Originations

U-Store-It Trust, a Cleveland-based self-storage real estate investment trust, has reported the resignation of Steven G. Osgood, its president and chief financial officer, to "pursue other opportunities."The resignation will be effective April 20. Tedd D. Towsley, the REIT's vice president and treasurer, has been named interim CFO while the company conducts a search for a replacement.

ECC Capital Corp., a real estate investment trust based in Irvine, Calif., has announced that it will lay off approximately 170 employees nationwide, representing about 17% of its total work force.The mortgage finance REIT said the annual cost savings from the layoffs and other cost-reduction initiatives will total an estimated $32 million to $35 million. The layoff report comes on the heels of an announcement that four senior ECC executives have offered to take significant reductions in compensation to help the company cut costs. The pay reductions include an agreement by co-founders Steven Holder, chairman and co-chief executive officer, and Shabi Asghar, president and co-CEO, to work without salary or bonus for the next 12 months. The REIT can be found online at http://www.encorecredit.com.

Classes M-2 and M-3 of RFC's RFSC series 2003-RP1 securitization have been placed on review for possible downgrade by Moody's Investors Service.The negative rating actions were attributed to weaker-than-expected performance by the underlying pool of mortgage loans and the resulting decline in credit enhancement. The underlying collateral is composed of subprime and re-performing residential mortgage loans. Moody's can be found online at http://www.moodys.com.

Delinquencies on commercial mortgage-backed securities declined to 0.68% in March, according to a Fitch Ratings delinquency index.This represents a 3-basis-point decline in delinquencies over the last period, according to Fitch, and is "consistent with the robust performance of most U.S. commercial real estate markets in 2005." Delinquencies linked to last year's Hurricane Katrina dropped 7% by loan balance and are now at $187.3 million. In addition, real-estate-owned properties linked to Katrina rose to 20.7%, up 2.6% from the level in February. Patty Bach, a Fitch analyst/senior director, said Katrina delinquencies are declining overall but that chronic delinquencies (90-day delinquencies plus REO properties) now total $180.9 million, 6% ($9.8 million) higher than the level recorded last month. In dollar terms, the largest concentrations of foreclosures and delinquencies are located in Texas (23%) and Michigan (13%). Some Texas markets have benefited from the relocation of Katrina refugees, according to the rating agency. Delinquencies on seasoned loans, which have more than one year of seasoning, declined 8 bps in March, Fitch reported. Fitch can be found online at http://www.fitchratings.com.

Class L of Wachovia Bank's commercial mortgage pass-through certificates series 2004-Whale 3 has been downgraded from BBB-minus to BB by Fitch Ratings.Fitch also upgraded two classes in the transaction and affirmed the ratings on two others. The downgrade was attributed to the decreased operating performance of the Adams Mark Hotel in Denver. Fitch can be found on the Web at http://www.fitchratings.com.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc., San Clemente, Calif., has priced a public offering of 2.2 million shares of 8.0% series A cumulative redeemable preferred stock at $25 per share.The real estate investment trust said the shares form a single class with its outstanding shares of 8.0% series A preferred stock. Deutsche Bank was the sole bookrunner for 1.0 million shares of the offering, and certain advisory clients of Security Capital Research & Management Inc. agreed to purchase 1.2 million shares directly from Sunstone, the company reported. The REIT can be found online at http://www.sunstonehotels.com.

Health Care REIT Inc., Toledo, Ohio, has priced a public offering of three million shares of common stock at $36 per share, yielding gross proceeds of $108 million.The joint book-running managers for the offering are Deutsche Bank Securities and UBS Investment Bank. The real estate investment trust said it has granted the underwriters an option to buy up to 450,000 additional shares to cover any overallotments. The company can be found online at http://www.hcreit.com.

Annaly Mortgage Management Inc., New York, has priced a public offering of 34.1 million shares of the company's common stock at $11.75 per share, for estimated gross proceeds of $401 million.The real estate investment trust also announced the pricing of a public offering of 4.0 million shares of 6.00% series B cumulative convertible preferred stock at $25 per share. The estimated net proceeds of $477 million from the two offerings will be used to purchase mortgage-backed securities and for general corporate purposes, the REIT said. The sole book-running manager of both offerings is Merrill Lynch & Co. Annaly can be found online at http://www.annaly.com.

Duke Realty Corp., Indianapolis, and Jeffrey R. Anderson Real Estate, Cincinnati, have entered into joint venture to develop four retail properties valued at about $350 million.Duke, a retail real estate investment trust, said it will provide the financing and construction for the properties, while its joint venture partner will handle the leasing and property management aspects of the venture. Two of the four projects, which are being marketed as "lifestyle centers," have already taken shape and are to be located in Scranton, Pa., and Pembroke Pines, Fla. The Pennsylvania retail property will consist of 327,440 square feet, and the Florida property 399,000 square feet, Duke said.

Clear Choice Financial Inc., Tempe, Ariz., has announced the execution of a letter of intent to acquire Allstate Home Loans Inc., an Irvine, Calif.-based wholesale and retail mortgage provider.The terms of the proposed acquisition were not disclosed. The privately held Allstate offers a variety of mortgage products ranging from subprime and alternative-A through conventional loans and is licensed to operate in 27 states, Clear Choice said. Clear Choice specializes in helping consumers with unsecured debt through a debt resolution business unit. The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.clearchoicecorp.com and http://www.allstatefundsloans.com.

Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., has joined Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, in co-sponsoring a Federal Housing Administration reform bill that the Bush administration wants to pass this year.The FHA reform package represents the Department of Housing and Urban Development's efforts to modernize the FHA program, provide safer and lower-cost loan products for subprime borrowers, and gain back market share for the 70-year-old single-family mortgage insurance program. The FHA reform bill (H.R. 5121) would substantially increase FHA loan limits and eliminate a 3% downpayment calculation so that borrowers could get a zero-down FHA loan or make a downpayment to reduce their insurance premiums under a new risk-based premium structure. The reform package also includes enhancements to the FHA's condominium and reverse-mortgage programs. And it revamps the manufactured housing program so that the FHA can provide co-insurance on individual "home-only" MH loans. Congressman Ney chairs the House Financial Services subcommittee on housing, and Rep. Waters is the ranking Democrat on the panel. Reps. Gary Miller, R-Calif., and Patrick Tiberi, R-Ohio, have also signed up as co-sponsors.

Employment in the mortgage industry hit a new high in February as lenders added 6,500 full-time employees after trimming their payrolls during the previous three months.The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that employment in the mortgage industry jumped from 498,399 in January to 504,000 in February. Freddie Mac deputy chief economist Amy Crews Cutts said originations declined in the first quarter but that refinancings held up better than expected as homeowners got out of their adjustable-rate home equity and home improvement loans. Refi activity also got a boost from resets on hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages. Ms. Cutts noted that one large company fired a lot of workers, but had to hire them back again. "They thought the refi boom was totally dead, but it turned out to be just slower," she said. Anticipation that originations will increase in the spring selling season may also be a factor in hiring decisions. Freddie Mac estimates that originations will jump from $540 billion in the first quarter to $655 billion in the second quarter. In addition, lenders are willing to take on the more complex and labor-intensive loans to borrowers who are going through divorces or face other issues. "In the past, these borrowers would not have gotten a return phone call," the Freddie economist said.

PMI Mortgage Insurance Co., Walnut Creek, Calif., has announced the introduction of a program that offers lower mortgage insurance premiums on loans to borrowers who complete in-depth homeowner counseling sessions.The Home of Your Own program is aimed at promoting "sustainable homeownership" for first-time and low- to moderate-income homebuyers, PMI said. "The Home of Your Own program supports the homebuying process and helps address the affordability issues that prevent many potential buyers from becoming homeowners," said Taia Lockhart, PMI's vice president of expanding markets. "By completing pre- and post-purchase counseling sessions, new homeowners are better prepared to deal with the financial responsibilities involved with homeownership." The company can be found online at http://www.pmigroup.com.

The Mills Corp., a real estate investment trust based in Arlington, Va., has announced a restructuring that involves further layoffs, a new reporting structure, and the naming of Richard J. Nadeau as executive vice president for finance and accounting.The additional layoffs, involving approximately 70 employees, brings the total reduction in force over the past three months to approximately 160, the retail and shopping center REIT said. Under the new structure, units related to leasing development, marketing, and external communications will report directly to Mark S. Ordan, the company's new chief operating officer. Mr. Nadeau is expected to become the company's chief financial officer, and he will "strengthen the company's financial reporting team and assist in the previously disclosed restatement process and the consideration of strategic alternatives," the REIT reported. The company can be found online at http://www.themills.com.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose from 6.35% to 6.43% over the seven-day period ended April 6, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.The average 15-year fixed mortgage rate rose from 6.00% to 6.10%, the average rate for five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages increased from 6.02% to 6.11%, and the average rate for one-year Treasury-indexed ARMs climbed from 5.51% to 5.57%, Freddie Mac reported. Fees and points averaged 0.5 of a point for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, 0.6 of a point for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and hybrid ARMs, and 0.7 of a point for one-year ARMs. "In the first quarter of 2006, it appears that economic growth picked up relative to the last three months of 2005," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "There is concern that the continued high level of energy costs may lead to inflation in other sectors of the economy. And fear of inflation leads to higher mortgage rates, like the ones we see this week." A year ago, the average 30-year and 15-year fixed rates were 5.93% and 5.48%, respectively, and the average one-year ARM rate was 4.23%, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.

Carver Bancorp Inc., a minority-owned thrift holding company based in New York, has agreed to acquire Community Capital Bank, a community bank based in the borough of Brooklyn, in an $11.1 million cash transaction.Once the deal is completed, Carver's commercial real estate and residential lending businesses will be joined with Community Capital's Small Business Association lending operations. Community Capital's president and chief executive Charles F. Kohler will become president of Carver's Community Capital subsidiary, responsible for overseeing all lending operations of the combination, including commercial and residential real estate. Deborah C. Wright, chairman and chief executive of Carver, said Carver "will expand on Community Capital's strong tradition of personal service and commitment to meeting the banking needs of its customers by providing a comprehensive lending platform for consumers, real estate developers and landlords, small businesses, and non-profits throughout our combined branch network." Ms. Wright said adding the small-business lending segment will position Carver to accelerate its growth.

Two classes of Morgan Stanley Capital I Inc. commercial mortgage pass-through certificates, series 1999-LIFE 1, have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings.Class N was downgraded from B-minus to CC, and class O was downgraded from CC to C. Fitch also upgraded three classes and removed them from Rating Watch Positive, upgraded four other classes, and affirmed the ratings on seven classes in the transaction. The downgrade was attributed to an increase in expected losses on a specially serviced loan that was originally secured by three industrial buildings in Warren and Detroit, Mich. One property was sold in the last quarter of 2005, and recent appraisal valuations, combined with accrued advances, indicate that "significant losses are likely upon the disposition of the two remaining assets," the rating agency said.

The ratings of LandAmerica Financial Group and its title insurance subsidiaries have been placed on Rating Watch Negative by Fitch Ratings.The action came in the wake of LandAmerica's recent announcement that it plans to acquire Capital Title Group Inc., and Fitch said it reflects concerns about the company's "ability to profitably execute its acquisition strategy." Cited as concerns by the rating agency are the size of the purchase price relative to reported book value; a significant increase in intangibles (and the company's history of writedowns of intangibles); and the harm the acquisition may do to LandAmerica's "already weakening balance sheet fundamentals." LandAmerica's insurer financial strength, and that of seven title insurance subsidiaries, is rated A by Fitch. The rating agency can be found online at http://www.fitchratings.com.

While the unique selling proposition for the new Trump Mortgage LLC, New York, will be educating the customer before, during, and after the origination process, its main marketing point is its name.A news conference at Trump Tower announcing the firm's official launch was packed not only with business news media, company representatives, and other interested onlookers, but also with cameras and reporters from a few entertainment television shows as well. Donald Trump Jr., son of the celebrity businessman, said Trump Mortgage "is the only company in a $3 trillion industry that anyone has actually heard of." E. J. Ridings, the new company's president and chief executive officer, commented that average borrowers, even well-informed ones, do not understand the intricacies of the mortgage process because no one is educating them. At Trump Mortgage, the mission statement says the company seeks to create "a safe environment" for both residential and commercial lending, he said. Donald Trump Sr. added that he believes in Mr. Ridings' vision of Trump Mortgage as the nation's largest mortgage lender.

Commercial real estate fundamentals are improving, but the "frenzy of interest" shown by investors in recent months is subsiding, according to a quarterly investor survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers.Another finding of the PricewaterhouseCoopers Korpacz Real Estate Investor Survey is that 25 of 31 downtown office markets tracked by Cushman & Wakefield, and 38 of 40 suburban office markets, experienced declines in vacancy rates between the fourth quarter of 2004 and the fourth quarter of 2005. "A growing U.S. economy, steady gains in employment, and limited levels of speculative construction continue to have a positive impact on the real estate industry's underlying fundamentals," said Peter Korpacz, director of the PricewaterhouseCoopers Global Strategic Real Estate Research Practice. ".... [T]he frantic level at which properties have been trading has slowed to a more measured pace." The company can be found on the Web at http://www.pwcglobal.com.