First Franklin MBS Classes Downgraded

Two classes of First Franklin Financial Corp. residential mortgage-backed certificates, series 2002-FF1, have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings, and two classes from another deal have been placed on Rating Watch Negative.Class M-2 was downgraded from A to A-minus, and class M-3 was downgraded from BBB to BBB-minus. Class M-4 and class B of series 2003-FF3 were placed on Rating Watch Negative. The downgrades were attributed to a deteriorating relationship between credit enhancement and expected losses. The collateral for the transactions consists of first-lien subprime loans divided into two collateral groups, the first containing loans with principal balances that conform to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidelines and the second containing loans that may or may not conform to the guidelines.