Moody's Eyes 87 Conseco MH Classes

Eighty-seven classes from 13 Conseco Finance Corp. manufactured housing deals have been placed on review for possible downgrade by Moody's Investors Service.Moody's said the ratings review was prompted by high levels of cumulative losses and repossessions. The losses were triggered by various factors, including the company's bankruptcy filing, the suspension of its manufactured housing origination business, the discontinuance of its repossessed refinancing program, the suspension of its default transfer-of-equity program, and poor industry conditions, the rating agency said. "Since the suspension of its lending business, Conseco Finance has experienced lower recovery rates because it has been forced to liquidate repossessed units through wholesale channels rather than retail channels," Moody's said. The sale of Conseco Finance's MH business to CFN Investment Holdings II LLC (now Green Tree Investment Holdings II LLC) was completed in June. As part of the sale, a $150 million repossession financing fund was established by CFN and Fannie Mae, Moody's noted. "Moody's expects this additional funding to help over time, but uncertainty remains as to its impact on the performance of these deals," the rating agency said.