Bear Stearns Prices CRA MBS Deal

Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc., New York, has priced $354 million of securities backed by Community Reinvestment Act residential mortgage loans.Fannie Mae 1998-W5, which is scheduled to close on Aug. 31, is backed by $396 million of CRA loans originated or acquired by Citicorp, Citizens Bank of Rhode Island, or Citizens Bank of Massachusetts. The transaction will carry a Fannie Mae guarantee of timely interest and principal payments. Bear Stearns said it has managed more than $1.89 billion of CRA loan securitizations in the past 10 months. "Bear Stearns is seeking to develop interest and support for loans issued to low- and moderate-income home buyers and is actively pursuing CRA loan portfolios for future securitization, including portfolios as small as $25 million," the company said. Bear Stearns's website address is http://www.bearstearns.com.