NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE^[1])–Fitch Ratings affirms the commercial real estate servicer ratings for
Trimont Real Estate Advisors, Inc. (Trimont) as follows:

–Commercial primary servicer at ‘CPS2+’;

–Commercial special servicer at ‘CSS2’.

Trimont was acquired by Varde Partners, a Minneapolis-based investment
management firm, in September 2015. Following the acquisition, the
company has undertaken an integration plan to consolidate the operations
and servicing portfolio of FirstCity Financial Corporation, another
commercial primary and special servicer owned by, Varde Partners, into a
single servicing platform with principle servicing operations in
Atlanta, GA, and a satellite office in Dallas, TX. Following the
acquisition of the company, Trimont’s former owners remain as senior
management advisors and retain a minority ownership interest. Following
the culmination of the acquisition, Trimont hired a new CEO in January
2016 to focus on business development activities and is in the process
of recruiting a COO to focus on operations.

The affirmation of the primary servicer rating reflects Fitch’s
assessment of the company’s primary servicing operations made up of
detailed policies and procedures for loan servicing, technology, and
internal control infrastructure. The affirmation of the special servicer
rating reflects Fitch’s assessment of Trimont’s asset management and
default resolution capabilities supported by policies and procedures,
technology, and internal controls. Additionally, the special servicer
rating reflects the company’s progress on integrating Legacy First City
and Trimont platforms into one company.

Both ratings reflect the tenure and experience of the company’s
management and staff; however, Trimont continues to experience elevated
turnover compared to other Fitch rated servicers, but turnover is
expected to stabilize going forward. Additionally both ratings reflect
Fitch’s financial assessment of the company, its continued commitment to
technology, and increasing diversity among its commercial real estate
clients. Trimont is exclusively a third-party commercial real estate
company. It provides a range of services to real estate lenders and
investors on both debt and equity investments, including primary and
special servicing.

As of year-end 2015, Trimont’s primary servicing portfolio consisted of
1,984 non-CMBS loans totaling $35.6 billion and seven CMBS loans
totaling $276 million. As of the same date, Trimont was named special
servicer for 481 non-CMBS loans totaling $269 million, of which 395
loans were in default totaling $169 million and 34 assets were real
estate owned representing $70 million in unpaid balance.

Additional information is available at ‘www.fitchratings.com^[2]‘.

Related Research:

–‘Fitch: Varde Acquisition of Trimont Not Expected to Impact Ratings’
(September 2015)

Applicable Criteria

Rating Criteria for Structured Finance Servicers (pub. 23 Apr 2015)

https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=864375^[3]

Rating Criteria for U.S. Commercial Mortgage Servicers (pub. 14 Feb 2014)

https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=735382^[4]

Additional Disclosures

Solicitation Status

https://www.fitchratings.com/gws/en/disclosure/solicitation?pr_id=1003156^[5]

Endorsement Policy

https://www.fitchratings.com/jsp/creditdesk/PolicyRegulation.faces?context=2&detail=31^[6]

ALL FITCH CREDIT RATINGS ARE SUBJECT TO CERTAIN LIMITATIONS AND
DISCLAIMERS. PLEASE READ THESE LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS BY FOLLOWING
THIS LINK: HTTP://FITCHRATINGS.COM/UNDERSTANDINGCREDITRATINGS^[7].
IN ADDITION, RATING DEFINITIONS AND THE TERMS OF USE OF SUCH RATINGS ARE
AVAILABLE ON THE AGENCY’S PUBLIC WEBSITE ‘WWW.FITCHRATINGS.COM^[8]‘.
PUBLISHED RATINGS, CRITERIA AND METHODOLOGIES ARE AVAILABLE FROM THIS
SITE AT ALL TIMES. FITCH’S CODE OF CONDUCT, CONFIDENTIALITY, CONFLICTS
OF INTEREST, AFFILIATE FIREWALL, COMPLIANCE AND OTHER RELEVANT POLICIES
AND PROCEDURES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE FROM THE ‘CODE OF CONDUCT’ SECTION OF
THIS SITE. FITCH MAY HAVE PROVIDED ANOTHER PERMISSIBLE SERVICE TO THE
RATED ENTITY OR ITS RELATED THIRD PARTIES. DETAILS OF THIS SERVICE FOR
RATINGS FOR WHICH THE LEAD ANALYST IS BASED IN AN EU-REGISTERED ENTITY
CAN BE FOUND ON THE ENTITY SUMMARY PAGE FOR THIS ISSUER ON THE FITCH
WEBSITE.