UPDATE 2-Capmark to sell Japan loan unit to Sandringham

(Adds analyst comments)

By Junko Fujita

TOKYO Oct 19 (Reuters) - Capmark Financial Group Inc, a U.S. real estate company preparing for bankruptcy, will sell its Japanese loan servicing business to Sandringham Capital Partners, a UK-based fund management firm, Sandringham said in a statement.

Capmark Financial, which was created through a 2006 leveraged buyout of certain GMAC assets, has been selling businesses as prepares to file for bankruptcy. [ID:nN0235992]

Capmark last month agreed to sell its U.S. mortgage loan and servicing business to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) and Leucadia National (LUK.N) for $490 million.

Capmark's Japanese loan servicing business, called Premier Asset Management, has 31 employees and has assets worth 1.7 trillion yen ($19 billion), including commercial mortgage-backed securities, which are mortgage-backed securities secured by loans on commercial property, Sandringham said.

Premier is one of Japan's biggest loan servicing firms specialising in CMBS. Orix Corp (8591.T), Japan's largest leasing company and a major real estate investor, is another big loan servicer specialising in CMBS.

"More underlying loans for CMBS are being defaulted on as the real estate market remains weak, so the role of loan service companies is getting more attention," said Standard & Poor's analyst Kazutoshi Murakami. Loan servicing firms monitor and collect loan payments.

Sandringham was founded by Koji Fusa, a former Tokyo-based banker at Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.VX). (Reporting by Junko Fujita; Editing by Hugh Lawson)