NEW YORK, July 23, 2007—As investors rush to move subprime mortgage loan pools and related assets out of their portfolios, there is additional demand for high-level analytical tools in order to arrive at accurate pricing, according to Robert Fear, Senior Vice President of the Asset Sales Group for Mortgage Industry Advisory Corporation (MIAC), New York. MIAC, a leading provider of analytical software and independent third-party valuations for practically any mortgage-related asset, has played a significant role over the past 12 months in advising the buy-side on large acquisitions of both prime and subprime mortgage companies and assets.

“The market is very active right now and both buyers and sellers are having a more difficult time correctly pricing these assets, especially on the subprime side,” Fear said. “While many sellers are rushing to get these assets out of their portfolios, buyers are taking advantage of what they think is an opportunity to make money when the market eventually turns. Because many of our clients are regulated, having a value that can be substantiated is a vital concern.”

In 2006, MIAC provided Barclays Bank PLC with a valuation for a subprime MSR portfolio in support of its acquisition of HomEq Servicing Corporation.  Also in 2006 and 2007, MIAC provided valuation advisory services to the buy-side to support diligence on several other high-profile acquisitions of subprime originators and servicers.  The company has provided periodic valuations of whole loans, MSRs, Residual Interests, and mortgage derivatives to over 200 clients.

The problem some companies are facing, according to Fear, is that other analytical tools being employed in the market today are either poorly suited for calculating these valuations or not proven to be robust models.

“Some of the models being deployed right now are either outdated or are so new that they are basically untested in a real business environment, so we’re getting a lot of calls,” Fear said.

Fear has been working as an advisor in subprime mortgage asset valuations for over a decade. Part of his job involves incorporating model enhancement requests from clients into MIAC Analytics, the company’s proprietary, fully-integrated system used for pricing and risk management of all types of mortgage related assets, including whole loans, servicing rights, residual assets, and derivative instruments.

MIAC recently released Version 4.1 Service Pack 2 of MIAC Analytics, adding several new and exciting features including improved tools for advanced sensitivity analysis and the calculation of key rate durations. 

Regarding M&A Advisory work, “MIAC’s market intelligence and advanced analytical capabilities provided these buyers with a tremendous understanding of the value of the servicing rights and the related risks,” Fear said. “MIAC Analytics continues to fully support subprime loans and servicing rights, and all of MIAC's subprime clients can be confident that the modeled collateral behavior and cash flows are accurate and completely audited.”

About MIAC Analytics
Founded in 1989, MIAC has been at the forefront of providing the most sophisticated portfolio and risk management solutions to the mortgage industry for all types of mortgage assets. Its clients include Nine of the top Ten Mortgage Servicers and over 200 other clients, including banks, thrifts, credit unions, FHLBs and Wall Street dealers. The company's proprietary software, MIAC Analytics, is used in pricing, hedging and accounting for over $4 trillion dollars in mortgage assets each month.

In October 2006, MIAC was named the leading provider of Secondary and Residual Pricing in the Securitized and Structured Finance markets by The Bond Market Association and The American Securitization Forum.

MIAC is a registered SEC Investment Advisor. Find out more about the company and its offerings at: www.MIACAnalytics.com.