securities in connection with a trade or business should in general be allowed to deduct as an ordinary loss that loss with respect to principal sustained during the taxable year on account of any Regular Securities becoming wholly or partially worthless, and that, in general, Regular Securityholders that are not corporations and do not hold the Regular Securities in connection with a trade or business should be allowed to deduct as a short-term capital loss any loss sustained during the taxable year on account of a portion of any Regular Securities becoming wholly worthless. Although the matter is not free from doubt, non-corporate Regular Securityholders should be allowed a bad debt deduction at the time the principal balance of the Regular Securities is reduc ed to reflect losses resulting from any liquidated mortgage loans. The Internal Revenue Service, however, could take the position that non-corporate holders will be allowed a bad debt deduction to reflect those losses only after all the mortgage loans remaining in the issuing entity have been liquidated or the applicable Class of Regular Securities has been otherwise retired. The Internal Revenue Service could also assert that losses on the Regular Securities are deductible based on some other method that may defer those deductions for all holders, such as reducing future cashflow for purposes of computing original issue discount. This may have the effect of creating “negative” original issue discount that may be deductible only against future positive original issue discount or otherwise upon termination of the Class.
Regular Securityholders are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the appropriate timing, amount and character of any loss sustained for their Regular Securities. While losses attributable to interest previously reported as income should be deductible as ordinary losses by both corporate and non-corporate holders, the Internal Revenue Service may take the position that losses attributable to accrued original issue discount may only be deducted as capital losses in the case of non-corporate holders who do not hold the Regular Securities in connection with a trade or business. Special loss rules may be applicable to banks and thrift institutions. These taxpayers are advised to consult their tax advisors regarding the treatment of losses on Regular Securities.
(9)
Sale or Exchange of Regular Securities
If a Regular Securityholder sells or exchanges a Regular Security, the Regular Securityholder will recognize gain or loss equal to the difference, if any, between the amount received and its adjusted basis in the Regular Security. The adjusted basis of a Regular Security generally will equal the original cost of the Regular Security to the seller, increased by any original issue discount or market discount previously included in the seller’s gross income for the Regular Security and reduced by amounts included in the stated redemption price at maturity of the Regular Security that were previously received by the seller, by any amortized premium, and by any recognized losses.
Except as described above regarding market discount, and except as provided in this paragraph, any gain or loss on the sale or exchange of a Regular Security realized by an investor who holds the Regular Security as a capital asset will be capital gain or loss and will be long-term or short-term depending on whether the Regular Security has been held for the long-term capital gain holding period (currently, more than one year). That gain will be treated as ordinary income
(1)
if a Regular Security is held as part of a “conversion transaction” as defined in Code Section 1258(c), up to the amount of interest that would have accrued on the Regular Securityholder’s net investment in the conversion transaction at 120% of the appropriate applicable federal rate in effect at the time the taxpayer entered into the transaction minus any amount previously treated as ordinary income for any prior disposition of property that was held as part of that transaction;
(2)
in the case of a non-corporate taxpayer, to the extent that the taxpayer has made an election under Code Section 163(d)(4) to have net capital gains taxed as investment income at ordinary income rates; or
(3)
to the extent that the gain does not exceed the excess, if any, of (a) the amount that would have been includible in the gross income of the holder if its yield on that Regular Security were 110% of the applicable federal rate as of the date of purchase, over (b) the amount of income actually includible in the gross income of the holder for that Regular Security (the “110% yield rule”).
In addition, gain or loss recognized from the sale of a Regular Security by some banks or thrift institutions will be treated as ordinary income or loss pursuant to Code Section 582(c). Long-term capital gains of noncorporate taxpayers generally are subject to a lower maximum tax rate than ordinary income of those taxpayers for property held for more than one year, with further rate reductions for property held for more than five years. Currently, the maximum tax rate for corporations is the same for both ordinary income and capital gains.
Taxation of Owners of Residual Securities
(1)
Taxation of REMIC Income
Generally, the “daily portions” of REMIC taxable income or net loss will be includible as ordinary income or loss in determining the federal taxable income of holders of Residual Securities (“Residual Holders”), and will not be taxed separately to the REMIC Pool. The daily portions of REMIC taxable income or net loss of a Residual Holder are determined by allocating the REMIC Pool’s taxable income or net loss for each calendar quarter ratably to each day in that quarter and by allocating that daily portion among the Residual Holders in proportion to their respective holdings of Residual Securities in the REMIC Pool on that day. REMIC taxable income is generally determined in the same manner as the taxable income of an individual using the accrual method of accounting, except that
(1)
the limitations on deductibility of investment interest expense and expenses for the production of income do not apply;
(2)
all bad loans will be deductible as business bad debts; and
(3)
the limitation on the deductibility of interest and expenses related to tax-exempt income will apply.
The REMIC Pool’s gross income includes interest, original issue discount income and market discount income, if any, on the mortgage loans, reduced by amortization of any premium on the mortgage loans, plus income from amortization of issue premium, if any, on the Regular Securities, plus income on reinvestment of cash flows and reserve assets, plus any cancellation of indebtedness income upon allocation of realized losses to the Regular Securities or as a result of a Certificateholder, particularly an interest only Regular Security, not recovering its adjusted issue price. The REMIC Pool’s deductions include interest and original issue discount expense on the Regular Securities, servicing fees on the mortgage loans, other administrative expenses of the REMIC Pool and realized losses on the mortgage loans. The requirement that Residual Holders report their pro rata share of taxable income or net loss of the REMIC Pool will continue u ntil there are no Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of any class of the related series outstanding.
The taxable income recognized by a Residual Holder in any taxable year will be affected by, among other factors, the relationship between the timing of recognition of interest, original issue discount or market discount income or amortization of premium for the mortgage loans, on the one hand, and the timing of deductions for interest (including original issue discount) or income from amortization of issue premium on the Regular Securities, on the other hand. If an interest in the mortgage loans is acquired by the REMIC Pool at a discount, and one or more of these mortgage loans is prepaid, the prepayment may be used in whole or in part to make distributions in reduction of principal on the Regular Securities, and the discount on the mortgage loans that is includible in income may exceed the original issue discount deductions allowed with respect to the Regular Securities. When there is more than one Class of Regular Securities t hat distribute principal sequentially, this mismatching of income and deductions is particularly likely to occur in the early years following issuance of the Regular Securities when distributions in reduction of principal are being made in respect of earlier Classes of Regular Securities to the extent that those Classes are not issued with substantial discount or are issued at a premium. If taxable income attributable to that mismatching is realized, in general, losses would be allowed in later years as distributions on the later maturing Classes of Regular Securities are made.
Taxable income may also be greater in earlier years than in later years as a result of the fact that interest expense deductions, expressed as a percentage of the outstanding principal amount of that series of Regular Securities, may increase over time as distributions in reduction of principal are made on the lower yielding Classes of Regular Securities, whereas, to the extent the REMIC Pool consists of fixed rate mortgage loans, interest income for any particular mortgage loan will remain constant over time as a percentage of the outstanding principal amount of that loan. Consequently, Residual Holders must have sufficient other sources of cash to pay any federal, state, or local income taxes due as a result of that mismatching or unrelated deductions against which to offset that income, subject to the discussion of “excess inclusions” below under “—Limitations on Offset or Exemption of REMIC Income.” T he timing of mismatching of income and deductions described in this paragraph, if present for a series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may have a significant adverse effect upon a Residual Holder’s after-tax rate of return.
A portion of the income of a Residual Holder may be treated unfavorably in three contexts:
(1)
it may not be offset by current or net operating loss deductions;
(2)
it will be considered unrelated business taxable income to tax-exempt entities; and
(3)
it is ineligible for any statutory or treaty reduction in the 30% withholding tax otherwise available to a foreign Residual Holder.
See “—Limitations on Offset or Exemption of REMIC Income” below. In addition, a Residual Holder’s taxable income during some periods may exceed the income reflected by those Residual Holders for those periods in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Investors are encouraged to consult their own accountants concerning the accounting treatment of their investment in Residual Securities.
(2)
Basis and Losses
The amount of any net loss of the REMIC Pool that may be taken into account by the Residual Holder is limited to the adjusted basis of the Residual Security as of the close of the quarter (or time of disposition of the Residual Security if earlier), determined without taking into account the net loss for the quarter. The initial adjusted basis of a purchaser of a Residual Security is the amount paid for that Residual Security. The adjusted basis will be increased by the amount of taxable income of the REMIC Pool reportable by the Residual Holder and will be decreased (but not below zero), first, by a cash distribution from the REMIC Pool and, second, by the amount of loss of the REMIC Pool reportable by the Residual Holder. Any loss that is disallowed on account of this limitation may be carried over indefinitely with respect to the Residual Holder as to whom the loss was disallowed and may be used by the Residual Holder on ly to offset any income generated by the same REMIC Pool, but is not available to a subsequent Residual Holder.
A Residual Holder will not be permitted to amortize directly the cost of its Residual Security as an offset to its share of the taxable income of the related REMIC Pool. However, if, in any year, cash distributions to a Residual Holder exceed its share of the REMIC’s taxable income, the excess will constitute a return of capital to the extent of the holder’s basis in its Residual Security. A return of capital is not treated as income for federal income tax purposes, but will reduce the tax basis of the Residual Holder (but not below zero). If a Residual Security’s basis is reduced to zero, any cash distributions with respect to that Residual Security in any taxable year in excess of its share of the REMIC’s income would be taxable to the holder as gain on the sale or exchange of its interest in the REMIC.
A Residual Security may have a negative value if the net present value of anticipated tax liabilities exceeds the present value of anticipated cash flows. The REMIC Regulations appear to treat the issue price of the residual interest as zero rather than the negative amount for purposes of determining the REMIC Pool’s basis in its assets. The preamble to the REMIC Regulations states that the Internal Revenue Service may provide future guidance on the proper tax treatment of payments made by a transferor of the residual interest to induce the transferee to acquire the interest, and Residual Holders are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors in this regard.
Further, to the extent that the initial adjusted basis of a Residual Holder (other than an original holder) in the Residual Security is greater than the corresponding portion of the REMIC Pool’s basis in the mortgage loans, the Residual Holder will not recover a portion of the basis until termination of the REMIC Pool unless future Treasury regulations provide for periodic adjustments to the REMIC income otherwise reportable by the holder. The REMIC Regulations currently in effect do not so provide. See “—Treatment of Certain Items of REMIC Income and Expense—Market Discount” below regarding the basis of mortgage loans to the REMIC Pool and “—Sale or Exchange of a Residual Security” below regarding possible treatment of a loss upon termination of the REMIC Pool as a capital loss.
(3)
Treatment of Certain Items of REMIC Income and Expense
Although it is anticipated that the trustee will compute REMIC income and expense in accordance with the Code and applicable regulations, the authorities regarding the determination of specific items of income and expense are subject to differing interpretations. The depositor makes no representation as to the specific method that will be used for reporting income with respect to the mortgage loans and expenses for the Regular Securities, and different methods could result in different timing or reporting of taxable income or net loss to Residual Holders or differences in capital gain versus ordinary income.
Original Issue Discount and Premium. Generally, the REMIC Pool’s deductions for original issue discount and income from amortization of premium will be determined in the same manner as original issue discount income on Regular Securities as described above under “—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Original Issue Discount” and “—Variable Rate Regular Securities,” without regard to the de minimis rule described therein, and “—Amortizable Premium.”
Market Discount. The REMIC Pool will have market discount income in respect of mortgage loans if, in general, the basis of the REMIC Pool in those mortgage loans is exceeded by their unpaid principal balances. The REMIC Pool’s basis in those mortgage loans is generally the fair market value of the mortgage loans immediately after the transfer of the mortgage loans to the REMIC Pool. The REMIC Regulations provide that the basis is equal to the total of the issue prices of all regular and residual interests in the REMIC Pool. The market discount must be recognized currently as an item of ordinary income as it accrues, rather than being included in income upon the sale of mortgage loans or as principal on the mortgage loans is paid. Market discount income generally should accrue in the manner described above under “—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Market Discount.”
Premium. Generally, if the basis of the REMIC Pool in the mortgage loans exceeds the unpaid principal balances of the mortgage loans, the REMIC Pool will be considered to have acquired those mortgage loans at a premium equal to the amount of that excess. As stated above, the REMIC Pool’s basis in mortgage loans is generally the fair market value of the mortgage loans and is based on the total of the issue prices of the regular and residual interests in the REMIC Pool immediately after the transfer of the mortgage loans to the REMIC Pool. In a manner analogous to the discussion above under “—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Amortizable Premium,” a person that holds a mortgage loan as a capital asset under Code Section 1221 may elect under Code Section 171 to amortize premium on mortgage loans originated after September 27, 1985, under the constant yield method. Amortizable bond premium will be treated as an offset to interest income on the mortgage loans, rather than as a separate deduction item. Because substantially all of the borrowers on the mortgage loans are expected to be individuals, Code Section 171 will not be available for premium on mortgage loans originated on or before September 27, 1985. Premium for those mortgage loans may be deductible in accordance with a reasonable method regularly employed by the holder of those mortgage loans. The allocation of that premium pro rata among principal payments should be considered a reasonable method; however, the Internal Revenue Service may argue that the premium should be allocated in a different manner, such as allocating the premium entirely to the final payment of principal.
(4)
Limitations on Offset or Exemption of REMIC Income
A portion (or all) of the REMIC taxable income includible in determining the federal income tax liability of a Residual Holder will be subject to special treatment. That portion, referred to as the “excess inclusion,” is equal to the excess of REMIC taxable income for the calendar quarter allocable to a Residual Security over the daily accruals for that quarterly period of (1) 120% of the long-term applicable federal rate that would have applied to the Residual Security (if it were a debt instrument) on the Startup Day under Code Section 1274(d), multiplied by (2) the adjusted issue price of the Residual Security at the beginning of the quarterly period. For this purpose, the adjusted issue price of a Residual Security at the beginning of a quarter is the issue price of the Residual Security, plus the amount of those daily accruals of REMIC income described in this paragraph for all prior quarters, decreased by any dist ributions made with respect to the Residual Security before the beginning of that quarterly period.
The portion of a Residual Holder’s REMIC taxable income consisting of the excess inclusions generally may not be offset by other deductions, including net operating loss carryforwards, on the Residual Holder’s return. However, net operating loss carryovers are determined without regard to excess inclusion income. Further, if the Residual Holder is an organization subject to the tax on unrelated business income imposed by Code Section 511, the Residual Holder’s excess inclusions will be treated as unrelated business taxable income of the Residual Holder for purposes of Code Section 511. In addition, REMIC taxable income is subject to 30% withholding tax for persons who are not U.S. Persons (as defined below under “—Tax-Related Restrictions on Transfer of Residual Securities—Foreign Investors”), and the portion thereof attributable to excess inclusions is not eligible for any reduction in the rate of withholding tax (by treaty or otherwise). See “—Taxation of Certain Foreign Investors—Residual Securities” below. Finally, if a real estate investment trust or a regulated investment company owns a Residual Security, a portion (allocated under Treasury regulations yet to be issued) of dividends paid by the real estate investment trust or regulated investment company could not be offset by net operating losses of its shareholders, would constitute unrelated business taxable income for tax-exempt shareholders, and would be ineligible for reduction of withholding to persons who are not U.S. Persons.
Provisions governing the relationship between excess inclusions and the alternative minimum tax provide that (i) alternative minimum taxable income for a Residual Holder is determined without regard to the special rule, discussed above, that taxable income cannot be less than excess inclusions, (ii) a Residual Holder’s alternative minimum taxable income for a taxable year cannot be less than the excess inclusions for the year, and (iii) the amount of any alternative minimum tax net operating loss deduction must be computed without regard to any excess inclusions.
The Internal Revenue Service has authority to promulgate regulations providing that if the aggregate value of the Residual Securities is not considered to be “significant,” then the entire share of REMIC taxable income of a Residual Holder may be treated as excess inclusions subject to the foregoing limitations. This authority has not been exercised to date.
(5)
Tax-Related Restrictions on Transfer of Residual Securities
Disqualified Organizations. If any legal or beneficial interest in a Residual Security is transferred to a Disqualified Organization (as defined below), a tax would be imposed in an amount equal to the product of (1) the present value of the total anticipated excess inclusions for that Residual Security for periods after the transfer and (2) the highest marginal federal income tax rate applicable to corporations. The REMIC Regulations provide that the anticipated excess inclusions are based on actual prepayment experience to the date of the transfer and projected payments based on the Prepayment Assumption. The present value rate equals the applicable federal rate under Code Section 1274(d) as of the date of the transfer for a term ending with the last calendar quarter in which excess inclusions are expected to accrue. That rate is applied to the anticipated excess inclusions from the end of the remaining calen dar quarters in which they arise to the date of the transfer. That tax generally would be imposed on the transferor of the Residual Security, except that where the transfer is through an agent (including a broker, nominee, or other middleman) for a Disqualified Organization, the tax would instead be imposed on the agent. However, a transferor of a Residual Security would in no event be liable for the tax for a transfer if the transferee furnished to the transferor an affidavit stating that the transferee is not a Disqualified Organization and, as of the time of the transfer, the transferor does not have actual knowledge that the affidavit is false. Under the REMIC Regulations, an affidavit will be sufficient if the transferee furnishes (A) a social security number, and states under penalties of perjury that the social security number is that of the transferee, or (B) a statement under penalties of perjury that it is not a disqualified organization.
“Disqualified Organization” means the United States, any state (including the District of Columbia) or political subdivision thereof, any foreign government, any international organization, any agency or instrumentality of any of the foregoing (provided, that the term does not include an instrumentality if all of its activities are subject to tax and, except for the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, a majority of its board of directors in not selected by any governmental entity), any cooperative organization furnishing electric energy or providing telephone service to persons in rural areas as described in Code Section 1381(a)(2)(C), and any organization (other than a farmers’ cooperative described in Code Section 521) that is exempt from taxation under the Code unless the organization is subject to the tax on unrelated business income imposed by Code Section 511.
In addition, if a “Pass-Through Entity” (as defined below) has excess inclusion income for a Residual Security during a taxable year and a Disqualified Organization is the record holder of an equity interest in that entity, then a tax is imposed on the entity equal to the product of (1) the amount of excess inclusions that are allocable to the interest in the Pass-Through Entity during the period that interest is held by the Disqualified Organization, and (2) the highest marginal federal corporate income tax rate. That tax would be deductible from the ordinary gross income of the Pass-Through Entity for the taxable year. The Pass-Through Entity would not be liable for the tax if (1) it has received an affidavit from the record holder stating, under penalties of perjury, that it is not a Disqualified Organization, or providing the holder’s taxpayer identification number and stating, under penalties of perjury, that the social security number is that of the record owner, and (2) during the period that person is the record holder of the Residual Security, the Pass-Through Entity does not have actual knowledge that the affidavit is false.
“Pass-Through Entity” means any regulated investment company, real estate investment trust, common trust fund, partnership, trust or estate and any organization treated as a cooperative under Code Section 1381. Except as may be provided in Treasury regulations, any person holding an interest in a Pass-Through Entity as a nominee for another will, with respect to that interest, be treated as a Pass-Through Entity.
If an “electing large partnership” holds a Residual Security, all interests in the electing large partnership are treated as held by Disqualified Organizations for purposes of the tax imposed upon a Pass-Through Entity by Section 860E(e) of the Code. The exception to this tax, otherwise available to a Pass-Through Entity that is furnished particular affidavits by record holders of interests in the entity and that does not know those affidavits are false, is not available to an electing large partnership.
The pooling and servicing agreement for a series will provide that no legal or beneficial interest in a Residual Security may be transferred or registered unless (1) the proposed transferee furnished to the transferor and the trustee an affidavit providing its taxpayer identification number and stating that the transferee is the beneficial owner of the Residual Security and is not a Disqualified Organization and is not purchasing the Residual Security on behalf of a Disqualified Organization (i.e., as a broker, nominee or middleman) and (2) the transferor provides a statement in writing to the trustee that it has no actual knowledge that the affidavit is false. Moreover, the pooling and servicing agreement will provide that any attempted or purported transfer in violation of these transfer restrictions will be null and void and will vest no rights in any purported transferee. Each Residual Security for a series will bear a legend referring to those restrictions on transfer, and each Residual Holder will be deemed to have agreed, as a condition of ownership of the Residual Security, to any amendments to the related pooling and servicing agreement required under the Code or applicable Treasury regulations to effectuate the foregoing restrictions. Information necessary to compute an applicable excise tax must be furnished to the Internal Revenue Service and to the requesting party within 60 days of the request, and the Seller or the trustee may charge a fee for computing and providing that information.
Noneconomic Residual Interests. The REMIC Regulations disregard transfers of Residual Securities under certain circumstances, in which case the transferor would continue to be treated as the owner of the Residual Securities and thus would continue to be subject to tax on its allocable portion of the net income of the REMIC Pool. Under the REMIC Regulations, a transfer of a “noneconomic residual interest” (as defined below) to a Residual Holder (other than a Residual Holder who is not a U.S. Person as defined below under “—Foreign Investors”) is disregarded to all federal income tax purposes if a significant purpose of the transfer is to impede the assessment or collection of tax. A residual interest in a REMIC (including a residual interest with a positive value at issuance) is a “noneconomic residual interest” unless, at the time of the transfer, (1) the present value of the expected future distributions on the residual interest at least equals the product of the present value of the anticipated excess inclusions and the highest corporate income tax rate in effect for the year in which the transfer occurs, and (2) the transferor reasonably expects that the transferee will receive distributions from the REMIC at or after the time at which taxes accrue on the anticipated excess inclusions in an amount sufficient to satisfy the accrued taxes on each excess inclusion. The anticipated excess inclusions and the present value rate are determined in the same manner as set forth above under “—Disqualified Organizations.” The REMIC Regulations explain that a significant purpose to impede the assessment or collection of tax exists if the transferor, at the time of the transfer, either knew or should have known that the transferee would be unwilling or unable to pay taxes due on its share of the taxable income of the REMIC. A safe harbor is provided if (1) the tra nsferor conducted, at the time of the transfer, a reasonable investigation of the financial condition of the transferee and found that the transferee historically had paid its debts as they came due and found no significant evidence to indicate that the transferee would not continue to pay its debts as they came due in the future, (2) the transferee represents to the transferor that it understands that, as the holder of the non-economic residual interest, the transferee may incur liabilities in excess of any cash flows generated by the interest and that the transferee intends to pay taxes associated with holding the residual interest as they become due, and (3) either the formula test or the asset test (each as described below) is satisfied.
The formula test is satisfied if the present value of the anticipated tax liabilities associated with holding the Residual Security does not exceed the sum of the present values of (1) any consideration given to the transferee to the acquire the Residual Security, (2) the expected future distributions on the Residual Security, and (3) the anticipated tax savings associated with holding the Residual Security as the REMIC generates losses. For purposes of this calculation, the present values generally are calculated using a discount rate equal to the applicable federal rate, and the transferee is assumed to pay tax at the highest corporate rate of tax.
The asset test is satisfied if
1. | at the time of the transfer of the Residual Security, and at the close of each of the transferee’s two fiscal years preceding the year of transfer, the transferee’s gross assets for financial reporting purposes exceed $100 million and its net assets for financial reporting purposes exceed $10 million, |
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2. | the transferee is a taxable domestic C corporation, other than a RIC, REIT, REMIC or a cooperative corporation to which subchapter T of Chapter 1 of subtitle A of the Code applies (an “Eligible Corporation”), that makes a written agreement that any subsequent transfer of the Residual Security will be to another Eligible Corporation in a transaction that satisfies the safe harbor described above, and the transferor does not know, or have reason to know, that the transferee will not honor such agreement, and |
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3. | the facts and circumstances known to the transferor on or before the date of transfer do not reasonably indicate that the taxes associated with the Residual Security will not be paid. |
For purposes of requirement (1), the gross and net assets of a transferee do not include any obligations of a person related to the transferee or any other asset if a principal purpose for holding or acquiring the asset is to permit the transferee to satisfy the asset test. Further, the formula test will not be treated as satisfied in the case of any transfer or assignment of the Residual Security to a foreign branch of an Eligible Corporation or any other arrangement by which the Residual Security is at any time subject to net tax by a foreign country or possession of the United States.
Foreign Investors. The REMIC Regulations provide that the transfer of a Residual Security that has “tax avoidance potential” to a “foreign person” will be disregarded for all federal tax purposes. This rule applies to a transferee who is not a “U.S. Person” (as defined below), unless the transferee’s income is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business within the United States. A Residual Security is deemed to have tax avoidance potential unless, at the time of the transfer, the transferor reasonably expects that (1) the future distributions on the Residual Security will equal at least 30% of the anticipated excess inclusions after the transfer, and (2) such amounts will be distributed at or after the time at which the excess inclusions accrue and before the end of the calendar taxable year following the calendar year of accrual. A safe harbor in the REMIC Re gulations provides that the reasonable expectation requirement will be satisfied if the above test would be met at all assumed prepayment rates for the mortgage loans from 50 percent to 200 percent of the Prepayment Assumption. If the non-U.S. Person transfers the Residual Security back to a U.S. Person, the transfer will be disregarded and the foreign transferor will continue to be treated as the owner unless arrangements are made so that the transfer does not have the effect of allowing the transferor to avoid tax on accrued excess inclusions.
The prospectus supplement relating to the Certificates of a series may provide that a Residual Security may not be purchased by or transferred to any person that is not a U.S. Person or may describe the circumstances and restrictions pursuant to which the transfer may be made. The term “U.S. Person” means a citizen or resident of the United States, a corporation or partnership (or other entity properly treated as a partnership or as a corporation for federal income tax purposes) created or organized in or under the laws of the United States or of any state (including, for this purpose, the District of Columbia), an estate that is subject to U.S. federal income tax regardless of the source of its income, or a trust if a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one or more U.S. Persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust (or, to the extent provided in applicable Treasury regulations, trusts in existence on August 20, 1996, which are eligible to elect and do elect to be treated as U.S. Persons). In addition, a REMIC Residual Interest held by an entity treated as a partnership for federal tax purposes may be treated as held by its equity owners.
(6)
Sale or Exchange of a Residual Security
Upon the sale or exchange of a Residual Security, the Residual Holder will recognize gain or loss equal to the excess, if any, of the amount realized over the adjusted basis (as described above under “—Taxation of Owners of Residual Securities—Basis and Losses”) of the Residual Holder in the Residual Security at the time of the sale or exchange.
Further, as described above under “—Taxation of Owners of Residual Securities—Basis and Losses”, if a Residual Security’s basis is reduced to zero, any cash distributions with respect to that Residual Security in any taxable year in excess of its share of the REMIC’s income for that year would be taxable to the holder as gain on the sale or exchange of its interest in the REMIC. If a Residual Holder has an adjusted basis in its Residual Security when its interest in the REMIC Pool terminates, then it will recognize a loss at that time in an amount equal to the remaining adjusted basis.
Any gain on the sale of a Residual Security will be treated as ordinary income (1) if a Residual Security is held as part of a “conversion transaction” as defined in Code Section 1258(c), up to the amount of interest that would have accrued on the Residual Holder’s net investment in the conversion transaction at 120% of the appropriate applicable federal rate in effect at the time the taxpayer entered into the transaction minus any amount previously treated as ordinary income for any prior disposition of property that was held as a part of that transaction or (2) in the case of a non-corporate taxpayer, to the extent that the taxpayer has made an election under Code Section 163(d)(4) to have net capital gains taxed as investment income at ordinary income rates. In addition, gain or loss recognized from the sale of a Residual Security by some banks or thrift institutions will be treated as ordinary income or loss pursuant to Code Section 582(c).
Except as provided in Treasury regulations yet to be issued, the wash sale rules of Code Section 1091 will apply to dispositions of Residual Securities where the seller of the Residual Security, during the period beginning six months before the sale or disposition of the Residual Security and ending six months after the sale or disposition, acquires (or enters into any other transaction that results in the application of Code Section 1091) any residual interest in any REMIC or any interest in a “taxable mortgage pool” (such as a non-REMIC owner trust) that is economically comparable to a Residual Security.
(7)
Mark to Market Regulations
Treasury regulations provide that a Residual Security acquired on or after January 4, 1995 is not treated as a security and thus may not be marked to market pursuant to Section 475 of the Code.
(8)
Inducement Fees
Regulations have been adopted regarding the federal income tax treatment of “inducement fees” received by transferees of non-economic REMIC residual interests. The regulations (i) provide tax accounting rules for the treatment of such fees as income over an appropriate period and (ii) specify that inducement fees constitute income from sources within the United States. Prospective purchasers of the Residual Certificates are encouraged to consult their tax advisors regarding the effect of these regulations and the tax consequences of receiving any inducement fee.
Taxes That May Be Imposed on the REMIC Pool
(1)
Prohibited Transactions
Income from transactions by the REMIC Pool, called prohibited transactions, will not be part of the calculation of income or loss includible in the federal income tax returns of Residual Holders, but rather will be taxed directly to the REMIC Pool at a 100% rate. Prohibited transactions generally include:
(1)
the disposition of a qualified mortgages other than for:
(a)
substitution for a defective (including a defaulted) obligation within two years of the Startup Day (or repurchase in lieu of substitution of a defective (including a defaulted) obligation at any time) or for any qualified mortgage within three months of the Startup Day;
(b)
foreclosure, default, or imminent default of a qualified mortgage;
(c)
bankruptcy or insolvency of the REMIC Pool; or
(d)
a qualified (complete) liquidation;
(2)
the receipt of income from assets that are not qualified mortgages or investments that the REMIC Pool is permitted to hold;
(3)
the receipt of compensation for services; or
(4)
the receipt of gain from disposition of cash flow investments other than pursuant to a qualified liquidation.
Notwithstanding (1) and (4) above, it is not a prohibited transaction to sell a qualified mortgage or cash flow investment held by a REMIC Pool to prevent a default on Regular Securities as a result of a default on qualified mortgages or to facilitate a clean-up call of a class of REMIC regular interest to save administrative costs when no more than a small percentage of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, is outstanding. The REMIC Regulations indicate that the modification of a mortgage loan generally will not be treated as a disposition for this purpose if it is occasioned by a default or reasonably foreseeable default, an assumption of the mortgage loan, the waiver of a due-on-sale or due-on-encumbrance clause, or the conversion of an interest rate by a borrower pursuant to the terms of a convertible adjustable rate mortgage loan.
(2)
Contributions to the REMIC Pool After the Startup Day
In general, the REMIC Pool will be subject to a tax at a 100% rate on the value of any property contributed to the REMIC Pool after the Startup Day. Exceptions are provided for cash contributions to the REMIC Pool
(1)
during the three months following the Startup Day,
(2)
made to a qualified reserve fund by a Residual Holder,
(3)
in the nature of a guarantee,
(4)
made to facilitate a qualified liquidation or clean-up call, and
(5)
as otherwise permitted in Treasury regulations yet to be issued.
It is not anticipated that there will be any contributions to the REMIC Pool after the Startup Day that do not qualify for an exception from the 100% penalty tax.
(3)
Net Income from Foreclosure Property
The REMIC Pool will be subject of federal income tax at the highest corporate rate on “net income from foreclosure property,” determined by reference to the rules applicable to real estate investment trusts. Generally, property acquired by foreclosure or by deed in lieu of foreclosure would be treated as “foreclosure property” until the close of the third calendar year after the year in which the REMIC Pool acquired that property, unless an extension of up to three additional years is granted. Net income from foreclosure property generally means gain from the sale of a foreclosure property that is inventory property and gross income from foreclosure property other than income that would be qualifying rents and other qualifying income for a real estate investment trust. It is not anticipated that the REMIC Pool will have any taxable net income from foreclosure property.
(4)
Liquidation of the REMIC Pool
If a REMIC Pool adopts a plan of complete liquidation, within the meaning of Code Section 860F(a)(4)(A)(i), which may be accomplished by designating in the REMIC Pool’s final tax return a date on which that adoption is deemed to occur, and sells all of its assets (other than cash) within a 90-day period beginning on that date, the REMIC Pool will not be subject to the prohibited transaction rules on the sale of its assets, provided that the REMIC Pool credits or distributes in liquidation all of the sale proceeds plus its cash (other than amounts retained to meet claims) to holders of Regular Securities and Residual Holders within the 90-day period.
(5)
Administrative Matters
The REMIC Pool will be required to maintain its books on a calendar year basis and to file federal income tax returns for federal income tax purposes in a manner similar to a partnership. The form for the income tax return is Form 1066, U.S. Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit Income Tax Return. The trustee will be required to sign the REMIC Pool’s returns. Treasury regulations provide that, except where there is a single Residual Holder for an entire taxable year, the REMIC Pool will be subject to the procedural and administrative rules of the Code applicable to partnerships, including the determination by the Internal Revenue Service of any adjustments to, among other things, items of REMIC income, gain, loss, deduction, or credit in a unified administrative proceeding. The master servicer will be obligated to act as “tax matters person,” as defined in applicable Treasury regulations, for the REMI C Pool as agent of the Residual Holders holding the largest percentage interest in the Residual Securities. If the Code or applicable Treasury regulations do not permit the master servicer to act as tax matters person in its capacity as agent of the Residual Holder, the Residual Holder or any other person specified pursuant to Treasury regulations will be required to act as tax matters person. The tax matters person generally has responsibility for overseeing and providing notice to the other Residual Holders of administrative and judicial proceedings regarding the REMIC Pool’s tax affairs, although other holders of the Residual Securities of the same series would be able to participate in those proceedings in appropriate circumstances.
(6)
Limitations on Deduction of Certain Expenses
An investor who is an individual, estate, or trust will be subject to limitation with respect to some itemized deductions described in Code Section 67, to the extent that those itemized deductions, in total, do not exceed 2% of the investor’s adjusted gross income. In the case of a partnership that has 100 or more partners and elects to be treated as an “electing large partnership,” 70% of that partnership’s miscellaneous itemized deductions will be disallowed, although the remaining deductions will generally be allowed at the partnership level and will not be subject to the 2% floor that would otherwise be applicable to individual partners. In addition, Code Section 68, provides that itemized deductions otherwise allowable for a taxable year of an individual taxpayer will be reduced by the lesser or (1) 3% of the excess of adjusted gross income in excess of a specified threshold amount (which is adjusted annu ally for inflation), or (2) 80% of the amount of itemized deductions otherwise allowable for that year. The reduction under Code Section 68 is itself reduced by one-third for taxable years beginning in 2006 and 2007, two-thirds for taxable years beginning in 2008 and 2009, and fully reduced for taxable years beginning in 2010 with no reduction thereafter. In the case of a REMIC Pool, those deductions may include deductions under Code Section 212 for the Servicing Fee and all administrative and other expenses relating to the REMIC Pool, or any similar expenses allocated to the REMIC Pool for a regular interest it holds in another REMIC. Those investors who hold REMIC Securities either directly or indirectly through pass-through entities may have their pro rata share of those expenses allocated to them as additional gross income, but may be subject to that limitation on deductions. In addition, those expenses are not deductible at all for purposes of computing the alternative minimum ta x, and may cause those investors to be subject to significant additional tax liability. Temporary Treasury regulations provide that the additional gross income and corresponding amount of expenses generally are to be allocated entirely to the holders of Residual Securities in the case of a REMIC Pool that would not qualify as a fixed investment trust in the absence of a REMIC election. For a REMIC Pool that would be classified as an investment trust in the absence of a REMIC election or that is substantially similar to an investment trust, any holder of a Regular Security that is an individual, trust, estate, or pass-through entity also will be allocated its pro rata share of those expenses and a corresponding amount of income and will be subject to the limitations or deductions imposed by Code Sections 67 and 68, as described above. The prospectus supplement will indicate if all those expenses will not be allocable to the Residual Securities.
Taxation of Certain Foreign Investors
(1)
Regular Securities
Interest, including original issue discount, distributable to Regular Securityholders who are non-resident aliens, foreign corporations, or other Non-U.S. Persons (as defined below), generally will be considered “portfolio interest” and, therefore, generally will not be subject to 30% United States withholding tax, provided that (1) the interest is not effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the United States of the securityholder, (2) the Non-U.S. Person is not a “10-percent shareholder” within the meaning of Code Section 871(h)(3)(B) or a controlled foreign corporation described in Code Section 881(c)(3)(C) and (3) that Non-U.S. Person complies to the extent necessary with certain certification requirements, which generally relate to the identity of the beneficial owner and the status of the beneficial owner as a person that is a Non-U.S. person. Each Regular Securityholder is encouraged t o consult its tax advisors regarding the tax documentation and certifications that must be provided to secure the exemption from United States withholding taxes.
Any capital gain realized on the sale, redemption, retirement or other taxable disposition of a Regular Security by a Non-U.S. Person generally will be exempt from United States federal income and withholding tax, provided that (i) such gain is not effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the United States by the Non-U.S. Person and (ii) in the case of an individual Non-U.S. Person, the Non-U.S. Person is not present in the United States for 183 days or more in the taxable year.
If the interest on the Regular Security is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business within the United States by that Non-U.S. Person, the Non-U.S. Person, although exempt from the withholding tax previously discussed if the holder provides an appropriate statement establishing that such income is so effectively connected, will be subject to United States federal income tax at regular rates. Investors who are Non-U.S. Persons are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the specific tax consequences to them of owning a Regular Security. The term “Non-U.S. Person” means any person who is not a U.S. Person.
(2)
Residual Securities
The Conference Committee Report to the 1986 Act indicates that amounts paid to Residual Holders who are Non-U.S. Persons generally should be treated as interest for purposes of the 30% (or lower treaty rate) United States withholding tax. Treasury regulations provide that amount distributed to Residual Holders may qualify as “portfolio interest,” subject to the conditions described in “Regular Securities” above, but only to the extent that (1) the mortgage loans were issued after July 18, 1984, and (2) the issuing entity or segregated pool of assets in the issuing entity (as to which a separate REMIC election will be made), to which the Residual Security relates, consists of obligations issued in “registered form” within the meaning of Code Section 163 (f) (1). Generally, mortgage loans will not be, but regular interests in another REMIC Pool will be, considered obligations issued in registered form. Furthermore, Residual Holders will not be entitled to any exemption from the 30% withholding tax (or lower treaty rate) to the extent of that portion of REMIC taxable income that constitutes an “excess inclusion.” See “—Taxation of Owners of Residual Securities—Limitations on Offset or Exemption of REMIC Income” above. If the amounts paid to Residual Holders who are Non-U.S. Persons are effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business within the United States by those Non-U.S. Persons, although exempt from the withholding tax previously discussed if the holder provides an appropriate statement establishing that such income is so effectively connected, the amounts paid to those Non-U.S. Persons will be subject to United States federal income tax at regular rates. See “—Tax-Related Restrictions on Transfer of Residual Securities—Foreign Investors” above concerning the disregard of transfers having “tax avoidance potential. 148; Investors who are Non-U.S. Persons are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the specific tax consequences to them of owning Residual Securities.
(3)
Backup Withholding
Distributions made on the REMIC Securities, and proceeds from the sale of the REMIC Securities to or through certain brokers, may be subject to a “backup” withholding tax under Code Section 3406 on “reportable payments” (including interest distributions, original issue discount, and, under some circumstances, principal distributions) if the Holder fails to comply with certain identification procedures, unless the Holder is otherwise an exempt recipient under applicable provisions of the Code, and, if necessary, demonstrates such status. Any amounts to be withheld from distribution on the REMIC Securities would be refunded by the Internal Revenue Service or allowed as a credit against the Regular Holder’s federal income tax liability.
Grantor Trust Funds
Characterization. For each series of Grantor Trust Securities, Federal Tax Counsel will deliver its opinion that the Grantor Trust Fund will not be classified as an association taxable as a corporation and that the Grantor Trust Fund will be classified as a grantor trust under subpart E, Part I of subchapter J of chapter 1 of subtitle A of the Code. In this case, beneficial owners of Grantor Trust Securities (referred to in this Prospectus as “Grantor Trust Securityholders”) will be treated for federal income tax purposes as owners of a portion of the Grantor Trust Fund’s assets as described below.
Taxation of Grantor Trust Securityholders. Subject to the discussion below under “Stripped Certificates” and “Subordinated Certificates,” each Grantor Trust Securityholder will be treated as the owner of a pro rata undivided interest in the assets of the Grantor Trust Fund. Accordingly, and subject to the discussion below of the recharacterization of the servicing fee, each Grantor Trust Securityholder must include in income its pro rata share of the interest and other income from the assets of the Grantor Trust Fund, including any interest, original issue discount, market discount, prepayment fees, assumption fees, and late payment charges with respect to the assets, and, subject to limitations discussed below, may deduct its pro rata share of the fees and other deductible expenses paid by the Grantor Trust Fund, at the same time and to the same extent as these items would be included or deducted by th e Grantor Trust Securityholder if the Grantor Trust Securityholder held directly a pro rata interest in the assets of the Grantor Trust Fund and received and paid directly the amounts received and paid by the Grantor Trust Fund. Any amounts received by a Grantor Trust Securityholder in lieu of amounts due with respect to any asset of the Grantor Trust Fund because of a default or delinquency in payment will be treated for federal income tax purposes as having the same character as the payments they replace.
Each Grantor Trust Securityholder will be entitled to deduct its pro rata share of servicing fees, prepayment fees, assumption fees, any loss recognized upon an assumption and late payment charges retained by the servicer, provided that these amounts are reasonable compensation for services rendered to the Grantor Trust Fund. Grantor Trust Securityholders that are individuals, estates or trusts will be entitled to deduct their share of expenses only to the extent these expenses plus all other miscellaneous itemized deductions exceed two percent of the Grantor Trust Securityholder’s adjusted gross income, and will be allowed no deduction for these expenses in determining their liabilities for alternative minimum tax. In addition, Section 68 of the Code, provides that the amount of itemized deductions otherwise allowable for the taxable year for an individual whose adjusted gross income exceeds a prescribed threshold amount wi ll be reduced by the lesser of (1) 3% of the excess of adjusted gross income over the specified threshold amount (adjusted annually for inflation) or (2) 80% of the amount of itemized deductions otherwise allowable for the applicable taxable year. The reduction under Code Section 68 is itself reduced by one-third for taxable years beginning in 2006 and 2007, two-thirds for taxable years beginning in 2008 and 2009, and fully reduced for taxable years beginning in 2010 with no reduction thereafter. In the case of a partnership that has 100 or more partners and elects to be treated as an “electing large partnership,” 70% of the partnership’s miscellaneous itemized deductions will be disallowed, although the remaining deductions will generally be allowed at the partnership level and will not be subject to the 2% floor that would otherwise be applicable to individual partners.
The servicing compensation to be received by the servicer may be questioned by the IRS as exceeding a reasonable fee for the services being performed in exchange for the servicing compensation, and a portion of the servicing compensation could be recharacterized as an ownership interest retained by the servicer or other party in a portion of the interest payments to be made with respect to the Grantor Trust Fund’s assets. In this event, a certificate might be treated as a Stripped Certificate subject to the stripped bond rules of Section 1286 of the Code, and either the original issue discount or the market discount rules. See the discussion below under “—Stripped Certificates”. Except as discussed below under “Stripped Certificates” or “—Subordinated Certificates,” this discussion assumes that the servicing fees paid to the servicer do not exceed reasonable servicing compensatio n.
A purchaser of a Grantor Trust Security will be treated as purchasing an interest in each asset in the Grantor Trust Fund at a price determined by allocating the purchase price paid for the certificate among all asset of the Grantor Trust Fund in proportion to their fair market values at the time of the purchase of the certificate. To the extent that the portion of the purchase price of a Grantor Trust Security allocated to an asset of the Grantor Trust Fund is less than or greater than the stated redemption price at maturity of the asset, the interest in the asset will have been acquired at a discount or premium. See “—Market Discount” and “—Premium,” below.
The treatment of any discount on an asset of the Grantor Trust Fund will depend on whether the discount represents original issue discount or market discount. Except as indicated otherwise in the applicable Prospectus Supplement, it is not expected that any asset of the Grantor Trust Fund (other than a Stripped Agency Security or other instrument evidencing ownership of specific interest and/or principal of a particular bond) will have original issue discount (except as discussed below under “Stripped Certificates” or “Subordinated Certificates”). For the rules governing original issue discount, see “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Original Issue Discount” above.
The information provided to Grantor Trust Securityholders will not include information necessary to compute the amount of discount or premium, if any, at which an interest in each asset of the Grantor Trust Fund is acquired.
Market Discount. A Grantor Trust Securityholder that acquires an undivided interest in the Grantor Trust Fund’s assets may be subject to the market discount rules of Sections 1276 through 1278 to the extent an undivided interest in an asset of the Grantor Trust Fund is considered to have been purchased at a “market discount”. For a discussion of the market discount rules under the Code, see “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Market Discount” above. As discussed above, to the extent an asset of the Grantor Trust Fund is a Stripped Agency Security or other instrument evidencing ownership of specific interest and/or principal of a particular bond, it will be subject to the rules relating to original issue discount (in lieu of the rules relating to market discount). See “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Original Issue Discount” abov e.
Premium. To the extent a Grantor Trust Securityholder is considered to have purchased an undivided interest in an asset of the Grantor Trust Fund for an amount that is greater than the stated redemption price at maturity of the interest, the Grantor Trust Securityholder will be considered to have purchased the interest in the asset with “amortizable bond premium” equal in amount to the excess. For a discussion of the rules applicable to amortizable bond premium, see “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Amortizable Premium” above.
Status of the Grantor Trust Securities. Except for that portion of a Grantor Trust Fund consisting of unsecured home improvement loans and except as qualified below, a Grantor Trust Security owned by a:
“domestic building and loan association” within the meaning of Code Section 7701(a)(19) will be considered to represent “loans . . . secured by an interest in real property” within the meaning of Code Section 7701(a)(19)(C)(v), to the extent assets of the Trust consist of mortgage loans and other assets of the type described in that section of the Code.
real estate investment trust will be considered to represent “real estate assets” within the meaning of Code Section 856(c)(4)(A) to the extent that the assets of the related Grantor Trust Fund consist of qualified assets, and interest income on those assets will be considered “interest on obligations secured by mortgages on real property” to that extent within the meaning of Code Section 856(c)(3)(B).
REMIC will be considered to represent an “obligation (including any participation or certificate of beneficial ownership therein) which is principally secured by an interest in real property” within the meaning of Code Section 860G(a)(3)(A) to the extent that the assets of the related Grantor Trust Fund consist of “qualified mortgages” within the meaning of Code Section 860G(a)(3).
It is not clear whether Grantor Trust Certificates that are Stripped Certificates (as described below under “Stripped Certificates”) should be treated as qualifying under the Code provisions cited in the first two bullet points above to the same extent as Grantor Trust Certificates that are not Stripped Certificate. Grantor Trust Securityholders are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors concerning the characterization of the securityholder’s investment for federal income tax purposes.
Stripped Certificates. Some classes of certificates may be subject to the stripped bond rules of Section 1286 of the Code and for purposes of this discussion will be referred to as “Stripped Certificates.” In general, a Stripped Certificate will be subject to the stripped bond rules where there has been a separation of ownership of the right to receive some or all of the principal payments on a mortgage loan held by the Grantor Trust Fund from ownership of the right to receive some or all of the related interest payments. Generally, where a separation has occurred, under the stripped bond rules of Section 1286 of the Code, the holder of a right to receive a principal or interest payment on the bond is required to accrue into income, on a constant yield basis under rules governing original issue discount (see “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Original Issue Discount”), the differ ence between the holder’s initial purchase price for the right to receive principal or interest, and the principal or interest payment to be received with respect to that right. However, a holder of a Stripped Certificate will account for any discount on the Stripped Certificate (other than an interest treated as a “stripped coupon”) as market discount rather than original issue discount if either (i) the amount of original issue discount with respect to the Stripped Certificate was treated as zero under the original issue discount de minimis rule when the Stripped Certificate was stripped or (ii) no more than 100 basis points (including any amount of servicing in excess of reasonable servicing) is stripped from the mortgage assets.
Certificates will constitute Stripped Certificates and will be subject to these rules under various circumstances, including the following:
if any servicing compensation is deemed to exceed a reasonable amount;
if the company or any other party retains a retained yield with respect to the assets held by the Grantor Trust Fund;
if two or more classes of certificates are issued representing the right to non-pro rata percentages of the interest or principal payments on the Grantor Trust Fund’s assets; or
if certificates are issued which represent the right to interest-only payments or principal-only payments.
The tax treatment of the Stripped Certificates with respect to the application of the original issue discount provisions of the Code is currently unclear. However, the trustee intends to treat each Stripped Certificate as a single debt instrument issued on the day it is purchased for purposes of calculating any original issue discount. Holders may be obligated to perform such calculation based on the day they acquire their Trust Certificates rather than based on when the Grantor Trust Fund acquires the Stripped Certificates. Original issue discount with respect to a Stripped Certificate must be included in ordinary gross income for federal income tax purposes as it accrues in accordance with the constant yield method that takes into account the compounding of interest and this accrual of income may be in advance of the receipt of any cash attributable to that income. See “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Original Issue Discount” above. For purposes of applying the original issue discount provisions of the Code, the issue price of a Stripped Certificate will be the purchase price paid by each holder of the Stripped Certificate and the stated redemption price at maturity may include the aggregate amount of all payments to be made with respect to the Stripped Certificate whether or not denominated as interest. The amount of original issue discount with respect to a Stripped Certificate may be treated as zero under the original issue discount de minimis rules described above.
The precise tax treatment of Stripped Coupon Certificates is substantially uncertain. The Code could read literally to require that OID computations be made for each payment from each mortgage loan. However, based on IRS guidance, it appears that all payments from a mortgage loan underlying a Stripped Coupon Certificate should be treated as a single installment obligation subject to the OID rules of the Code, in which case, all payments from the mortgage loan would be included in the mortgage loan’s stated redemption price at maturity for purposes of calculating income on the Stripped Coupon Certificate under the OID rules of the Code.
Based on current authority it is unclear under what circumstances, if any, the prepayment of mortgage loans will give rise to a loss to the holder of a Stripped Bond Certificate purchased at a premium or a Stripped Coupon Certificate. The Code provides that a prepayment assumption must be used to accrue income on any pool of debt instruments the yield on which can be affected by prepayments. There is no guidance as to whether a Stripped Coupon Certificate or a Stripped Bond Certificate would represent an interest in a pool of debt instruments for purposes of this Code provision. In addition, the manner in which to take prepayments into account is uncertain. It is possible that no loss may be available as a result of any particular prepayment, except perhaps to the extent that even if no further prepayments were received a Certificateholder would be unable to recover its basis. In addition, amounts received in re demption for debt instruments issued by natural persons purchased or issued after June 8, 1997 are treated as received in exchange therefor (that is treated the same as obligations issued by corporations). This change could affect the character of any loss.
Holders of Stripped Bond Certificates and Stripped Coupon Certificates are encouraged to consult with their own tax advisors regarding the proper treatment of these certificates for federal income tax purposes.
Subordinated Certificates. In the event the Grantor Trust Fund issues two classes of Grantor Trust Securities that are identical except that one class is a subordinate class, with a relatively high certificate pass-through rate, and the other is a senior class, with a relatively low certificate pass-through rate (referred to in this Prospectus as the “Subordinate Certificates” and “Senior Certificates”, respectively), the Grantor Trust Securityholders in the aggregate will be deemed to have acquired the following assets: (1) the principal portion of each mortgage loan plus a portion of the interest due on each mortgage loan (the “Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Bond”), and (2) a portion of the interest due on each mortgage loan equal to the difference between the Interest Rate on the Subordinate Certificates and the Interest Rate on the Senior Certificates, if any, which difference is then multiplied by the Subordinate Class Percentage (the “Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Coupon”). The “Subordinate Class Percentage” equals the initial aggregate principal amount of the Subordinate Certificates divided by the sum of the initial aggregate principal amount of the Subordinate Certificates and the Senior Certificates. The “Senior Class Percentage” equals the initial aggregate principal amount of the Senior Certificates divided by the sum of the initial aggregate principal amount of the Subordinate Certificates and the Senior Certificates.
The Senior Certificateholders in the aggregate will own the Senior Class Percentage of the Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Bond and accordingly each Senior Certificateholder will be treated as owning its pro rata share of such asset. The Senior Certificateholders will not own any portion of the Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Coupon. The Subordinate Certificateholders in the aggregate own both the Subordinate Class Percentage of the Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Bond plus 100% of the Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Coupon, if any, and accordingly each Subordinate Certificateholder will be treated as owning its pro rata share in both assets. The Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Bond will be treated as a “stripped bond” and the Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Coupon will be treated as “stripped coupons” within the meaning of Section 1286 of the Code.
Although not entirely clear, the interest income on the Subordinate Certificates and the portion of the servicing fee allocable to such certificates that does not constitute excess servicing will be treated by the Grantor Trust Fund as qualified stated interest, assuming the interest with respect to the mortgage loans held by the Grantor Trust Fund would otherwise qualify as qualified stated interest. Accordingly, except to the extent modified below, the income of the Subordinate Certificates will be reported in the same manner as described generally above for holders of Senior Certificates.
If the Subordinate Certificateholders receive distribution of less than their share of the Grantor Trust Fund’s receipts of principal or interest (the “Shortfall Amount”) because of the subordination of the Subordinate Certificates, holders of Subordinate Certificates would probably be treated for federal income tax purposes as if they had
received as distributions their full share of receipts;
paid over to the Senior Certificateholders an amount equal to the Shortfall Amount; and
retained the right to reimbursement of the relevant amounts to the extent these amounts are otherwise available as a result of collections on the mortgage loans or amounts available from a reserve account or other form of credit enhancement, if any.
Under this analysis,
Subordinate Certificateholders would be required to accrue as current income any interest income, original issue discount, or (to the extent paid on assets of the Grantor Trust Fund) accrued market discount of the Grantor Trust Fund that was a component of the Shortfall Amount, even though that amount was in fact paid to the Senior Certificateholders;
a loss would only be allowed to the Subordinate Certificateholders when their right to receive reimbursement of the Shortfall Amount became worthless (i.e., when it becomes clear that amount will not be available from any source to reimburse the loss); and
reimbursement of the Shortfall Amount prior to a claim of worthlessness would not be taxable income to Subordinate Certificateholders because the amount was previously included in income.
Those results should not significantly affect the inclusion of income for Subordinate Certificateholders on the accrual method of accounting, but could accelerate inclusion of income to Subordinate Certificateholders on the cash method of accounting by, in effect, placing them on the accrual method. Moreover, the character and timing of loss deductions are unclear. Subordinate Certificateholders are strongly encouraged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the appropriate timing, amount and character of any losses sustained with respect to the Subordinate Certificates including any loss resulting from the failure to recover previously accrued interest or discount income.
Election to Treat All Interest as Original Issue Discount. The Treasury Regulations relating to original issue discount permit a Grantor Trust Securityholder to elect to accrue all interest, discount, including de minimis market or original issue discount, reduced by any premium, in income as interest, based on a constant yield method. If an election were to be made with respect to an interest in a mortgage loan with market discount, the Grantor Trust Securityholder would be deemed to have made an election to include in income currently market discount with respect to all other debt instruments having market discount that the Grantor Trust Securityholder acquires during the year of the election or afterward. See “—Market Discount” above. Similarly, a Grantor Trust Securityholder that makes this election for an interest in a mortgage loan that is acquired at a premium will be deemed to have made a n election to amortize bond premium with respect to all debt instruments having amortizable bond premium that the Grantor Trust Securityholder owns at the beginning of the first taxable year to which the election applies or acquires afterward. See “—Premium” above. The election to accrue interest, discount and premium on a constant yield method with respect to a Grantor Trust Security is irrevocable.
Prepayments. The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 (the “1997 Act”) contains a provision requiring original issue discount on any pool of debt instruments the yield on which may be affected by reason of prepayments be calculated taking into account the Prepayment Assumption and requiring the discount to be taken into income on the basis of a constant yield to assumed maturity taking account of actual prepayments.
Sale or Exchange of a Grantor Trust Security. Sale or exchange of a Grantor Trust Security prior to its maturity will result in gain or loss equal to the difference, if any, between the amount realized, exclusive of amounts attributable to accrued and unpaid interest (which will be treated as ordinary income allocable to the related asset of the Grantor Trust Fund), and the owner’s adjusted basis in the Grantor Trust Security. The adjusted basis generally will equal the seller’s cost for the Grantor Trust Security, increased by the original issue discount and any market discount included in the seller’s gross income with respect to the Grantor Trust Security, and reduced, but not below zero, by any premium amortized by the seller and by principal payments on the Grantor Trust Security previously received by the seller. The gain or loss will, except as discussed below, be capital gain or loss to an owne r for which the assets of the Grantor Trust Fund represented by a Grantor Trust Security are “capital assets” within the meaning of Section 1221. A capital gain or loss will be long-term or short-term depending on whether or not the Grantor Trust Security has been owned for the long-term capital gain holding period, currently more than one year.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, any gain realized on the sale or exchange of a Grantor Trust Security will be ordinary income to the extent of the seller’s interest in accrued market discount on Grantor Trust Fund assets not previously taken into income. See “—Market Discount,” above. Further, Grantor Trust Securities will be “evidences of indebtedness” within the meaning of Section 582(c)(1) to the extent the assets of the grantor trust would be so treated. Accordingly, gain or loss recognized from the sale of a Grantor Trust Security by a bank or thrift institution to which such section applied will be treated as ordinary gain or loss to the extent selling the assets of the grantor trust directly would be so treated.
Foreign Investors in Grantor Trust Securities. A holder of a Grantor Trust Security who is not a “U.S. person” (as defined above at “REMICs—Tax Related Restrictions on Transfer of Residual Securities—Foreign Investors”) and is not subject to federal income tax as a result of any direct or indirect connection to the United States other than its ownership of a Grantor Trust Security generally will not be subject to United States income or withholding tax in respect of payments of interest or original issue discount on its Grantor Trust Security to the extent attributable to debt obligations held by the Grantor Trust Fund that were originated after July 18, 1984, provided that the Grantor Trust Securityholder complies to the extent necessary with certain certification requirements which generally relate to the identity of the beneficial owner and the status of the beneficial owner as a person that is n ot a U.S. person. Interest or original issue discount on a Grantor Trust Security attributable to debt obligations held by the Grantor Trust Fund that were originated prior to July 19, 1984 will be subject to a 30% withholding tax (unless such tax is reduced or eliminated by an applicable tax treaty). All holders of Grantor Trust Securities are encouraged to consult their tax advisors regarding the tax documentation and certifications that must be provided to secure any applicable exemptions from United States withholding taxes.
Any capital gain realized on the sale or other taxable disposition of a Grantor Trust Security by a Non-U.S. Person (as defined above at “REMICs—Taxation of Certain Foreign Investors—Regular Securities”) generally will be exempt from United States federal income and withholding tax, provided that (i) such gain is not effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the United States by the Non-U.S. Person and (ii) in the case of an individual Non-U.S. Person, the Non-U.S. Person is not present in the United States for 183 days or more in the taxable year.
If the interest, gain or income with respect to a Grantor Trust Security held by a Non-U.S. Person is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the United States by the Non-U.S. Person (although exempt from the withholding tax previously discussed if the holder provides an appropriate statement establishing that such income is so effectively connected), the holder generally will be subject to United States federal income tax on the interest, gain or income at regular federal income tax rates. In this regard, real estate acquired by a Grantor Trust as a result of foreclosure or in lieu of foreclosure could cause a foreign holder to have “effectively connected income” or a U.S. tax filing obligation even in the absence of such income. In addition, if the Non-U.S. Person is a foreign corporation, it may be subject to a branch profits tax equal to 30% of its “effectively connected earnings and pr ofits,” within the meaning of the Code, for the taxable year, as adjusted for certain items, unless it qualifies for a lower rate under an applicable tax treaty (as modified by the branch profits tax rules).
Backup Withholding. Distributions made on the Grantor Trust Securities and proceeds from the sale of the Grantor Trust Securities will be subject to a “backup” withholding tax if, in general, the Grantor Trust Securityholder fails to comply with particular identification procedures, unless the holder is an exempt recipient under applicable provisions of the Code and, if necessary, demonstrates such status. Any amounts so withheld would be refunded by the IRS or allowable as a credit against the Grantor Trust Securityholder’s federal income tax.
Partnership Trust Funds and Disregarded Entities
Classification of Issuing Entities
For each series of Partnership Certificates or Debt Securities, Federal Tax Counsel will deliver its opinion that the issuing entity will not be a taxable mortgage pool or an association (or publicly traded partnership) taxable as a corporation for federal income tax purposes. This opinion will be based on the assumption that the parties to the related Agreement and related documents will comply with the terms of those documents.
Taxation of Debt Securityholders
The depositor will agree, and the securityholders will agree by their purchase of Debt Securities, to treat the Debt Securities as debt for federal income tax purposes. No regulations, published rulings, or judicial decisions exist that discuss the characterization for federal income tax purposes of securities with terms substantially the same as the Debt Securities. However, for each series of Debt Securities, Federal Tax Counsel will deliver its opinion that the Debt Securities will be classified as indebtedness for federal income tax purposes. The discussion below assumes this characterization of the Debt Securities is correct.
If, contrary to the opinion of counsel, the Internal Revenue Service successfully asserted that the Debt Securities were not debt for federal income tax purposes, the Debt Securities might be treated as equity interests in a Partnership Trust Fund. If so treated, the Partnership Trust Fund might be treated as a publicly traded partnership that would be taxable as a corporation unless it met particular qualifying income tests, and the resulting taxable corporation would not be able to reduce its taxable income by deductions for interest expense on Debt Securities recharacterized as equity. Treatment of the Debt Securities as equity interests in a partnership could have adverse tax consequences to some holders, even if the Partnership Trust Fund were not treated as a publicly traded partnership taxable as a corporation. For example, income allocable to foreign holders might be subject to United States tax and United States ta x return filing and withholding requirements, income allocable to tax-exempt holders might constitute “unrelated business taxable income” (if some, but not all, of the Debt Securities were recharacterized as equity in a partnership), individual holders might be subject to limitations on their ability to deduct their share of the Partnership Trust Fund’s expenses, and income from the Partnership Trust Fund’s assets would be taxable to owners of Debt Securities without regard to whether cash distributions are made to such owners and without regard to the owners’ method of tax accounting.
Except for the treatment of the allocation of Realized Losses, Debt Securities generally will be subject to the same rules of taxation as Regular Securities issued by a REMIC, as described above, except that (1) income reportable on Debt Securities is not required to be reported under the accrual method unless the holder otherwise uses the accrual method and (2) the special 110% yield rule treating a portion of the gain on sale or exchange of a Regular Security as ordinary income is inapplicable to Debt Securities. See “—REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities” and “—Sale or Exchange of Regular Securities.”
Allocations of Realized Losses.
The manner in which losses are claimed on the Notes as a result of defaults by the underlying obligors is complex and differs depending on the characterization of the person considered the issuer of the Notes for federal tax purposes. Whether the Notes are governed by the loss rules for bad debts under Code Section 166 or for worthless securities under Code Section 165 depends on whether the Notes are considered issued by a corporation. If there is a single corporate holder of the Certificates constituting all of the equity interests in the issuing Partnership Trust Fund, then the issuing entity will be a disregarded entity as separate from its equity owner and if such equity owner is a corporation, the Notes will be considered issued by a corporation subject to the loss rules of Code Section 165 (which affects both timing and character of loss for corporate taxpayers, and character and possibly timing for other taxpayers). If the Notes are considered issued by a grantor trust, then the notes may be treated as issued in proportion to the nature of the Certificateholders (e.g., if some Certificateholders are natural persons or partnerships and some are corporations, losses on the Notes would be governed in part by Code Section 166 and in part by Code Section 165). If the Notes are considered issued by a partnership then they would be governed by the rules under Code Section 166 the same as a REMIC. Investors are encouraged to consult their tax advisors as to the character and timing of any loss that can be claimed with respect to a Note.
Further, for federal income tax purposes, (i) Debt Securities held by a thrift institution taxed as a domestic building and loan association will not constitute “loans . . . secured by an interest in real property” within the meaning of Section 7701(a)(19)(C)(v) of the Code; (ii) interest on Debt Securities held by a real estate investment trust will not be treated as “interest on obligations secured by mortgages on real property or on interests in real property “within the meaning of Code Section 856(c)(3)(B); (iii) Debt Securities held by a real estate investment trust will not constitute “real estate assets” or “Government securities” within the meaning of Section 856(c)(4)(A) of the Code; (iv) Debt Securities held by a regulated investment company will not constitute “Government securities” within the meaning of Section 851(b)(3)(A)(i) of the Code; and (v) Debt Securities will not constit ute “qualified mortgages” with in the meaning of Section 860G(a)(3) of the Code for REMICs.
Taxation of Owners of Partnership Certificates
(1)
Treatment as a Partnership Trust Fund
The correct characterization of an issuing entity that has issued debt and is not otherwise taxed as a corporation is uncertain. If the issuing entity has only a single class of equity and the Trustee does not have the authority to accept any additional assets after the initial acquisition of receivables (except within a certain prescribed pre-funding period not exceeding three months) and has very limited powers of investment (for example does not hold any reserve fund that could ultimately flow to the Certificateholders if not needed to pay the Noteholders) the issuing entity could qualify as a grantor trust with an interest expense. As a consequence, each Certificateholder would be treated as owning a pro rata share of the issuing entity’s assets, earning income thereon and incurring the expenses of the issuing entity (including the interest expense on the Notes). See “Grantor Trusts.” If an issuing entity that issues Notes intends to take the position that Certificateholders hold interests in a grantor trust it will be disclosed in the related prospectus supplement. In addition, it is possible that an issuing entity that issued Notes could qualify as a partnership eligible to make an election under Section 761 to not be taxed under the main partnership provisions of the Code (although certain ancillary provisions, including the rules relating to audits of partnerships, would continue to apply). Such an election would cause Certificateholders to be treated as essentially the same as holding an interest in a grantor trust. However, the IRS has recently taken a narrow interpretation of the type of entities that qualify for this election, which may not include an issuing entity. If an issuing entity that is treated as a partnership has made an election under Section 761 to be excluded from the main partnership provisions of the Code this will be disclosed in the related prospectus s upplement along with a description of the consequences of making such an election. If there is only one Certificateholder in an issuing entity that represents all of the equity of the issuing entity for federal income tax purposes, the separate existence of the issuing entity is disregarded, and the Certificateholder is treated as the owner of all of the assets of the issuing entity and as the issuer of the Notes of the issuing entity for federal income tax purposes. For all other Issuing entities that issue Notes, the Partnership Trust Fund will agree, and the related owners of Partnership Certificates (“Partnership Certificate Owners”) will agree by their purchase of Partnership Certificates, if there is more than one Partnership Certificate Owner, to treat the Partnership Trust Fund as a partnership for purposes of federal and state income tax, franchise tax and any other tax measured in whole or in part by income, with the assets of the partnership being the assets held by the Partn ership Trust Fund, the partners of the partnership being the Partnership Certificate Owners, including, to the extent relevant, the depositor in its capacity as recipient of distributions from any reserve fund, and the Debt Securities, if any, being debt of the partnership, and if there is one Partnership Certificate Owner, to treat the Partnership Certificate Owner as the owner of the assets of the Partnership Trust Fund and to treat the Partnership Trust Fund as a disregarded entity. However, the proper characterization of the arrangement involving the Partnership Trust Fund, the Partnership Certificates, the Debt Securities and the depositor is not certain because there is no authority on transactions closely comparable to that contemplated in this prospectus.
A variety of alternative characterizations are possible. For example, because the Partnership Certificates have certain features characteristic of debt, the Partnership Certificates might be considered debt of the Partnership Trust Fund. Generally, provided such Partnership Certificates are issued at or close to face value, any such characterization would not result in materially adverse tax consequences to holders of Partnership Certificates as compared to the consequences from treatment of the Partnership Certificates as equity in a partnership, described below. The following discussion assumes that the Partnership Certificates represent equity interests in a partnership. The following discussion also assumes that all payments on the Partnership Certificates are denominated in U.S. dollars, none of the Partnership Certificates have Interest Rates which would qualify as contingent interest under the Treasury regulations relating to original issue discount, and that a series of securities includes a single class of Partnership Certificates. If these conditions are not satisfied with respect to any given series of Partnership Certificates, additional tax considerations with respect to such Partnership Certificates will be disclosed in the applicable prospectus supplement.
(2)
Partnership Taxation
As a partnership, the Partnership Trust Fund will not be subject to federal income tax. Rather, each Partnership Certificate Owner will be required to take into account separately the Partnership Certificate Owner’s allocable share of income, gains, losses, deductions and credits of the Partnership Trust Fund, whether or not there is a corresponding cash distribution. The Trust will generally be required to use an accrual method of accounting and a tax year based on the tax year of its Certificateholders. Thus, cash basis holders will in effect be required to report income from the Partnership Certificates on the accrual basis and Partnership Certificate Owners may become liable for taxes on Partnership Trust Fund income even if they have not received cash from the Partnership Trust Fund to pay the taxes. The Partnership Trust Fund’s income will consist primarily of interest and finance charges earned on the related mortgage loans, including appropriate adjustments for market discount, original issue discount and bond premium, and any gain upon collection or disposition of the mortgage loans.
The Partnership Trust Fund’s deductions will consist primarily of interest accruing with respect to the Debt Securities, servicing and other fees, and losses or deductions upon collection or disposition of mortgage loans.
The tax items of a partnership are allocable to the partners in accordance with the Code, Treasury regulations and the partnership agreement (i.e., the Agreement and related documents). To the extent that there is more than one class of equity (or potentially more than one class of equity) the related prospectus supplement will describe the manner in which income from the assets of the issuing entity will be allocated.
Assuming Debt Securities are also issued, all or substantially all of the taxable income allocated to a Partnership Certificate Owner that is a pension, profit sharing or employee benefit plan or other tax-exempt entity, including an individual retirement account, will constitute “unrelated business taxable income” generally taxable to the holder under the Code.
An individual taxpayer’s share of expenses of the Partnership Trust Fund, including fees to the servicer, but not interest expense, would be miscellaneous itemized deductions and thus deductible only to the extent such expenses plus all other miscellaneous itemized deductions exceeds two percent of the individual’s adjusted gross income. An individual taxpayer will be allowed no deduction for his share of expenses of the Partnership Trust Fund, other than interest, in determining his liability for alternative minimum tax. In addition, Section 68 of the Code provides that the amount of itemized deductions otherwise allowable for the taxable year for an individual whose adjusted gross income exceeds a prescribed threshold amount will be reduced by the lesser of (1) 3% of the excess of adjusted gross income over the specified threshold amount (adjusted annually for inflation) or (2) 80% of the amount of itemized deductions otherwise allowable for the applicable taxable year. Accordingly, deductions might be disallowed to the individual in whole or in part and might result in the Partnership Certificate Owner being taxed on an amount of income that exceeds the amount of cash actually distributed to the holder over the life of the Partnership Trust Fund. The reduction under Code Section 68 is itself reduced by one-third for taxable years beginning in 2006 and 2007, two-thirds for taxable years beginning in 2008 and 2009, and fully reduced for taxable years beginning in 2010 with no reduction thereafter. In the case of a partnership that has 100 or more partners and elects to be treated as an “electing large partnership,” 70% of that partnership’s miscellaneous itemized deductions will be disallowed, although the remaining deductions will generally be allowed at the partnership level and will not be subject to the 2% floor that would otherwise be applicable to individual partners.
The Partnership Trust Fund intends to make all tax calculations relating to income and allocations to Partnership Certificate Owners on an aggregate basis to the extent relevant. If the IRS were to require that the calculations be made separately for each mortgage loan, the calculations may result in some timing and character differences under some circumstances.
(3)
Discount and Premium
The purchase price paid by the Partnership Trust Fund for the related mortgage loans may be greater or less than the remaining principal balance of the mortgage loans at the time of purchase. If so, the mortgage loans will have been acquired at a premium or market discount, as the case may be. See “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Acquisition Premium” and “— Market Discount” above. As indicated above, the Partnership Trust Fund will make this calculation on an aggregate basis, but it is possible that the IRS might require that it be recomputed on a mortgage loan-by-mortgage loan basis. Further, with respect to any asset of the Partnership Trust Fund that is a Stripped Agency Security or other instrument evidencing ownership of specific interest and/or principal of a particular bond, it will be subject to the rules relating to original issue discount with respect to suc h security or instrument (in lieu of the rules relating to market discount). See “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Regular Securities—Original Issue Discount” above.
If the Partnership Trust Fund acquires the mortgage loans at a market discount or premium, the Partnership Trust Fund will elect to include any market discount in income currently as it accrues over the life of the mortgage loans or to offset any premium against interest income on the mortgage loans. As indicated above, a portion of the market discount income or premium deduction may be allocated to Partnership Certificate Owners.
(4)
Section 708 Termination
Under Section 708 of the Code, the Partnership Trust Fund will be deemed to terminate for federal income tax purposes if 50% or more of the capital and profits interests in the Partnership Trust Fund are sold or exchanged within a 12-month period. If a termination occurs under Section 708 of the Code, the Partnership Trust Fund will be considered to contribute its assets to a new Partnership Trust Fund, which would be treated as a new partnership, in exchange for Partnership Certificates in the new Partnership Trust Fund. The original Partnership Trust Fund will then be deemed to distribute the Partnership Certificates in the new Partnership Trust Fund to each of the owners of Partnership Certificates in the original Partnership Trust Fund in liquidation of the original Partnership Trust Fund. The Partnership Trust Fund will not comply with particular technical requirements that might apply when a constructive termination o ccurs. As a result, the Partnership Trust Fund may be subject to some tax penalties and may incur additional expenses if it is required to comply with those requirements. Furthermore, the Partnership Trust Fund might not be able to comply with these requirements due to lack of data.
(5)
Disposition of Partnership Certificates
Generally, capital gain or loss will be recognized on a sale of Partnership Certificates in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized and the seller’s tax basis in the Partnership Certificates sold. Any gain or loss would be long-term capital gain or loss if the Partnership Certificate Owner’s holding period exceeded one year. A Partnership Certificate Owner’s tax basis in a Partnership Certificate will generally equal its cost, increased by its share of Partnership Trust Fund income allocable to the Partnership Certificate Owner and decreased by any distributions received or losses allocated with respect to the Partnership Certificate. In addition, both the tax basis in the Partnership Certificates and the amount realized on a sale of a Partnership Certificate would include the Partnership Certificate Owner’s share, determined under Treasury Regulations, of the Debt Securities and ot her liabilities of the Partnership Trust Fund. A Partnership Certificate Owner acquiring Partnership Certificates at different prices will generally be required to maintain a single aggregate adjusted tax basis in the Partnership Certificates and, upon a sale or other disposition of some of the Partnership Certificates, allocate a portion of the aggregate tax basis to the Partnership Certificates sold, rather than maintaining a separate tax basis in each Partnership Certificate for purposes of computing gain or loss on a sale of that Partnership Certificate. A portion holding rule is applied, however, if a Certificateholder has held some of its interest in the Partnership Trust Fund for one year or less and some of its interest for more than one year and a “by lot” identification is not permitted.
If a Partnership Certificate Owner is required to recognize an aggregate amount of income (not including income attributable to disallowed itemized deductions described above) over the life of the Partnership Certificates that exceeds the aggregate cash distributions with respect to the Partnership Certificates, the excess will generally give rise to a capital loss upon the retirement of the Partnership Certificates.
(6)
Allocations Between Transferors and Transferees
In general, the Partnership Trust Fund’s taxable income and losses will be determined each Due Period and the tax items for a particular Due Period will be apportioned among the Partnership Certificate Owners in proportion to the principal amount of Partnership Certificates owned by them as of the close of the last day of that Due Period. As a result, a Partnership Certificate Owner purchasing Partnership Certificates may be allocated tax items, which will affect the purchaser’s tax liability and tax basis, attributable to periods before the actual transaction.
The use of a Due Period convention may not be permitted by existing Treasury regulations. If a Due Period convention is not allowed, or only applies to transfers of less than all of the partner’s interest, taxable income or losses of the Partnership Trust Fund might be reallocated among the Partnership Certificate Owners. The Partnership Trust Fund’s method of allocation between transferors and transferees may be revised to conform to a method permitted by future laws, regulations or other IRS guidance.
(7)
Section 731 Distributions
In the case of any distribution to a Partnership Certificate Owner, no gain will be recognized to that Partnership Certificate Owner to the extent that the amount of any money distributed for that Partnership Certificate exceeds the adjusted basis of that Partnership Certificate Owner’s interest in the Partnership Certificate. To the extent that the amount of money distributed exceeds that Partnership Certificate Owner’s adjusted basis, gain will be currently recognized. In the case of any distribution to a Partnership Certificate Owner, no loss will be recognized except upon a distribution in liquidation of a Partnership Certificate Owner’s interest. Any gain or loss recognized by a Partnership Certificate Owner generally will be capital gain or loss.
(8)
Section 754 Election
In the event that a Partnership Certificate Owner sells its Partnership Certificates at a profit (or loss), the purchasing Partnership Certificate Owner will have a higher (or lower) basis in the Partnership Certificates than the selling Partnership Certificate Owner had. The tax basis of the Partnership Trust Fund’s assets will not be adjusted to reflect that higher (or lower) basis unless there is a “substantial basis reduction” within the meaning of Section 734 of the Code or unless the trust were to file an election under Section 754 of the Code. Because the trust will most likely qualify as a “securitization partnership” within the meaning of Section 743(f) of the Code, there will not be a substantial basis reduction with respect to the sale of the certificates. With respect to the election under Section 754 of the Code, in order to avoid the administrative complexities that would be involved in keeping accurate accounting records, as well as potentially onerous information reporting requirements, the Partnership Trust Fund current does not intend to make an election under Section 754 of the Code. As a result, Partnership Certificate Owners might be allocated a greater or lesser amount of Partnership Trust Fund income than would be appropriate based on their own purchase price for Partnership Certificates.
(9)
Administrative Matters
The trustee is required to keep or cause to be kept complete and accurate books of the Partnership Trust Fund. Except as disclosed in the related prospectus supplement, the trustee will file a partnership information return (IRS Form 1065) with the IRS for each taxable year of the Partnership Trust Fund and will report each Partnership Certificate Owner’s allocable share of items of Partnership Trust Fund income and expense to Partnership Certificate Owners and the IRS on Schedule K-1. The Partnership Trust Fund will provide the Schedule K-1 information to nominees that fail to provide the Partnership Trust Fund with the information statement described below and the nominees will be required to forward this information to the beneficial owners of the Partnership Certificates. Generally, holders must timely file tax returns that are consistent with the information return filed by the Partnership Trust Fund or be subject to penalties unless the holder notifies the IRS of all the inconsistencies.
Under Section 6031 of the Code, any person that holds Partnership Certificates as a nominee at any time during a calendar year is required to furnish the Partnership Trust Fund with a statement containing specific information on the nominee, the beneficial owners and the Partnership Certificates so held. The information includes (1) the name, address and taxpayer identification number of the nominee and (2) as to each beneficial owner
the name, address and identification number of such person,
whether such person is a United States person, a tax-exempt entity or a foreign government, an international organization, or any wholly owned agency or instrumentality of either of the foregoing, and
particular information on Partnership Certificates that were held, bought or sold on behalf of the person throughout the year.
In addition, brokers and financial institutions that hold Partnership Certificates through a nominee are required to furnish directly to the Partnership Trust Fund information as to themselves and their ownership of Partnership Certificates. A clearing agency registered under Section 17A of the Exchange Act is not required to furnish any information statement to the Partnership Trust Fund. The information referred to above for any calendar year must be furnished to the Partnership Trust Fund on or before the following January 31. Nominees, brokers and financial institutions that fail to provide the Partnership Trust Fund with the information described above may be subject to penalties.
Unless another designation is made, the depositor will be designated as the tax matters partner for each Partnership Trust Fund in the pooling and servicing agreement and, as the tax matters partner, will be responsible for representing the Partnership Certificate Owners in some specific disputes with the IRS. The Code provides for administrative examination of a partnership as if the partnership were a separate and distinct taxpayer. Generally, the statute of limitations for partnership items does not expire before the later of three years after the date on which the partnership information return is filed or the last day for filing the return for the applicable year, determined without regard to extensions. Any adverse determination following an audit of the return of the Partnership Trust Fund by the appropriate taxing authorities could result in an adjustment of the returns of the Partnership Certificate Owners, and, un der some circumstances, a Partnership Certificate Owner may be precluded from separately litigating a proposed adjustment to the items of the Partnership Trust Fund. An adjustment could also result in an audit of a Partnership Certificate Owner’s returns and adjustments of items not related to the income and losses of the Partnership Trust Fund.
A special audit system exists for qualifying large partnerships that have elected to apply a simplified flow-through reporting system under Sections 771 through 777 of the Code. Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, a Partnership Trust Fund will not elect to apply the simplified flow-through reporting system.
(10)
Taxation of Certain Foreign Partnership Certificate Owners
As used below, the term “Non-United States Owner” means a Partnership Certificate Owner that is not a U.S. Person, as defined under “REMICs—Taxation of Owners of Residual Securities—Tax Related Restrictions on Transfer of Residual Securities—Foreign Investors,” above.
It is not clear whether the Partnership Trust Fund would be considered to be engaged in a trade or business in the United States for purposes of federal withholding taxes with respect to Non-United States Owners because there is no clear authority dealing with that issue under facts substantially similar to those described in this Prospectus. Although it is not expected that the Partnership Trust Fund would be engaged in a trade or business in the United States for these purposes, the Partnership Trust Fund will withhold as if it were so engaged in order to protect the Partnership Trust Fund from possible adverse consequences of a failure to withhold. The Partnership Trust Fund expects to withhold on the portion of its taxable income that is allocable to Non-United States Owners pursuant to Section 1446 of the Code, as if the income were effectively connected to a U.S. trade or business, at a rate of 35% for Non-United States Own ers that are taxable as corporations and 35% for all other Non-United States Owners.
Subsequent adoption of Treasury regulations or the issuance of other administrative pronouncements may require the Partnership Trust Fund to change its withholding procedures.
Each Non-United States Owner might be required to file a U.S. individual or corporate income tax return on its share of the income of the Partnership Trust Fund including, in the case of a corporation, a return in respect of the branch profits tax. Assuming the Partnership Trust Fund is not engaged in a U.S. trade or business, a Non-United States Owner would be entitled to a refund with respect to all or a portion of taxes withheld by the Partnership Trust Fund if, in particular, the Owner’s allocable share of interest from the Partnership Trust Fund constituted “portfolio interest” under the Code.
The interest, however, may not constitute “portfolio interest” if, among other reasons, the underlying obligation is not in registered form or if the interest is determined without regard to the income of the Partnership Trust Fund, in the later case, the interest being properly characterized as a guaranteed payment under Section 707(c) of the Code. If this were the case, Non-United States Owners would be subject to a United States federal income and withholding tax at a rate of 30 percent on the Partnership Trust Fund’s gross income, without any deductions or other allowances for costs and expenses incurred in producing the income, unless reduced or eliminated pursuant to an applicable treaty. In this case, a Non-United States Owner would only be entitled to a refund for that portion of the taxes, if any, in excess of the taxes that should have been withheld with respect to the interest.
(11)
Backup Withholding
Distributions made on the Partnership Certificates and proceeds from the sale of the Partnership Certificates will be subject to a “backup” withholding tax if, in general, the Partnership Certificate Owner fails to comply with particular identification procedures, unless the holder is an exempt recipient under applicable provisions of the Code and, if necessary, demonstrates such status. Any amounts so withheld would be refunded by the IRS or allowable as a credit against the Non-United States Owner’s federal income tax.
(12)
Reportable Transactions
Pursuant to recently enacted legislation, a penalty in the amount of $10,000 in the case of a natural person and $50,000 in any other case in imposed on any taxpayer that fails to timely file an information return with the IRS with respect to a “reportable transaction” (as defined in Section 6011 of the Code). The rules defining “reportable transactions” are complex, and include, but are not limited to, transactions that result in certain losses that exceed threshold amounts. Prospective investors are advised to consult their own tax advisers regarding any possible disclosure obligations in light of their particular circumstances.
Consequences for Particular Investors
The federal tax discussions above may not be applicable depending on a securityholder’s particular tax situation. The depositor recommends that prospective purchasers consult their tax advisors for the tax consequences to them of the purchase, ownership and disposition of REMIC Securities, Grantor Trust Securities, Partnership Certificates and Debt Securities, including the tax consequences under state, local, foreign and other tax laws and the possible effects of changes in federal or other tax laws.
Penalty Avoidance
The summary of tax considerations contained herein was written to support the promotion and marketing of the securities, and was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, by a taxpayer for the purpose of avoiding United States federal income tax penalties that may be imposed. Each taxpayer is encouraged to seek advice based on the taxpayer's particular circumstances from an independent tax advisor.
State and Other Tax Considerations
In addition to the federal income tax consequences described in “Material Federal Income Tax Considerations,” potential investors should consider the state and local tax consequences of the acquisition, ownership, and disposition of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, offered under this prospectus. State and local law may differ substantially from the corresponding federal tax law, and the discussion above does not purport to describe any aspect of the tax laws of any state or other jurisdiction. Therefore, prospective investors are encouraged to consult their own tax advisors with respect to the various state and other tax consequences of investments in the Notes and Certificates, as applicable, offered under this prospectus and the prospectus supplement. In particular, individuals should consider the deductability of the expenses (including interest expense) of a part nership.
ERISA Considerations
General
A fiduciary of a pension, profit-sharing, retirement or other employee benefit plan subject to Title I of ERISA should consider the fiduciary standards under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) in the context of the plan’s particular circumstances before authorizing an investment of a portion of such plan’s assets in the Securities. Accordingly, pursuant to Section 404 of ERISA, such fiduciary should consider among other factors (i) whether the investment is for the exclusive benefit of plan participants and their beneficiaries; (ii) whether the investment satisfies the applicable diversification requirements; (iii) whether the investment is in accordance with the documents and instruments governing the plan; and (iv) whether the investment is prudent, considering the nature of the investment. Fiduciaries of plans also should consid er ERISA’s prohibition on improper delegation of control over, or responsibility for, plan assets.
In addition, employee benefit plans or other retirement arrangements subject to ERISA, as well as individual retirement accounts, certain types of Keogh plans not subject to ERISA but subject to Section 4975 of the Code, or any entity (including insurance company separate or general accounts) whose underlying assets include plan assets by reason of such plans, arrangements or accounts investing in the entity (each, a “Plan”) are prohibited from engaging in a broad range of transactions involving Plan assets and persons having certain specified relationships to a Plan (“parties in interest” and “disqualified persons”). Such transactions are treated as “prohibited transactions” under Sections 406 of ERISA and excise taxes and/or other penalties are imposed upon such persons under ERISA and/or Section 4975 of the Code unless an exemption applies. The de positor, underwriter, each master servicer or other servicer, any insurer, the trustee, the indenture trustee and certain of their affiliates might be considered “parties in interest” or “disqualified persons” with respect to a Plan. If so, the acquisition, holding or disposition of Securities by or on behalf of such Plan could be considered to give rise to a “prohibited transaction” within the meaning of ERISA and the Code unless a statutory, regulatory or administrative exception or exemption is available.
ERISA Considerations Relating to Certificates
Plan Assets
In 29 C.F.R §2510.3-101 (the “Plan Asset Regulations”), the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has defined what constitutes “plan assets” for purposes of ERISA and Section 4975 of the Code. The Plan Asset Regulations provide that if a Plan makes an investment in an “equity interest” in an entity, an undivided portion of the assets of the entity will be considered the assets of such Plan unless certain exceptions set forth in such Regulations apply. The Certificates will be deemed an equity interest for purposes of the Plan Asset Regulations, and the depositor can give no assurance that the Certificates will qualify for any of the exceptions under the Plan Asset Regulations. As a result, (i) a Plan may be deemed to have acquired an interest in the Assets of the issuing entity and not merely an interest in the Certificates, (ii) the fiduciary investment standards of ERISA could apply to such Assets and (iii) transactions occurring in the course of managing, operating and servicing the issuing entity and its Assets might constitute prohibited transactions, unless a statutory, regulatory or administrative exemption applies.
Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 83-1
The DOL has issued an administrative exemption, Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 83-1 (“PTCE 83-1”), which under certain conditions exempts from the application of the prohibited transaction rules of ERISA and the excise tax provisions of Section 4975 of the Code transactions involving a Plan in connection with the operation of a “mortgage pool” and the purchase, sale and holding of Certificates which are “mortgage pool pass-through certificates.” A “mortgage pool” is defined as a fixed investment pool consisting solely of interest-bearing obligations secured by first or second mortgages or deeds of trust on single-family residential property, property acquired in foreclosure and undistributed cash. A “mortgage pool pass-through certificate” is defined as a Certificate which represents a beneficial undivided interest in a mortgage poo l which entitles the holder to pass through payments of principal and interest from the mortgage loans. PTCE 83-1 requires that: (i) the depositor and the trustee maintain a system of insurance or other protection for the mortgage loans, the property securing such mortgage loans and for indemnifying holders of Certificates against reductions in pass-through payments due to defaults in loan payments or property damage in an amount at least equal to the greater of (x) 1% of the aggregate principal balance of the mortgage loans or (y) 1% of the principal balance of the largest covered pooled mortgage loans; (ii) the trustee may not be an affiliate of the depositor; and (iii) the payments made to, and retained by, the depositor in connection with the issuing entity, together with all funds inuring to its benefit for administering the issuing entity, represent no more than “adequate consideration” for selling the mortgage loans, plus reasonable compensation for services provided to the issui ng entity. In addition, PTCE 83-1 exempts the initial sale of Certificates to a Plan with respect to which the depositor, the insurer, the master servicer or other servicer or the trustee is a party in interest if the Plan does not pay more than fair market value for such Certificates and the rights and interests evidenced by such Certificates are not subordinated to the rights and interests evidenced by other Certificates of the same pool.
PTCE 83-1 also exempts from the prohibited transaction rules any transactions in connection with the servicing and operation of the mortgage pool, provided that any payments made to the master servicer in connection with the servicing of the issuing entity are made in accordance with a binding agreement, copies of which must be made available to prospective Plan investors. In the case of any Plan with respect to which the depositor, the master servicer, the insurer or the trustee is a fiduciary, PTCE 83-1 will only apply if, in addition to the other requirements: (i) the initial sale, exchange or transfer of Certificates is expressly approved by an independent fiduciary who has authority to manage and control those Plan assets being invested in Certificates; (ii) the Plan pays no more for the Certificates than would be paid in an arm’s-length transaction; (iii) no investment management, adv isory or underwriting fee, sales commission or similar compensation is paid to the depositor with regard to the sale, exchange or transfer of Certificates to the Plan; (iv) the total value of the Certificates purchased by such Plan does not exceed 25% of the amount issued and (v) at least 50% of the aggregate amount of Certificates is acquired by persons independent of the depositor, the trustee, the master servicer and the insurer. Before purchasing Certificates, a fiduciary of a Plan should confirm that the issuing entity is a “mortgage pool,” that the Certificates constitute “mortgage pool pass-through certificates” and that the conditions set forth in PTCE 83-1 would be satisfied. In addition to making its own determination as to the availability of the exemptive relief provided in PTCE 83-1, the Plan fiduciary should consider the availability of any other prohibited transaction exemptions. The Plan fiduciary should also consider its general fiduciary obligations unde r ERISA in determining whether to purchase any Certificates on behalf of a Plan pursuant to PTCE 83-1.
Underwriter Exemption
The DOL has granted to Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. an individual exemption, Prohibited Transaction Exemption 94-84, and to Deutsche Morgan Grenfell/C.J. Lawrence Inc., similar approval (FAN 97-03E), which were both amended by Prohibited Transaction Exemption 97-34 (“PTE 97-34”), Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2000-58 (“PTE 2000-58”) and Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2002-41 (“PTE 2002-41”) (collectively, the “Exemption”) which is applicable to Certificates which meet its requirements whenever the underwriter or its affiliate is the sole underwriter, manager or co-manager of an underwriting syndicate or is the selling or placement agent. The Exemption generally exempts certain transactions from the application of certain of the prohibited transaction provisions of ERISA and the Code provided that the conditions set forth in the Exemption are sat isfied. These transactions include the servicing, managing and operation of investment trusts holding fixed (generally non-revolving pools) of enumerated categories of assets which include: single-family residential mortgage loans, guaranteed governmental mortgage pool certificates and previously issued securities eligible under the Exemption and the purchase, sale and holding of Certificates which represent beneficial ownership interests in the assets of such trusts.
General Conditions of Exemption
The Exemption sets forth general conditions which must be satisfied for a transaction involving the purchase, sale and holding of the Certificates to be eligible for exemptive relief thereunder. First, the acquisition of Certificates by Plans must be on terms that are at least as favorable to the Plan as they would be in an arm’s-length transaction with an unrelated party. Second, the Assets held by the issuing entity must be fully secured (other than one-to-four family residential mortgage loans or receivables backing certain types of Certificates, as described below). (Mortgage loans, loans, obligations and receivables will be collectively referred to herein as “loans.”). Third, unless the Certificates are backed by fully-secured loans, they may not be subordinated. Fourth, the Certificates at the time of acquisition by the Plan must generally be rated in one of the four highest generic rating categories by Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., Moody’s Investors Services, Inc. or Fitch, Inc. (each, a “Rating Agency”). Fifth, the trustee and the indenture trustee generally cannot be affiliates of any member of the “Restricted Group” other than any underwriter as defined in the Exemption. The “Restricted Group” consists of any (i) underwriter as defined in the Exemption, (ii) the depositor, (iii) the master servicer, (iv) each servicer, (v) the insurer, (vi) the counterparty of any “interest rate swap” (as described below) held as an Asset of the issuing entity and (vii) any obligor with respect to loans constituting more than 5% of the aggregate unamortized principal balance of the loans held in the issuing entity as of the date of initial issuance of the Certificates. Sixth, the sum of all payments made to, and retained by, such underwriters m ust represent not more than reasonable compensation for underwriting the Certificates; the sum of all payments made to, and retained by, the depositor pursuant to the assignment of the loans to the related issuing entity must represent not more than the fair market value of such loans; and the sum of all payments made to, and retained by, the master servicer and any servicer must represent not more than reasonable compensation for such person’s services under the Agreement and reimbursement of such person’s reasonable expenses in connection therewith. Seventh, (i) the investment pool must consist only of assets of the type enumerated in the Exemption and which have been included in other investment pools; (ii) Certificates evidencing interests in such other investment pools must have been rated in one of the four highest generic rating categories by one of the Rating Agencies for at least one year prior to a Plan’s acquisition of Certificates; and (iii) Certificates evidencing interests in such other investment pools must have been purchased by investors other than Plans for at least one year prior to a Plan’s acquisition of Certificates. Finally, the investing Plan must be an accredited investor as defined in Rule 501(a)(1) of Regulation D of the Commission under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. If Securities are being sold under the Exemptions, the depositor assumes that only Plans which are accredited investors under the federal securities laws will be permitted to purchase the Certificates.
Residential (one- to-four family), may be less than fully secured, provided that the rights and interests evidenced by Certificates are: (a) not subordinated to the rights and interests evidenced by Securities of the same issuing entity; (b) such Certificates acquired by the Plan have received a rating from a Rating Agency at the time of such acquisition that is in one of the two highest generic rating categories; and (c) any loan included in the corpus or Assets of the issuing entity is secured by collateral whose fair market value on the closing date of the Designated Transactions is at least equal to 80% of the sum of: (i) the outstanding principal balance due under the loan which is held by the issuing entity and (ii) the outstanding principal balance(s) of any other loan(s) of higher priority (whether or not held by the issuing entity) which are secured by the same collateral.
Types of Issuing Entities
The Exemption permits the issuer to be an owner-trust, a REMIC or a grantor trust. Owner-trusts are subject to certain restrictions in their governing documents to ensure that their Assets may not be reached by the creditors of the depositor in the event of bankruptcy or other insolvency and must provide certain legal opinions.
Coverage for Certificates Not Exemption Eligible
In the event that Certificates do not meet the requirements of the Exemption solely because they are Subordinate Certificates or fail to meet a minimum rating requirement under the Exemption, certain Plans may be eligible to purchase Certificates pursuant to Section III of Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 95-60 (“PTCE 95-60”) which permits insurance company general accounts as defined in PTCE 95-60 to purchase such Certificates if they otherwise meet all of the other requirements of the Exemption.
Permitted Assets
The Amendment permits an interest-rate swap agreement and a yield supplement agreement to be Assets of an issuing entity which issues Certificates acquired by Plans in an initial offering or in the secondary market. An interest-rate swap (or if purchased by or on behalf of the issuing entity) an interest-rate cap contract (collectively, a “Swap” or “Swap Agreement”) is a permitted issuing entity Asset if it: (a) is an “eligible Swap;” (b) is with an “eligible counterparty;” (c) is purchased by a “qualified plan investor;” (d) meets certain additional specific conditions which depend on whether the Swap is a “ratings dependent Swap” or a “non-ratings dependent Swap” and (e) permits the issuing entity to make termination payments to the Swap counterparty (other than currently scheduled payments) solely from excess spread o r amounts otherwise payable to the servicer or depositor.
An “eligible Swap” is one which: (a) is denominated in U.S. dollars; (b) pursuant to which the issuing entity pays or receives, on or immediately prior to the respective payment or distribution date for the class of Certificates to which the Swap relates, a fixed rate of interest or a floating rate of interest based on a publicly available index (e.g., LIBOR or the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Cost of Funds Index (COFI)), with the issuing entity receiving such payments on at least a quarterly basis and obligated to make separate payments no more frequently than the counterparty, with all simultaneous payments being netted (“Allowable Interest Rate”); (c) has a notional amount that does not exceed either: (i) the principal balance of the class of Certificates to which the Swap relates, or (ii) the portion of the principal balance of such class represented by obliga tions (“Allowable Notional Amount”); (d) is not leveraged (i.e., payments are based on the applicable notional amount, the day count fractions, the fixed or floating rates permitted above, and the difference between the products thereof, calculated on a one-to-one ratio and not on a multiplier of such difference) (“Leveraged”); (e) has a final termination date that is either the earlier of the date on which the issuer terminates or the related class of Certificates are fully repaid and (f) does not incorporate any provision which could cause a unilateral alteration in the interest rate requirements described above or the prohibition against leveraging.
An “eligible counterparty” means a bank or other financial institution which has a rating at the date of issuance of the Certificates, which is in one of the three highest long-term credit rating categories or one of the two highest short-term credit rating categories, utilized by at least one of the Rating Agencies rating the Certificates; provided that, if a counterparty is relying on its short-term rating to establish eligibility hereunder, such counterparty must either have a long-term rating in one of the three highest long-term rating categories or not have a long-term rating from the applicable Rating Agency.
A “qualified plan investor” is a Plan or Plans where the decision to buy such class of Certificates is made on behalf of the Plan by an independent fiduciary qualified to understand the Swap transaction and the effect the Swap would have on the rating of the Certificates and such fiduciary is either (a) a “qualified professional asset manager” (“QPAM”) under Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 84-14 (“PTCE 84-14”) (see below), (b) an “in-house asset manager” under Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 96-23 (“PTCE 96-23”) (see below) or (c) has total assets (both Plan and non-Plan) under management of at least $100 million at the time the Certificates are acquired by the Plan.
In “ratings dependent Swaps” (where the rating of a class of Certificates is dependent on the terms and conditions of the Swap), the Swap Agreement must provide that if the credit rating of the counterparty is withdrawn or reduced by any Rating Agency below a level specified by the Rating Agency, the servicer must, within the period specified under the Pooling and Servicing Agreement: (a) obtain a replacement Swap Agreement with an eligible counterparty which is acceptable to the Rating Agency and the terms of which are substantially the same as the current Swap Agreement (at which time the earlier Swap Agreement must terminate); or (b) cause the Swap counterparty to establish any collateralization or other arrangement satisfactory to the Rating Agency such that the then current rating by the Rating Agency of the particular class of Certificates will not be withdrawn or reduced (and th e terms of the Swap Agreement must specifically obligate the counterparty to perform these duties for any class of Certificates with a term of more than one year). In the event that the servicer fails to meet these obligations, Plan certificateholders must be notified in the immediately following periodic report which is provided to certificateholders but in no event later than the end of the second month beginning after the date of such failure. Sixty days after the receipt of such report, the exemptive relief provided under the Exemption will prospectively cease to be applicable to any class of Certificates held by a Plan which involves such ratings dependent Swap.
“Non-ratings dependent Swaps” (those where the rating of the Certificates does not depend on the terms and conditions of the Swap) are subject to the following conditions. If the credit rating of the counterparty is withdrawn or reduced below the lowest level permitted above, the servicer will, within a specified period after such rating withdrawal or reduction: (a) obtain a replacement Swap Agreement with an eligible counterparty, the terms of which are substantially the same as the current Swap Agreement (at which time the earlier Swap Agreement must terminate); (b) cause the counterparty to post collateral with the issuing entity in an amount equal to all payments owed by the counterparty if the Swap transaction were terminated; or (c) terminate the Swap Agreement in accordance with its terms.
An “eligible yield supplement agreement” is any yield supplement agreement or similar arrangement (or if purchased by or on behalf of the issuing entity) an interest rate cap contract to supplement the interest rates otherwise payable on obligations held by the issuing entity (“EYS Agreement”). If the EYS Agreement has a notional principal amount and/or is written on an International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. (ISDA) form, the EYS Agreement may only be held as an Asset of the issuing entity if it meets the following conditions: (a) it is denominated in U.S. dollars; (b) it pays an Allowable Interest Rate; (c) it is not Leveraged; (d) it does not allow any of these three preceding requirements to be unilaterally altered without the consent of the trustee; (e) it is entered into between the issuing entity and an eligible counterparty and (f) it has an Allowab le Notional Amount.
Pre-Funding Accounts
If Certificates issued in transactions using pre-funding accounts whereby a portion of the loans backing the Certificates are transferred to the issuing entity within a specified period following the closing date (“DOL Pre-Funding Period”) (see below) instead of requiring that all such loans be either identified or transferred on or before the closing date. Exemptive relief is available provided that the following conditions are met. First, the ratio of the amount allocated to the Pre-Funding Account to the total principal amount of the Certificates being offered (“Pre-Funding Limit”) must not exceed twenty-five percent (25%). Second, all loans transferred after the closing date (referred to here as “additional loans”) must meet the same terms and conditions for eligibility as the original loans used to create the issuing entity, which terms and conditio ns have been approved by the Rating Agency. Third, the transfer of such additional loans to the issuing entity during the DOL Pre-Funding Period must not result in the Certificates receiving a lower credit rating from the Rating Agency upon termination of the DOL Pre-Funding Period than the rating that was obtained at the time of the initial issuance of the Certificates by the issuing entity. Fourth, solely as a result of the use of pre-funding, the weighted average annual percentage interest rate (the “average interest rate”) for all of the loans in the issuing entity at the end of the DOL Pre-Funding Period must not be more than 100 basis points lower than the average interest rate for the loans which were transferred to the issuing entity on the closing date. Fifth, either: (i) the characteristics of the additional loans must be monitored by an insurer or other credit support provider which is independent of the depositor; or (ii) an independent accountant retained by the depos itor must provide the depositor with a letter (with copies provided to the Rating Agency, the underwriter and the trustee) stating whether or not the characteristics of the additional loans conform to the characteristics described in the Prospectus, Prospectus Supplement, Private Placement Memorandum (“Offering Documents”) and/or the Agreement. In preparing such letter, the independent accountant must use the same type of procedures as were applicable to the loans which were transferred as of the closing date. Sixth, the DOL Pre-Funding Period must end no later than three months or 90 days after the closing date or earlier, in certain circumstances, if the amount on deposit in the Pre-Funding Account is reduced below the minimum level specified in the Agreement or an event of default occurs under the Agreement. Seventh, amounts transferred to any Pre-Funding Account and/or Capitalized Interest Account used in connection with the pre-funding may be invested only in investments whic h are permitted by the Rating Agency and (i) are direct obligations of, or obligations fully guaranteed as to timely payment of principal and interest by, the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof (provided that such obligations are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States); or (ii) have been rated (or the obligor has been rated) in one of the three highest generic rating categories by the Rating Agency (“Acceptable Investments”). Eighth, certain disclosure requirements must be met.
Revolving Pool Features
The Exemption only covers Certificates backed by “fixed” pools of loans which require that all the loans must be transferred to the issuing entity or identified at closing (or transferred within the DOL Pre-Funding Period, if pre-funding meeting the conditions described above is used). Accordingly, Certificates issued by issuing entities which feature revolving pools of Assets will not be eligible for a purchase by Plans. However, Securities which are Notes backed by revolving pools of Assets may be eligible for purchase by Plans pursuant to certain other prohibited transaction exemptions. See discussion below in “ERISA Considerations Relating to Notes.”
Limitations on Scope of the Exemption
If the general conditions of the Exemption are satisfied, the Exemption may provide an exemption from the restrictions imposed by ERISA and the Code in connection with the initial acquisition, transfer or holding, and the acquisition or disposition in the secondary market, of the Certificates by Plans. However, no exemption is provided from the restrictions of ERISA for the acquisition or holding of a Certificates on behalf of an “Excluded Plan” by any person who is a fiduciary with respect to the assets of such Excluded Plan. For those purposes, an Excluded Plan is a Plan sponsored by any member of the Restricted Group. Exemptive relief may also be provided for the acquisition, holding and disposition of Certificates by Plans if the fiduciary or its affiliate is the obligor with respect to 5% or less of the fair market value of the Loans in the issuing entity provided that : (i) the Plan is not an Excluded Plan, (ii) each Plan’s investment in each class of Certificates does not exceed 25% of the outstanding Certificates in the class, (iii) after the Plan’s acquisition of the Certificates, no more than 25% of the assets over which the fiduciary has investment authority are invested in Certificates of a trust containing assets which are sold or serviced by the same entity and (iv) in the case of initial issuance (but not secondary market transactions), at least 50% of each class of Certificates and at least 50% of the aggregate interests in the issuing entity are acquired by persons independent of the Restricted Group.
ERISA Considerations Relating to Notes
Under the Plan Asset Regulations, the Assets of the issuing entity would be treated as “plan assets” of a Plan for the purposes of ERISA and the Code only if the Plan acquires an “equity interest” in the issuing entity and none of the exceptions contained in the Plan Asset Regulations is applicable. An equity interest is defined under the Plan Asset Regulations as an interest other than an instrument which is treated as indebtedness under applicable local law and which has no substantial equity features. Assuming that the Notes are treated as indebtedness without substantial equity features for purposes of the Plan Asset Regulations, then such Notes will be eligible for purchase by Plans. However, without regard to whether the Notes are treated as an “equity interest” for such purposes, the acquisition or holding of Notes by or on behalf of a Plan could be considered to give rise to a prohibited transaction if the issuing entity or any of its affiliates is or becomes a party in interest or disqualified person with respect to such Plan, or in the event that a Note is purchased in the secondary market and such purchase constitutes a sale or exchange between a Plan and a party in interest or disqualified person with respect to such Plan. There can be no assurance that the issuing entity or any of its affiliates will not be or become a party in interest or a disqualified person with respect to a Plan that acquires Notes.
The Amendment to the Exemption permits issuing entities which are grantor trusts, owner-trusts or REMICs to issue Notes, as well as Certificates, provided a legal opinion is received to the effect that the noteholders have a perfected security interest in the issuing entity’s Assets. The exemptive relief provided under the Exemption for any prohibited transactions which could be caused as a result of the operation, management or servicing of the issuing entity and its Assets would not be necessary with respect to Notes with no substantial equity features which are issued as obligations of the issuing entity. However, with respect to acquisition, holding or transfer of Notes between a Plan and a party in interest, the Exemption would provide prohibited transaction exemptive relief, provided that the same conditions of the Exemption described above relating to Certificates are met with respect to the Notes. The same limitations of such exemptive relief relating to acquisitions of Certificates by fiduciaries with respect to Excluded Plans would also be applicable to the Notes as described herein in “Limitations on Scope of the Exemption.”
In the event that the Exemption is not applicable to the Notes, one or more other prohibited transactions exemptions may be available to Plans purchasing or transferring the Notes depending in part upon the type of Plan fiduciary making the decision to acquire the Notes and the circumstances under which such decision is made. These exemptions include, but are not limited to, Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 90-1 (regarding investments by insurance company pooled separate accounts), Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 91-38 (regarding investments by bank collective investments funds), PTCE 84-14 (regarding transactions effected by “qualified professional asset managers”), PTCE 95-60 (regarding investments by insurance company general accounts) and PTCE 96-23 (regarding transactions effected by “in-house asset managers”) (collectively, the “Investor-Based Exemptio ns”). However, even if the conditions specified in these Investor-Based Exemptions are met, the scope of the relief provided under such Exemptions might or might not cover all acts which might be construed as prohibited transactions.
EACH PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT WILL CONTAIN INFORMATION CONCERNING CONSIDERATIONS RELATING TO ERISA AND THE CODE THAT ARE APPLICABLE TO THE RELATED SECURITIES. BEFORE PURCHASING SECURITIES IN RELIANCE ON PTCE 83-1, THE EXEMPTION, THE INVESTOR-BASED EXEMPTIONS OR ANY OTHER EXEMPTION, A FIDUCIARY OF A PLAN SHOULD ITSELF CONFIRM THAT REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH IN SUCH EXEMPTION WOULD BE SATISFIED.
ANY PLAN INVESTOR WHO PROPOSES TO USE “PLAN ASSETS” OF ANY PLAN TO PURCHASE SECURITIES OF ANY SERIES OR CLASS IS ENCOURAGED TO CONSULT WITH ITS COUNSEL WITH RESPECT TO THE POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES UNDER ERISA AND SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE OF THE ACQUISITION AND OWNERSHIP OF SUCH SECURITIES.
Governmental plans and church plans as defined in ERISA are not subject to ERISA or Code Section 4975, although they may elect to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code and exempt from taxation under Section 501(a) of the Code and would then be subject to the prohibited transaction rules set forth in Section 503 of the Code. In addition, governmental plans may be subject to federal, state and local laws which are to a material extent similar to the provisions of ERISA or a Code Section 4975 (“Similar Law”). A fiduciary of a governmental plan should make its own determination as to the propriety of an investment in Securities under applicable fiduciary or other investment standards and the need for the availability of any exemptive relief under any Similar Law.
Legal Investment
The prospectus supplement will specify which classes of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, if any, will constitute “mortgage related securities” for purposes of the Secondary Mortgage Market Enhancement Act of 1984, as amended (“SMMEA”). Generally, only classes of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, that (1) are rated in one of the two highest rating categories by one or more rating agencies and (2) are part of a series representing interests in, or secured by, an issuing entity consisting of loans secured by first liens on real property and originated by particular types of originators specified in SMMEA, will be “mortgage related securities” for purposes of SMMEA.
Those classes of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, qualifying as “mortgage related securities” will constitute legal investments for persons, trusts, corporations, partnerships, associations, business trusts and business entities (including, but not limited to, state chartered savings banks, commercial banks, savings and loan associations and insurance companies, as well as trustees and state government employee retirement systems) created pursuant to or existing under the laws of the United States or of any state (including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) whose authorized investments are subject to state regulation to the same extent that, under applicable law, obligations issued by or guaranteed as to principal and interest by the United States or any agency or instrumentality of the United States constitute legal investments for those entities. Pursuant t o SMMEA, a number of states enacted legislation, on or before the October 3, 1991 cut-off for those enactments, limiting to varying extents the ability of some entities (in particular, insurance companies) to invest in mortgage related securities secured by liens on residential, or mixed residential and commercial, properties, in most cases by requiring the affected investors to rely solely upon existing state law, and not SMMEA.
SMMEA also amended the legal investment authority of federally-chartered depository institutions as follows: federal savings and loan associations and federal savings banks may invest in, sell or otherwise deal in “mortgage related securities” without limitation as to the percentage of their assets represented thereby, federal credit unions may invest in these securities, and national banks may purchase these securities for their own account without regard to the limitations generally applicable to investment securities set forth in 12 U.S.C. §24 (Seventh), subject in each case to regulations that the applicable federal regulatory authority may prescribe. In this connection, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”) has amended 12 C.F.R. Part 1 to authorize national banks to purchase and sell for their own account, without limitation as to a percentage of t he bank’s capital and surplus (but subject to compliance with general standards concerning “safety and soundness” and retention of credit information in 12 C.F.R. §1.5), some “Type IV securities,” defined in 12 C.F.R. §1.2(l) to include some “residential mortgage related securities.” As so defined, “residential mortgage-related security” means, in relevant part, “mortgage related security” within the meaning of SMMEA. The National Credit Union Administration (“NCUA”) has adopted rules, codified at 12 C.F.R. Part 703, which permit federal credit unions to invest in “mortgage related securities” under some limited circumstances, other than stripped mortgage related securities, residual interests in mortgage related securities, and commercial mortgage related securities, unless the credit union has obtained written approval from the NCUA to participate in the “investment pilot program” described in 12 C.F.R. 67;703.140. Thrift institutions that are subject to the jurisdiction of the Office of Thrift Supervision (the “OTS”) should consider the OTS’ Thrift Bulletin 13a (December 1, 1998), “Management of Interest Rate Risk, Investment Securities, and Derivatives Activities,” before investing in any of the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable.
All depository institutions considering an investment in the Certificates should review the “Supervisory Policy Statement on Investment Securities and End-User Derivatives Activities” (the “1998 Policy Statement”) of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (“FFIEC”), which has been adopted by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the OCC and the OTS, effective May 26, 1998, and by the NCUA, effective October 1, 1998. The 1998 Policy Statement sets forth general guidelines which depository institutions must follow in managing risks (including market, credit, liquidity, operational (transaction), and legal risks) applicable to all securities (including mortgage pass-through securities and mortgage-derivative products) used for investment purposes.
If specified in the prospectus supplement, other classes of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, offered pursuant to this prospectus will not constitute “mortgage related securities” under SMMEA. The appropriate characterization of those classes under various legal investment restrictions, and thus the ability of investors subject to these restrictions to purchase these Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, may be subject to significant interpretive uncertainties.
Institutions whose investment activities are subject to regulation by federal or state authorities should review rules, policies and guidelines adopted from time to time by those authorities before purchasing any Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, as some classes or subclasses may be deemed unsuitable investments, or may otherwise be restricted, under those rules, policies or guidelines (in some instances irrespective of SMMEA).
The foregoing does not take into consideration the applicability of statutes, rules, regulations, orders, guidelines or agreements generally governing investments made by a particular investor, including, but not limited to, “prudent investor” provisions, percentage-of-assets limits provisions that may restrict or prohibit investment in securities that are not “interest bearing” or “income paying,” and with regard to any Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, issued in book-entry form, provisions that may restrict or prohibit investments in securities that are issued in book-entry form.
Except as to the status of some classes of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, as “mortgage related securities,” no representation is made as to the proper characterization of the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, for legal investment, financial institution regulatory, or other purposes, or as to the ability of particular investors to purchase any Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, under applicable legal investment restrictions. The uncertainties described above (and any unfavorable future determinations concerning legal investment or financial institution regulatory characteristics of the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable) may adversely affect the liquidity of the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable.
Accordingly, all investors whose investment activities are subject to legal investment laws and regulations, regulatory capital requirements or review by regulatory authorities are encouraged to consult with their own legal advisors in determining whether and to what extent the Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, of any class constitute legal investments for them or are subject to investment, capital or other restrictions, and, if applicable, whether SMMEA has been overridden in any jurisdiction relevant to that investor.
Methods of Distribution
The Notes or Certificates, as applicable, offered by this prospectus and by the supplements to this prospectus will be offered in series. The distribution of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, may be effected from time to time in one or more transactions, including negotiated transactions, at a fixed public offering price or at varying prices to be determined at the time of sale or at the time of commitment therefor. If specified in the prospectus supplement, the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be distributed in a firm commitment underwriting, subject to the terms and conditions of the underwriting agreement, by Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. (“DBS”) acting as underwriter with other underwriters, if any, named in the underwriting agreement. In that event, the prospectus supplement may also specify that the underwriters will not be obligated to pay for any Not es or Certificates, as applicable, agreed to be purchased by purchasers pursuant to purchase agreements acceptable to the depositor. In connection with the sale of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, underwriters may receive compensation from the depositor or from purchasers of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, in the form of discounts, concessions or commissions. The prospectus supplement will describe any compensation paid by the depositor.
As to any offering of securities, in additions to the method of distribution as described in the prospectus supplement and this base prospectus, the distribution of any class of the offered securities may be effected through one or more resecuritization transactions, in accordance with Rule 190(b).
Alternatively, the prospectus supplement may specify that the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be distributed by DBS acting as agent or in some cases as principal with respect to Notes or Certificates, as applicable, that it has previously purchased or agreed to purchase. If DBS acts as agent in the sale of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, DBS will receive a selling commission for each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, depending on market conditions, expressed as a percentage of the total principal balance of the related mortgage loans as of the Cut-off Date. The exact percentage for each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be disclosed in the prospectus supplement. To the extent that DBS elects to purchase Notes or Certificates, as applicable, as principal, DBS may realize losses or profits based upon the difference between its purchase pr ice and the sales price. The prospectus supplement for any series offered other than through underwriters will contain information regarding the nature of that offering and any agreements to be entered into between the depositor and purchasers of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of that series.
The depositor will indemnify DBS and any underwriters against particular civil liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, or will contribute to payments DBS and any underwriters may be required to make in respect of these civil liabilities.
In the ordinary course of business, DBS and the depositor may engage in various securities and financing transactions, including repurchase agreements to provide interim financing of the depositor’s mortgage loans pending the sale of those mortgage loans or interests in those mortgage loans, including the Notes or Certificates, as applicable. DBS performs management services for the depositor.
The depositor anticipates that the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, will be sold primarily to institutional investors. Purchasers of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, including dealers, may, depending on the facts and circumstances of those purchases, be deemed to be “underwriters” within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933 in connection with reoffers and sales by them of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, Securityholders are encouraged to consult with their legal advisors in this regard before any reoffer or sale of Notes or Certificates, as applicable.
As to each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, only those classes rated in one of the four highest rating categories by any rating agency will be offered by this prospectus. Any lower rated or unrated class may be initially retained by the depositor, and may be sold by the depositor at any time to one or more institutional investors.
Additional Information
The Depositor has filed with the Commission a registration statement on Form S-3 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, with respect to the Notes or Certificates, as applicable (the “Registration Statement”). This prospectus, which forms a part of the Registration Statement, omits some of the information contained in the Registration Statement pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Commission. The Registration Statement and the exhibits to the Registration Statement can be inspected and copied at the public reference facilities maintained by the Commission at 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549, and at Regional Offices in the following locations:
•
Chicago Regional Office, 175 West Jackson Boulevard, Suite 900, Chicago, Illinois 60604; and
•
New York Regional Office, 3 World Financial Center, Room 4300, New York, New York 10281.
Copies of these materials can also be obtained from the Public Reference Section of the Commission, 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549, at prescribed rates.
The Commission also maintains a site on the world wide web at “http://www.sec.gov” at which users can view and download copies of reports, proxy and information statements and other information filed electronically through the Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval (“EDGAR”) system. The Depositor has filed the Registration Statement, including all exhibits to the Registration Statement, through the EDGAR system and therefore these materials should be available by logging onto the Commission’s web site. The Commission maintains computer terminals providing access to the EDGAR system at each of the offices referred to above.
Copies of the most recent Fannie Mae prospectus for Fannie Mae certificates and Fannie Mae’s annual report and quarterly financial statements as well as other financial information are available from the Director of Investor Relations of Fannie Mae, 3900 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20016 (202-752-7115). The Depositor did not participate in the preparation of Fannie Mae’s prospectus or its annual or quarterly reports or other financial information and, accordingly, makes no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of the information in those documents.
Copies of the most recent Offering Circular for Freddie Mac certificates as well as Freddie Mac’s most recent Information Statement and Information Statement supplement and any quarterly report made available by Freddie Mac may be obtained by writing or calling the Investor Inquiry Department of Freddie Mac at 8200 Jones Branch Drive, McLean, Virginia 22102 (outside Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, telephone 800-336-3672; within Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, telephone 703-759-8160). The Depositor did not participate in the preparation of Freddie Mac’s Offering Circular, Information Statement or any supplement to the Information Statement or any quarterly report of the Information Statement and, accordingly, makes no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of the information in those documents.
As to each issuing entity that is no longer required to file reports under the Exchange Act, periodic distribution reports will be posted on the depositor’s website referenced above as soon as practicable. Annual reports of assessment of compliance with the AB Servicing Criteria, attestation reports, and statements of compliance will be provided to registered holders of the related securities upon request free of charge. See “Description of the Agreements – Material Terms of the Pooling and Servicing Agreement and Underlying Servicing Agreements — Evidence as to Compliance” and “Description of the Securities — Reports to Securityholders.”
Incorporation of Certain Documents by Reference
All documents subsequently filed by or on behalf of the issuing entity referred to in the prospectus supplement with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, after the date of this prospectus and prior to the termination of any offering of the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, issued by that issuing entity will be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this prospectus and to be a part of this prospectus from the date of the filing of those documents. Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in this prospectus will be deemed to be modified or superseded for all purposes of this prospectus to the extent that a statement contained in this prospectus (or in the prospectus supplement) or in any other subsequently filed document that also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference modifies or replaces that statement. Any statement so modified or superseded will not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this prospectus. All documents subsequently filed by the depositor pursuant to Sections 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act in respect of any offering prior to the termination of the offering of the offered securities shall also be deemed incorporated by reference into this prospectus and the related prospectus supplement.
The Trustee on behalf of any issuing entity will provide without charge to each person to whom this prospectus is delivered, upon request, a copy of any or all of the documents referred to above that have been or may be incorporated by reference in this prospectus (not including exhibits to the information that is incorporated by reference unless the exhibits are specifically incorporated by reference into the information that this prospectus incorporates). Requests for information should be directed to the corporate trust office of the Trustee specified in the prospectus supplement.
Legal Matters
Certain legal matters, including the federal income tax consequences to securityholders of an investment in the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, of a series, will be passed upon for the depositor by McKee Nelson LLP, New York, NY and Thacher Proffitt & Wood LLP.
Financial Information
A new issuing entity will be formed for each series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable, and no issuing entity will engage in any business activities or have any assets or obligations before the issuance of the related series of Notes or Certificates, as applicable. Accordingly, financial statements for an issuing entity will generally not be included in this prospectus or in the prospectus supplement.
Rating
As a condition to the issuance of any class of Offered Notes or Offered Certificates, as applicable, they must not be rated lower than investment grade; that is, they must be rated in one of the four highest rating categories, by a rating agency.
Ratings on mortgage pass-through certificates and mortgage-backed notes address the likelihood of receipt by securityholders of all distributions on the underlying mortgage loans. These ratings address the structural, legal and issuer-related aspects associated with the Notes or Certificates, as applicable, the nature of the underlying assets and the credit quality of the guarantor, if any. Ratings on mortgage pass-through certificates, mortgage-backed notes and other asset backed securities do not represent any assessment of the likelihood of principal prepayments by borrowers or of the degree by which prepayments might differ from those originally anticipated. As a result, securityholders might suffer a lower than anticipated yield, and, in addition, holders of stripped interest certificates in extreme cases might fail to recoup their initial investments.
A security rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities and may be subject to revision or withdrawal at any time by the assigning rating organization. Each security rating should be evaluated independently of any other security rating.
INDEX OF DEFINED TERMS
1986 Act
1997 Act
90
1998 Policy Statement
118
Accrual Period
136
Accrual Securities
18
Accrued Security Interest
24
Adjustable Rate Assets
27
Agency Securities
3
Agreement
3
ARM Loans
39
Asset Conservation Act
6
Asset Group
77
Asset Seller
25
Available Distribution Amount
3
Balloon Payment Assets
25
Bankruptcy Code
4
Beneficial Owner
74
Bi-weekly Assets
33
Book-Entry Securities
4
Buy Down Assets
25
Buydown Mortgage Loans
3
Buydown Period
21
Capitalized Interest Account
21
Cash Flow Agreement
16
CERCLA
17
Certificates
75
Charter Act
24
Code
12
Collection Account
84
Commission
43
contract borrower
7
contract lender
69
Convertible Assets
69
Cooperative
4
Cooperative Corporation
68
Cooperative Loans
35
Cooperatives
68
Covered Trust
5
CPR
63
Crime Control Act
20
Cut-off Date
80
Definitive Securities
6
Determination Date
25
Distribution Date
25
DTC
18
ERISA
33
Euroclear
127
Euroclear Operator
33
European Depositaries
35
Exchange Act
36
Fannie Mae
34
FDIC
108
FHA
43
Freddie Mac
5
Freddie Mac Act
3
Freddie Mac Certificate Group
13
Garn-St. Germain Act
13
GEM Assets
77
Ginnie Mae
4
GPM Assets
3
Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Bond
4
Grantor Trust Fund Stripped Coupon
117
HELOCs
12
Home Equity Loans
117
Housing Act
5
HUD
11
Increasing Payment Asset
52
Increasing Payment Assets
4
Indirect Participants
3
Insurance Proceeds
34
Interest Rate
26
Interest Reduction Assets
27
land sale contract
4
Land Sale Contracts
69
Level Payment Assets
5
Liquidation Proceeds
3
Lock-out Date
26
Mortgaged Properties
7
Mortgages
5
Nonrecoverable Advance
5
Notes
30
Offered Securities
24
OID Regulations
25
Participants
85
Partnership Certificate Owners
34
PCBs
121
Permitted Investments
75
Pre-Funded Amount
44
Pre-Funding Account
16
Pre-Funding Period
16
Prepayments Premium
16
Purchase Price
7
RCRA
41
Record Date
76
Regular Securities
25
Regular Securityholder
86
Relief Act
89
REMIC Regulations
80
REMIC Securities
85
REO Property
39
Residual Holders
31
Residual Securities
97
Retained Interest
86
RICO
8
Rules
80
Securities
36
Security Balance
24
Senior Securities
27
Servicemen’s Readjustment Act
24
Servicing Standard
16
Shortfall Amount
47
Single Family Property
117
SPA
5
Special servicer
20
Step-up Rate Assets
56
Strip Securities
4
Stripped Agency Securities
14
Subordinate Securities
24
Subsequent Assets
16
Superliens
75
Taxable Mortgage Pools
86
Terms and Conditions
35
Tiered REMICs
89
Title V
79
Title VIII
79
UCC
34
UST
76
VA
5
VA Guaranty Policy
53
Value
6
Warranting Party
42
Yield Considerations
27
Deutsche Alt-A Securities Mortgage Loan Trust
Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates
(Issuable in Series)
DB Structured Products, Inc.
Sponsor
ACE Securities Corp.
Depositor
Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
Master Servicer and Securities Administrator
FREE WRITING PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT
Deutsche Bank Securities Underwriter |
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August 27, 2007