SureDeposit and CreditRetriever announce strategic marketing partnership (Industry Insider--In the Loop Business News).

NAA member SureDeposit and NAA/NSC member CreditRetriever announced a new strategic marketing agreement. Under the agreement, SureDeposit will be offered automatically during CreditRetriever's applicant screening process to prospective apartment residents of any CreditRetriever client who is bonded under the SureDeposit program.

CreditRetriever's online screening process provides data on a prospective residents credit and criminal records, as well as an instantaneous decision to accept or decline the applicant. Integrated into CreditRetriever's online process, a SureDeposit enrollment form with the applicant's data automatically entered appears, prompting the leasing agent to offer the program at the time of the application. Not only does the agreement allow for two simple processes to be combined into an even more efficient, one-step process, the integration of the two offerings also ensures that the onsite property manager will more easily comply with established policies governing leasing criteria and security deposits.

NAA member Charter Municipal Mortgage Acceptance Co. announced that its taxable subsidiary, Charter Mac Corp., completed the previously announced acquisition of approximately 80 percent of the issued and outstanding capital stock of PW Funding Inc. The purchase price is in the range of $37 million--$47 million (subject to adjustment for new servicing on mortgage loans and any customary closing adjustments). The purchase price reflects a set-aside for estimated future portfolio loss risk A portion of the cash purchase price was financed through an acquisition facility at Fleet Bank.

It is anticipated that Charter Mac Corp. will acquire the remaining 20 percent if the issued and outstanding capital stock of PWF over the next 24 to 36 months. Under the agreement stockholders of PWF have been granted the right to put their remaining 20 percent stock interest to Charter Mac Corp. after an initial period of 24 to 36 months. The agreement also grants Charter Mac Corp. the right to call the remaining 20 percent stock interest of PWF from PWF's stockholders after the same initial time period of 24 to 36 months.

NAA/NSC member Maytag Corp. announced it completed the previously announced sale of its Blodgett commercial food service equipment business to the Middleby Corp.

Maytag received $74 million in cash and $21 million in notes from the sale. The total consideration of $95 million for the sale was not changed from the original total. However, the cash received decreased from $80 million to $74 million with a corresponding increase in the notes received from Middleby. Maytag will use the net cash proceeds to reduce debt. In the third quarter of this year, Maytag recorded a non-cash charge of $59.5 million in connection with the sale of Blodgett. The sale will not have a significant impact on Maytag's ongoing sales and earnings.