Management of REO Property (a) Prior to the acquisition by it of title to a Mortgaged Property (other than a Mortgaged Property that secures an Outside Serviced Loan Combination), the Special Servicer shall review the operation of such Mortgaged Property and determine the nature of the income that would be derived from such property if it were acquired by the Trust Fund. If the Special Servicer determines from such review that:
(i) None of the income from Directly Operating such Mortgaged Property would be subject to tax as "net income from foreclosure property" within the meaning of the REMIC Provisions or would be subject to the tax imposed on "prohibited transactions" under Section 860F of the Code (either such tax referred to herein as an "REO Tax"), then such Mortgaged Property may be Directly Operated by the Special Servicer as REO Property;
(ii) Directly Operating such Mortgaged Property as REO Property could result in income from such property that would be subject to an REO Tax, but that a lease of such property to another party to operate such property, or the performance of some services by an Independent Contractor with respect to such property, or another method of operating such property would not result in income subject to an REO Tax, then the Special Servicer may (provided that in the good faith and reasonable judgment of the Special Servicer, it is commercially reasonable) acquire such Mortgaged Property as REO Property and so lease or operate such REO Property; or
(iii) It is reasonable to believe that Directly Operating such property as REO Property could result in income subject to an REO Tax and that no commercially reasonable means exists to operate such property as REO Property without the Trust Fund incurring or possibly incurring an REO Tax on income from such property, the Special Servicer shall deliver to the Tax Administrator, in writing, a proposed plan (the "Proposed Plan") to manage such property as REO Property. Such plan shall include potential sources of income, and, to the extent reasonably possible, estimates of the amount of income from each such source. Upon request of the Special Servicer, the Tax Administrator shall advise the Special Servicer of the Tax Administrator's federal income tax reporting position with respect to the various sources of income that the Trust Fund would derive under the Proposed Plan. After receiving the information described in the preceding sentence from the Tax Administrator, the Special Servicer shall implement the Proposed Plan (after acquiring the respective Mortgaged Property as REO Property), with any amendments required to be made thereto as a result of the Tax Administrator's tax reporting position. The Special Servicer's decision as to how each Administered REO Property shall be managed and operated shall be based on the Servicing Standard and, further, based on the good faith and reasonable judgment of the Special Servicer as to which means would be in the best interest of the Certificateholders (and, in the case of any Administered REO Property related to a Serviced Loan Combination, the related Serviced Non-Trust Mortgage Loan Noteholder(s)), as a collective whole, by maximizing (to the extent commercially reasonable and consistent with Section 3.17(b)) the net after-tax REO Revenues received with respect to such property without materially impairing the Special Servicer's ability to promptly sell such property for a fair price. In connection with performing their respective duties under this Section 3.17(a), both the Special Servicer and the Tax Administrator may consult with counsel and tax accountants, the reasonable cost of which consultation shall be covered by, and be reimbursable as, a Servicing Advance to be made by the Special Servicer.
(b) If title to any Administered REO Property is acquired, the Special Servicer shall manage, conserve, protect and operate such REO Property for the benefit of the Certificateholders (and, in the case of any Administered REO Property related to a Serviced Loan Combination, the related Serviced Non-Trust Mortgage Loan Noteholder(s)) solely for the purpose of its prompt disposition and sale in a manner that does not and will not: (i) cause such REO Property to fail to qualify as "foreclosure property" within the meaning of Section 860G(a)(8) of the Code for purposes of Section 860D(a) of the Code; or (ii) except as contemplated by Section 3.17(a), either result in the receipt by any REMIC Pool of any "income from non-permitted assets" within the meaning of Section 860F(a)(2)(B) of the Code or result in an Adverse REMIC Event or an Adverse Grantor Trust Event. Subject to the foregoing, however, the Special Servicer shall have full power and authority to do any and all things in connection therewith as are consistent with the Servicing Standard and, consistent therewith, shall withdraw from the related REO Account, to the extent of amounts on deposit therein with respect to any Administered REO Property, funds necessary for the proper operation, management, maintenance and disposition of such REO Property, including:
(i) all insurance premiums due and payable in respect of such REO Property;
(ii) all real estate taxes and assessments in respect of such REO Property that may result in the imposition of a lien thereon;
(iii) any ground rents in respect of such REO Property; and
(iv) all costs and expenses necessary to maintain, lease, sell, protect, manage, operate and restore such REO Property. To the extent that amounts on deposit in the related REO Account in respect of any Administered REO Property are insufficient for the purposes set forth in the preceding sentence with respect to such REO Property, the Master Servicer shall, at the direction of the Special Servicer, make Servicing Advances in such amounts as are necessary for such purposes unless the Master Servicer determines, in accordance with the Servicing Standard, that such payment would be a Nonrecoverable Advance; provided, however, that the Master Servicer may make any such Servicing Advance without regard to recoverability if it is a necessary fee or expense incurred in connection with the defense or prosecution of legal proceedings.
(c) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Special Servicer shall not, with respect to any Administered REO Property:
(i) enter into, renew or extend any New Lease with respect to such Administered REO Property, if the New Lease, by its terms would give rise to any income that does not constitute Rents from Real Property;
(ii) permit any amount to be received or accrued under any New Lease other than amounts that will constitute Rents from Real Property;
(iii) authorize or permit any construction on such Administered REO Property, other than the completion of a building or other improvement thereon, and then only if more than 10% of the construction of such building or other improvement was completed before default on the related Serviced Mortgage Loan became imminent, all within the meaning of Section 856(e)(4)(B) of the Code; or
(iv) Directly Operate, or allow any other Person, other than an Independent Contractor, to Directly Operate such Administered REO Property on any date more than 90 days after the related REO Acquisition; unless, in any such case, the Special Servicer has obtained an Opinion of Counsel (the cost of which shall be paid by the Master Servicer, at the direction of the Special Servicer, and shall be reimbursable as a Servicing Advance) to the effect that such action would not cause such Administered REO Property to fail to qualify as "foreclosure property" within the meaning of Section 860G(a)(8) of the Code for purposes of Section 860D(a) of the Code at any time that it is held by a REMIC Pool, in which case the Special Servicer may take such actions as are specified in such Opinion of Counsel.
(d) The Special Servicer may contract with any Independent Contractor for the operation and management of any Administered REO Property; provided that:
(i) the terms and conditions of any such contract shall not be inconsistent herewith and shall reflect an agreement reached at arm's length;
(ii) the fees of such Independent Contractor (which shall be expenses of the Trust Fund and, in the case of any Administered REO Property that relates to a Serviced Loan Combination, the related Serviced Non-Trust Mortgage Loan Noteholder(s)) shall be reasonable and customary in consideration of the nature and locality of such Administered REO Property;
(iii) except as permitted under Section 3.17(a), any such contract shall require, or shall be administered to require, that the Independent Contractor, in a timely manner, (A) pay out of related REO Revenues all costs and expenses incurred in connection with the operation and management of such Administered REO Property, including those listed in Section 3.17(b) above, and (B) except to the extent that such revenues are derived from any services rendered by the Independent Contractor to tenants of such Administered REO Property that are not customarily furnished or rendered in connection with the rental of real property (within the meaning of Section 1.856-4(b)(5) of the Treasury regulations or any successor provision), remit all related revenues collected (net of its fees and such costs and expenses) to the Special Servicer upon receipt;
(iv) none of the provisions of this Section 3.17(d) relating to any such contract or to actions taken through any such Independent Contractor shall be deemed to relieve the Special Servicer of any of its duties and obligations hereunder with respect to the operation and management of such Administered REO Property; and
(v) the Special Servicer shall be obligated with respect thereto to the same extent as if it alone were performing all duties and obligations in connection with the operation and management of such Administered REO Property. The Special Servicer shall be entitled to enter into any agreement with any Independent Contractor performing services for it related to its duties and obligations under Section 3.16 and this Section 3.17 for indemnification of the Special Servicer by any such Independent Contractor, and nothing in this Agreement shall be deemed to limit or modify such indemnification. No agreement entered into pursuant to this Section 3.17(d) shall be deemed a Sub-Servicing Agreement for purposes of Section 3.22.
(e) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, this Section 3.17 shall not apply to any Outside Administered REO Property.
