FLE Fleetwood Enterprises

Fleetwood Reports Its Manufactured Housing Finance Subsidiary Has Been Designated an 'LBP Lender' Manufactured Housing Institute's Lender Best Practices Program Names HomeOne Credit Corp. Fifth Lender to Qualify RIVERSIDE, Calif.,April 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. , the nation's leader in recreational vehicle sales and a leading producer and retailer of manufactured housing, announced today that its subsidiary, HomeOne Credit Corp., has been certified by the Lender Best Practices (LBP) program of the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) as complying with its performance standards and that HomeOne is now the fifth lender designated an "LBP Lender." "The long-term viability of the manufactured housing industry is dependent on the widespread adoption of prudent lending standards," said Joe Corona, HomeOne Credit Corp. executive vice president. "We firmly believe that the LBP program is an essential element to maintaining such standards. Our entire Fleetwood team is proud of our certification, which will enhance the credibility of our loans and demonstrate superior performance over time. This is another step toward building a finance organization that maintains the highest standards of quality and service." "When Fleetwood decided to build a finance subsidiary from the ground up, this is precisely the type of organization that we envisioned," said Boyd Plowman, chief financial officer of Fleetwood Enterprises, and chief executive officer of HomeOne. "I am pleased that MHI has recognized HomeOne as having the quality systems, procedures and people to provide essential 'make-sense lending' for our industry." The LBP program, launched by MHI in Feb. 2002, is a voluntary program designed to allow lenders such as HomeOne to enhance the integrity of all aspects of the manufactured home financing credit transaction, and to demonstrate to their funding sources that they have the appropriate business systems, procedures and standards in place to improve portfolio performance. A summary of the LBP performance standards is on the MHI Website, http://www.manufacturedhousing.org/. "The LBP program establishes a framework for all parties involved in the credit transaction to ensure the integrity of the financial transaction," MHI President Chris Stinebert said. "We are very encouraged by the positive response to the LBP program from the financial community and are pleased that HomeOne Credit Corp. has completed the certification process and earned the LBP Lender designation." HomeOne joins Chase Manufactured Housing Corp., Origen Financial, Triad Financial and Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance as certified "LBP Lenders." About Fleetwood Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc., a Fortune 1000 company headquartered in Riverside, Calif., is a leading manufacturer of a full range of recreational vehicles from motor homes to travel and folding trailers, and is a vertically integrated manufacturer, retailer and financier of manufactured housing. The Company is dedicated to providing quality, innovative products that offer a high value quotient to our customers. Fleetwood operates facilities strategically located throughout the nation, including recreational vehicle and manufactured housing plants, retail home centers, and supply subsidiary plants. For more information, visit the Company's Website at http://www.fleetwood.com/. This press release contains certain forward-looking statements and information based on the beliefs of Fleetwood's management as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, Fleetwood's management. Such statements reflect the current views of Fleetwood with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions, including risk factors identified in Fleetwood's Form 10-K and other SEC filings. These risk factors include, without limitation: the cyclical nature of both the manufactured housing and recreational vehicle industries; ongoing weakness in the manufactured housing market; the potential impact on demand for our products as a result of changes in consumer confidence levels; continued acceptance of the Company's products; expenses and uncertainties associated with the introduction and manufacturing of newproducts; the future availability of manufactured housing retail financing, as well as housing and RV wholesale financing; exposure to interest rate and market changes affecting certain of the Company's assets and liabilities; changes in retail inventory levels in the manufactured housing and recreational vehicle industries; availability and pricing of raw materials; competitive pricing pressures; the ability to attract and retain quality dealers, executive officers and other personnel; and the ability to obtain the financing we need in order to execute our business strategy. Actual results, events and performance may differ materially. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Fleetwood undertakes no obligation to release publicly the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. For further information please contact: Lyle Larkin, Vice President, Treasurer, +1-909-351-3535, or Kathy A. Munson, Director-Investor Relations, +1-909-351-3650, both of Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. DATASOURCE: Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. CONTACT: Lyle Larkin, Vice President, Treasurer, +1-909-351-3535, or Kathy A. Munson, Director-Investor Relations, +1-909-351-3650, both of Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. Web site: http://www.manufacturedhousing.org/ Web site: http://www.fleetwood.com/

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