Block: "Recent Events" Affecting Sale of Option One.

H&R Block, Kansas City, Mo., said that "recent events in the subprime mortgage industry" are affecting its efforts to sell Option One Mortgage Corp., Irvine, Calif., the nation's seventh largest subprime funder. In a statement issued on March 30, Block said it remains in negotiations to sell OOMC but offered no further details. A spokesman declined to set a timetable on when it would next update the market. The subprime sector is in the midst of a correction brought on by lax underwriting and rising delinquencies. Over the past two months Wall St. firms have greatly reduced their bids for non-prime whole loans while strictly enforcing repurchase agreements. Meanwhile, OOMC is continuing to fund mortgages. The lender, according to Block, currently has $14.5 billion in warehouse lines with nine "major" lenders.