Pooling and Service Agreement
(Residential Mortgage-Backed Security Transaction)

Summary

This pooling and servicing agreement (PSA) template is the primary agreement typically used for residential mortgage securitizations (in securitizations of other asset classes, a Sale and Servicing Agreement and a separate Indenture are often used instead of the PSA). Parties to the PSA are the depositor, the master servicer, and the trustee. This template includes practical guidance and drafting notes. The PSA (a) forms the issuing trust and real estate mortgage investment conduit trusts under the U.S. tax code, (b) sets forth the rights, terms, and conditions of the issued certificates (including payments of interest and principal), and (c) defines the master servicer’s duties, including the aggregation of monthly servicer reports and remittances and for the oversight of the performance of the mortgage servicer under the terms of the servicing agreement. This template of PSA relates to an RMBS transaction, but the terms may be similar for other asset classes as well. It has been created for information (and not authoritative) purposes, each particular transaction will have its own terms that may differ from the terms contained herein. This template does not anticipate all of the issues that may arise during the life of any particular ABS issue. For more information on securitization transactions, see Securitization, and Parties and Documents in Securitization Transactions. For a template of exhibits that accompany the pooling and servicing agreement, see Pooling and Servicing Agreement Exhibits (Residential Mortgage-Backed Security Transaction).