Standard & Poor's on March 27 affirmed Realogy's corporate rating of "B," but revised its ratings outlook from "stable" to "negative," citing lower earnings expectations, the company's "highly leveraged capital structure," and reduced ability to generate cash flow because of the housing market downturn and the close of the $9 billion leveraged buyout in April 2007 by an affiliate of Apollo Management L.P., a private equity firm. "The negative outlook reflects our concern that in the event a recovery in the U.S. residential real estate market is not achieved before early 2009," the company may face earnings decline that could reduce the company's cushion in meeting its debt covenant, according to the ratings report by Standard & Poor's. "In the event the industry is not tracking toward recovery by the beginning of the September 2008 quarter, the rating could be lowered."