WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 19)—A group of companies and organizations led by the Mortgage Bankers Association of America (MBA) and the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA) has initiated the process of developing standards for commercial mortgage transactions conducted over the Internet.

The Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO) recently provided to its Commercial Working Group a Web-based application that facilitates the interactive development of data standards for the origination of commercial mortgages. This tool is the principal method by which the logical data dictionary and corresponding Extensible Markup Language (XML) tags necessary for online transactions will be established.  MISMO was established by the MBA in January 2000 to address electronic commerce issues for all segments of the mortgage industry, both residential and commercial, and its participants include representatives from all segments of the industry.

The effort to develop standards for the commercial mortgage industry, known as MISMO Commercial, is a joint endeavor led by MBA and CMSA. The working group, including Capital Thinking, CapMark Services, e-Cognita, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, J.P. Morgan, L.J. Melody, Loop Lender, Midland Loan Services, Morgan Stanley, Mortgage Ramp, Prudential, Trepp, and Woodmen of the World, was formed in January 2001 to initiate the standards process. The initial version of the data standard targets the origination process with a data dictionary containing more than 700 data elements, and its release is targeted for this year. Subsequent releases will refine the origination standard.

“Commercial mortgage data standards will accelerate borrower fundings and enhance lender profitability—they drive Web-enablement and process efficiency,” said Joseph Rubin, chairman of the MISMO commercial working group and national director of real estate e-business solutions with Ernst & Young LLP.

The effort to collect, normalize and define commercial mortgage data into an industry standard leverages MISMO’s previous success on the residential side. In March 2000, MISMO released version 1.0 of its dictionary of common data focusing on data elements relevant in the residential mortgage origination and underwriting processes. Version 1.1, which covers secondary pooling and delivery transactions and credit, underwriting, mortgage insurance application, and real estate service request processes, was released in March of this year.  Additional versions are planned for the coming months.

“The commercial effort,” said Daniel Szparaga, a director in MBA's Commercial/Multifamily Business Group, “is reusing the tools and processes established by the residential side of the industry and customizing them to reflect the unique nature of commercial real estate finance. The collaboration between the CMSA and MBA really ensures that the standard reflects the market needs of commercial lenders and originators.”

For more information on how to get involved with the commercial mortgage standards effort, contact Daniel Szparaga at (202) 557-2805. To become a subscriber to the residential standards process, visit the MISMO Web site at www.mismo.org or call (703) 518-4161.

Last month, CMSA and the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) announced that they had formed a joint CMBS Loan Documentation Integrity Task Force to address problems arising from incomplete or defective loan files before it has a significant impact on CMBS. The task force aims to establish uniform guidelines among participants in a CMBS transaction, and provide remedies in the case of a breach of the guidelines. This would streamline the current complicated document trail that is part of the CMBS securitization process.

Joseph Philip Forte, chairman of the task force and partner at Thacher, Proffitt & Wood, discussed how defective loan files could impair the servicers’ ability to preserve and protect the underlying collateral in case of loan defaults. In addition, loan sellers could be required to repurchase mortgage loans in cases where incomplete loan files exist. He noted that the task force would be issuing a report of its recommendations during the first quarter of the year.

"Preserving the integrity of securitized loan documents is crucial to the continued growth of the CMBS market, since investors want to be sure of the quality of all loans they purchase, especially in the event of a real estate market downturn," said Forte.

"By determining the omissions and errors that are ’material and adverse,’ there will be less opportunity for outside interpretation," added Mary Anne Ashmore.

The CMSA conference will also be addressing other issues that are related to investors. Kenneth Rosen, Professor of Business Administration and Chairman of the Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics at the University of California at Berkeley, kicked off the conference this morning with his post-election economic insights.

Also planned at the conference is a panel looking at the CMBS market from a global perspective, specifically discussing what investors should look at in foreign transactions. There will also be a panel on "Lessons Learned," which will look at issues raised by members of the Investor Forum throughout the year, and possible action plans to address those investor issues.

"We are proud of the innovative panels we put together for this year’s conference, which were developed specifically from the feedback we received from attendees at last year’s conference," said Annemarie DiCola, president of CMSA and vice president/general counsel at Trepp, LLC. "Not only did we seek to have timely and informative topics, but we tried to make this conference as interactive as possible, which generates the best ideas."

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NEW YORK, NY, June 8, 2000 — The timely topics of eCommerce and international expansion were discussed today during a press briefing held today at the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association’s (CMSA) Sixth Annual Convention in New York. The theme of the CMSA Sixth Annual Convention, being held Wednesday – Friday, June 7-9 at the New York Marriott Marquis, is "Navigating CMBS into the 21^st Century."

Joseph Rubin, chairman of CMSA’s eCommerce committee and partner-in-charge of E&Y Kenneth Leventhal’s Real Estate Group, provided an overview of how eCommerce will impact the CMBS market. eCommerce is beginning to provide efficiency and connectivity to the industry.

"Not only will eCommerce help lenders increase productivity, but pricing will improve and there will be greater liquidity," predicted Mr. Rubin. "Similarly, eCommerce will ease the commercial mortgage origination process by facilitating the accumulation and transfer of data as well as streamlining the process."

Mr. Rubin said that during an eCommerce workshop on Wednesday, some leading real estate researchers estimated that the value of commercial real estate could rise 10% to 20% over the next few years as owners accelerate leasing, cut costs and develop better relationships with tenants, all aided by technology. He also noted that a number of loans have already been closed by the nascent online mortgage collaborators.

To address this rapidly changing environment, CMSA’s eCommerce committee will seek to:

Provide a forum for discussing opportunities and issues created by eCommerce in CMBS;

Identify opportunities to increase the efficiency of the loan origination, securitization and servicing processes; and

Educate members of eCommerce developments.

The first major project of the eCommerce committee is the creation of data standards for commercial mortgage origination, scheduled for completion by year-end. The goal is to identify data elements that are required for any lender to underwrite a loan and develop a standard format, and to provide XML standards that allow data to be transferred easily over the web.

On the international front, Richard Jones, chairman of CMSA’s international committee and a partner at Dechert Price & Rhoads, discussed the global growth of CMBS. The three regions that CMSA is immediately looking to expand into include Europe, Canada and Japan, with CMSA chapters in these regions set to open by the end of the year. He noted that in Europe the CMBS market is estimated to reach US$15 billion - US$20 billion this year, while the Canadian CMBS market is expected to total US$5 billion in 2000.

"International expansion of CMBS has been a hope for many years, but now we feel the time is right to meet those expectations," said Mr. Jones. "Expanding globally is not a process of exporting U.S. technology – it requires a sharing of best global practices and ideas. The CMBS professionals in these markets have the knowledge and skills, but we’re offering them our perspective based on years of experience."

Headquartered in New York’s financial district, the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA) is an international trade organization dedicated to fostering the continued growth, liquidity and efficiency of the commercial real estate mortgage capital markets. Founded in 1994, CMSA’s membership has expanded to more than 280 member firms, representing most of the nation’s leading CMBS originators, issuers, investors and service providers, including the largest money-center banks, investment banks, insurance companies, money managers, specialty finance companies, loan servicers and rating agencies.

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NEW YORK, October XX, 1999--The Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA), announced today that it would be holding its 5^th Annual Open Convention November 14 -16 in New York. The theme of the conference is "Perspectives on the Maturing CMBS Market: Tranche By Tranche," which will focus on timely issues impacting the origination, issuance, servicing and investment of Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS).

What: CMSA’s* 5^th Annual Open Convention November 14-16, "Perspectives on the CMBS Market: Tranche By Tranche" (* formerly known as the CSSA)

Where: New York Marriott Marquis, New York, NY

When: November 14-16, 1999

Who: Open to all CMBS market participants: issuers, investors, originators, servicers, rating agencies, and service providers.

The convention will feature educational, professional development and networking opportunities for those involved in commercial real estate finance and the capital markets. In addition to Tuesday’s keynote luncheon speaker, Michael Lewis, author of the best-selling book Liar’s Poker, the convention will offer panels with industry experts discussing timely industry topics. There will also be closed forums for investors, originators/issuers and servicers, allowing for an in-depth discussion of issues specifically related to their niche.

For a complete schedule of events and registration information, please contact CMSA at 212-509-1844 or visit their website at ww.cmbs.org.

"The Open Convention in November 1998 was a major market event, and the dialogue among originators, issuers, traders and investors contributed to settling the market. However, we face new challenges this year that we need to address, such as loan production which has seemingly run out of steam as a result of higher interest rates, widening spreads and reduced demand," noted Stacey Berger, president of CMSA. "This year’s CMSA Open Convention will offer current perspectives on today’s CMBS market, making it a "must attend" event for anyone involved with CMBS. "

"As the CMBS market has evolved, so has CMSA, which has enabled us to create a conference that is totally in-tune to the CMBS market and what participants want to discuss," said Dottie Cunningham, chief executive officer of the CMSA. "As a non-for-profit group, our goal is to bring about positive change for the industry as a whole, and this conference brings to light issues that we will tackle in the upcoming year."

Headquartered in New York’s financial district, the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA), formerly the CSSA, is the trade organization for professionals engaged in the securitization of commercial mortgage loans and the investment in commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS). Founded in 1994, CMSA’s membership has expanded to more than 260 member firms, representing most of the nation’s leading CMBS originators, issuers, investors and service providers, including the largest money-center banks, investment banks, insurance companies, money managers, specialty finance companies, loan servicers and rating agencies.

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CSSA Changes Name to Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA),Unveils New Website

New York, September X, 1999--The Commercial Real Estate Secondary Market and Securitization Association (CSSA), an international trade organization for commercial real estate finance, announced today that it has changed its name to the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA).  The name change resulted from a need to simplify the organization's title and more accurately reflect today's market, and does not change the association's mission or membership.

"As the group began to take a more visible role this year, we realized that we needed a new name to help the market better understand what we do," said Dottie Cunningham, CMSA's executive director.  "However, the focus of the group hasn't changed--CMSA remains dedicated to fostering the growth of commercial mortgage securitization.  In fact, it is our diverse membership, representing the full spectrum of commercial mortgage market participants, that makes us so effective.  We proudly count investors as active members of CMSA, whose input and unique perspective is crucial to the formation of an efficient commercial mortgage-backed securities market."

Concurrently, CMSA also unveiled a new website at www.cmbs.org, which features recent CMSA news, including conference information, as well as CMBS industry news and research.

"In today's fast-paced environment, we thought it was crucial to upgrade our website to make it more timely and relevant," said Stacey Berger, president of CMSA.   "We hope to expand the site's capabilities even further in the near future, to create another forum for members to exchange ideas and address industry issues.

CMSA's current officers, whose terms extend until June 2000, include President, Stacey M. Berger of Midland Loan Services; President -Elect Annemarie G. DiCola of Trepp LLC; Vice President, Allan Baum of Credit Suisse First Boston; Secretary, Joan M. Sapinsley of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association; Treasurer, Joseph B. Rubin of E&Y Kenneth Leventhal.

Headquartered in New York's financial district, the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA) is the trade organization for professionals engaged in the securitization of commercial mortgage loans and the investment in commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).  Founded in 1994, CMSA's membership has expanded to more than 260 member firms, representing most of the nation's leading CMBS originators, issuers, investors and service providers, including the largest money-center banks, investment banks, insurance companies, money managers, specialty finance companies, loan servicers and rating agencies.

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NEW YORK, May XX, 2000--The Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA) announced today that Lou Dobbs, former CNN "Moneyline" host, would be the keynote speaker at its Sixth Annual Convention, June 7 - 9 in New York.

Mr. Dobbs, currently chairman and CEO of Space.com, will share his insights on being an Internet pioneer at Thursday’s keynote luncheon. This ties into the theme of this year’s convention, "Navigating CMBS into the 21^st Century," which will explore timely issues impacting the commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) industry, such as eCommerce, new product development, and other origination, secondary trading and investor trends.

What: CMSA Sixth Annual Convention, "Navigating CMBS into the 21st Century"

Where: New York Marriott Marquis, New York, NY

When: Wednesday – Friday, June 7-9, 2000

Who: Open to all CMBS market participants: issuers, investors, originators, servicers, rating agencies, and service providers.

In addition, the convention will feature educational, professional development and networking opportunities for those involved in commercial real estate finance and the capital markets. There will also be closed forums for investors, originators/issuers and servicers, allowing for an in-depth discussion of issues specifically related to their niche. For a complete schedule of events and registration information, please contact CMSA at 212.509.1844 or visit their website at www.cmbs.org.

"The CMSA Annual Convention has become a major market event, opening up dialogue among originators, issuers, traders and investors," noted Stacey Berger, president of CMSA. "We face new challenges this year that we need to address, such as loan production which has seemingly run out of steam as a result of higher interest rates, widening spreads and reduced demand. This year’s convention will help market participants adapt to the new realities of the market, making it a "must attend" event for everyone involved with CMBS."

"As the CMBS market has evolved, so has CMSA, which has enabled us to create a convention that is totally in-tune to the CMBS market and what participants want to discuss," said Dottie Cunningham, chief executive officer of the CMSA. "As a non-profit group, our goal is to bring about positive change for the industry as a whole, and this convention brings to light issues that we will tackle in the upcoming year."

Headquartered in New York’s financial district, the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association (CMSA) is an international trade organization dedicated to fostering the continued growth, liquidity and efficiency of the commercial real estate mortgage capital markets. Founded in 1994, CMSA’s membership has expanded to more than 280 member firms, representing most of the nation’s leading CMBS originators, issuers, investors and service providers, including the largest money-center banks, investment banks, insurance companies, money managers, specialty finance companies, loan servicers and rating agencies.

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THE CSSA COMPLETES EXECUTIVE
DIRECTOR SEARCH

The Commercial Real Estate Secondary Market and Securitization Association (CSSA) has completed its search for the association’s first full-time Executive Director.

Joseph Forte, President of the CSSA, announced that the executive search being conducted by Ferguson Partners, an executive search firm based in New York City, has been completed and is pleased to report that Dorothy R. Cunningham is the Executive Director and CEO effective January 4, 1999. Founded in 1993 to create an orderly and ethical global capital market for commercial real estate investments, the association now has 250 corporate members representing 1,800 individuals.

Dorothy Cunningham is a veteran of the commercial real estate finance industry with 25 years experience. She is the current President of the National Network of Commercial Real Estate Women (NNCREW). Prior to accepting the CSSA position, she was a Managing Director at CIGNA Investment Management in Bloomfield, Connecticut. She is a CPA and a graduate of the University of Baltimore and recently was awarded the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. Her career includes service with The Prudential Insurance Company of America and Equitable Life Assurance Society of the U.S., a savings bank with a mortgage banking subsidiary and a pension real estate advisory firm.

Ronald Roark, the chairman of the search committee, and Joseph Forte stated, "Ms. Cunningham’s broad business experience coupled with her leadership in a non-profit real estate trade association make her an outstanding person to guide the CSSA to the next level of service to the professionals involved in the growing global commercial real estate capital market." Thomas Wratten, the volunteer administrative executive and association co-founder reports, "The CSSA has evolved into the market-driven association that we hoped for when the organization was founded. With the recruitment of Ms. Cunningham and the establishment of our headquarters in the New York area, we will be well positioned to continue to our goal of maintaining a forum for growth and development of the commercial real estate capital markets."

In addition to the hiring of Ms. Cunningham, the association is seeking office space in the New York City area to establish the permanent headquarters of the association.