Title 7

SECTION 762.145

762.145 Restructuring guaranteed loans.

§ 762.145 Restructuring guaranteed loans.

(a) General. (1) To restructure guaranteed loans standard eligible lenders must:

(i) Obtain prior written approval of the Agency for all restructuring actions; and,

(ii) Provide the items in paragraph (b) and (e) of this section to the Agency for approval.

(2) If the standard eligible lender's proposal for servicing is not agreed to by the Agency, the Agency approval official will notify the lender in writing within 14 days of the lender's request.

(3) To restructure guaranteed loans CLP lenders must:

(i) Obtain prior written approval of the Agency only for debt write down under this section.

(ii) Submit all calculations required in paragraph (e) of this section for debt writedown.

(iii) For restructuring other than write down, provide FSA with a certification that each requirement of this section has been met, a narrative outlining the circumstances surrounding the need for restructuring, and copies of any applicable calculations.

(4) PLP lenders will restructure loans in accordance with their lender's agreement.

(5) All lenders will submit copies of any restructured notes or lines of credit to the Agency.

(b) Requirements. For any restructuring action, the following conditions apply:

(1) The borrower meets the eligibility criteria of § 762.120, except the provisions regarding prior debt forgiveness and delinquency on a federal debt do not apply.

(2) The borrower's ability to make the amended payment is documented by the following:

(i) A feasible plan.

(ii) Current financial statements from all liable parties.

(iii) Verification of nonfarm income.

(iv) Verification of all debts of $1,000 or more.

(v) Applicable credit reports.

(vi) Financial history (and production history for standard eligible lenders) for the past 3 years to support the cash flow projections.

(3) A final loss claim may be reduced, adjusted, or rejected as a result of negligent servicing after the concurrence with a restructuring action under this section.

(4) Loans secured by real estate and/or equipment can be restructured using a balloon payment, equal installments, or unequal installments. Under no circumstances may livestock or crops alone be used as security for a loan to be rescheduled using a balloon payment. If a balloon payment is used, the projected value of the real estate and/or equipment security must indicate that the loan will be fully secured when the balloon payment becomes due. The projected value will be derived from a current appraisal adjusted for depreciation of depreciable property, such as buildings and other improvements, that occurs until the balloon payment is due. For equipment security, a current appraisal is required. The lender is required to project the security value of the equipment at the time the balloon payment is due based on the remaining life of the equipment, or the depreciation schedule on the borrower's Federal income tax return. Loans restructured with a balloon payment that are secured by real estate will have a minimum term of 5 years, and other loans will have a minimum term of 3 years before the scheduled balloon payment. If statutory limits on terms of loans prevent the minimum terms, balloon payments may not be used. If the loan is rescheduled with unequal installments, a feasible plan, as defined in § 762.2(b), must be projected for when installments are scheduled to increase.

(5) If a borrower is current on a loan, but will be unable to make a payment, a restructuring proposal may be submitted prior to the payment coming due.

(6) The lender may capitalize the outstanding interest when restructuring the loan as follows:

(i) As a result of the capitalization of interest, a rescheduled promissory note may increase the amount of principal the borrower is required to pay. However, in no case will such principal amount exceed the statutory loan limits contained in § 761.8 of this chapter.

(ii) When accrued interest causes the loan amount to exceed the statutory loan limits, rescheduling may be approved without capitalization of the amount that exceeds the limit. Noncapitalized interest may be scheduled for repayment over the term of the rescheduled note.

(iii) Only interest that has accrued at the rate indicated on the borrower's original promissory notes may be capitalized. Late payment fees or default interest penalties that have accrued due to the borrower's failure to make payments as agreed are not covered under the guarantee and may not be capitalized.

(iv) The Agency will execute a modification of guarantee form to identify the new loan principal and the guaranteed portion if greater than the original loan amounts, and to waive the restriction on capitalization of interest, if applicable, to the existing guarantee documents. The modification form will be attached to the original guarantee as an addendum.

(v) Approved capitalized interest will be treated as part of the principal and interest that accrues thereon, in the event that a loss should occur.

(7) The lender's security position will not be adversely affected because of the restructuring. New security instruments may be taken if needed, but a loan does not have to be fully secured in order to be restructured, unless it is restructured with a balloon payment. When a loan is restructured using a balloon payment the lender must take a lien on all assets and project the loan to be fully secured at the time the balloon payment becomes due, in accordance with paragraph (b)(4) of this section.

(8) Any holder agrees to any changes in the original loan terms. If the holder does not agree, the lender must repurchase the loan from the holder for any loan restructuring to occur.

(9) After a guaranteed loan is restructured, the lender must provide the Agency with a copy of the restructured promissory note.

(10) For CL, the lender must ensure that the borrower is maintaining the practice for which the CL was made.

(1) Payments will be rescheduled within the following terms:

(i) FO and existing SW may be amortized over the remaining term of the note or rescheduled with an uneven payment schedule. The maturity date cannot exceed 40 years from the date of the original note.

(ii) OL notes must be rescheduled over a period not to exceed 15 years from the date of the rescheduling. An OL line of credit may be rescheduled over a period not to exceed 7 years from the date of the rescheduling or 10 years from the date of the original note, whichever is less. Advances cannot be made against a line of credit loan that has had any portion of the loan rescheduled.

(iii) CL will be amortized over the remaining term or rescheduled with an uneven payment schedule. The maturity date cannot exceed 30 years from the date of the original note.

(2) The interest rate for a rescheduled loan is the negotiated rate agreed upon by the lender and the borrower at the time of the action, subject to the loan limitations for each type of loan.

(3) A new note is not necessary when rescheduling occurs. However, if a new note is not taken, the existing note or line of credit agreement must be modified by attaching an allonge or other legally effective amendment, evidencing the revised repayment schedule and any interest rate change. If a new note is taken, the new note must reference the old note and state that the indebtedness evidenced by the old note or line of credit agreement is not satisfied. The original note or line of credit agreement must be retained.

(d) Deferrals. The following conditions apply to deferrals:

(1) Payments may be deferred up to 5 years, but the loan may not be extended beyond the final due date of the note.

(2) The principal portion of the payment may be deferred either in whole or in part.

(3) Interest may be deferred only in part. Payment of a reasonable portion of accruing interest as indicated by the borrower's cash flow projections is required for multi-year deferrals.

(4) There must be a reasonable prospect that the borrower will be able to resume full payments at the end of the deferral period.

(e) Debt writedown. The following conditions apply to debt writedown:

(1) A lender may only write down a delinquent guaranteed loan or line of credit in an amount sufficient to permit the borrower to develop a feasible plan as defined in § 762.102(b).

(2) The lender will request other creditors to negotiate their debts before a writedown is considered.

(3) The borrower cannot develop a feasible plan after consideration is given to rescheduling and deferral under this section.

(4) The present value of the loan to be written down, based on the interest rate of the rescheduled loan, will be equal to or exceed the net recovery value of the loan collateral.

(5) The loan will be restructured with regular payments at terms no shorter than 5 years for a line of credit and OL term note; and no shorter than 20 years for FO and CL, unless required to be shorter by paragraphs (c)(1)(i) through (iii) of this section.

(6) No further advances may be made on a line of credit that is written down.

(7) Loans may not be written down with interest assistance. If a borrower's loan presently on interest assistance requires a writedown, the writedown will be considered without interest assistance.

(8) The writedown is based on writing down the shorter-term loans first.

(9) When a lender requests approval of a writedown for a borrower with multiple loans, the security for all of the loans will be cross-collateralized and continue to serve as security for the loan that is written down. If a borrower has multiple loans and one loan is written off entirely through debt writedown, the security for that loan will not be released and will remain as security for the other written down debt. Additional security instruments will be taken if required to cross-collateralize security and maintain lien priority.

(10) The writedown will be evidenced by an allonge or amendment to the existing note or line of credit reflecting the writedown.

(11) The borrower executes an Agency shared appreciation agreement for loans which are written down and secured by real estate.

(i) The lender will attach the original agreement to the restructured loan document.

(ii) The lender will provide the Agency a copy of the executed agreement, and

(iii) Security instruments must ensure future collection of any appreciation under the agreement.

(12) The lender will prepare and submit the following to the Agency:

(i) A current appraisal of all security in accordance with § 762.127.

(ii) A completed report of loss on the appropriate Agency form for the proposed writedown loss claim.

(iii) Detailed writedown calculations as follows:

(A) Calculate the present value.

(B) Determine the net recovery value.

(C) If the net recovery value exceeds the present value, writedown is unavailable; liquidation becomes the next servicing consideration. If the present value equals or exceeds the net recovery value, the debt may be written down to the present value.

(iv) The lender will make any adjustment in the calculations as requested by the Agency.

[64 FR 7378, Feb. 12, 1999; 64 FR 38298, July 16, 1999, as amended at 66 FR 7567, Jan. 24, 2001; 69 FR 44579, July 27, 2004; 70 FR 56107, Sept. 26, 2005; 72 FR 17358, Apr. 9, 2007; 75 FR 54014, Sept. 1, 2010; 77 FR 15938, Mar. 19, 2012; 78 FR 65530, Nov. 1, 2013]