GMAC-RFC Enters MH Finance Market

Residential Funding Corp., Minneapolis, has announced its entry into the manufactured housing finance market with the formation of GMAC Manufactured Housing.The new company will originate, acquire, and service manufactured housing loans in conjunction with selected partners, GMAC-RFC said. Chris Gilson, executive vice president and business leader of GMAC Manufactured Housing, said the new company and its strategic partners are committed to "providing an influx of capital to this underserved housing segment." The strategic partners include Fannie Mae (see item above). Mike Kozlak, president of GMAC-RFC's Residential Capital Group, said manufactured housing consumers "have been forced to cope with inconsistent lending standards, the exit of major lenders from the marketplace, and lax underwriting standards." GMAC Manufactured Housing said it plans eventually to leverage GMAC-RFC's expertise in securitization to issue asset-backed securities backed by pools of manufactured housing loans. The parent company can be found online at http://www.gmacrfc.com.