HomeBanc Selling Retail Assets to Countrywide

Facing a liquidity crisis, HomeBanc Corp., Atlanta, says it will sell certain assets related to its retail mortgage operations, including up to five branch offices, to Countrywide Financial Corp., Calabasas, Calif.Countrywide said it is not paying a cash premium. As part of the agreement, Countrywide is expected to hire a significant number of HomeBanc's loan officers. The transaction should close on Aug. 10. In its statement, HomeBanc said it is not able to borrow on its credit facilities and thus has not funded any loans starting on Aug. 6. It will not fund any future loans nor fund any loans previously originated but not yet funded. Kevin D. Race, HomeBanc's president and chief executive, said "in light of the extraordinary difficulties that HomeBanc continues to face in the mortgage loan origination market, we feel that it is in the best interests of the company to exit this business so that we can focus on preserving the value of our investment portfolio assets and loan servicing operations."