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Paul Letourneau, manager of commercial lending for Alliant Credit Union, believes the more things change, the more fundamental business practices stay the same. In the lending world, this includes the ability to form and maintain relationships with key sponsors and brokers. As a credit union, how does Alliant compare to other capital sources? Letourneau: Alliant is looking to complement the prospect’s existing lending relationships. Alliant is a national lender and a great option to supplement the geographic and structure constraints of local capital providers. Strong broker engagement helps Alliant as the brokers bring both market and sponsor intelligence that might not be possible to come by otherwise. The broker’s knowledge is key to thriving in all lending environments and markets. There has been some recent volatility within the markets, so it is more important than ever to make informed decisions, which involves working with experienced and knowledgeable brokers as intermediaries for our clients. How can a disciplined lender remain flexible and accommodating for today’s borrowing needs?  Letourneau: Today’s borrowing needs are not much different than they were in the past. Borrowers who need flexibility look to capital providers that can accommodate them. Whether it is interest-only, short-term bridge, flexible pre-payment penalties, longer term fixed rates, floating rates or …

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quote from Paul Woodworth, Head of Agency Lending, SunTrust

Paul Woodworth, head of agency lending for SunTrust, believes a lot of focus will remain on multifamily in 2019, but that doesn’t mean that multifamily deals will be a piece of cake. Instead, he predicts some ingenuity will be required on the part of the lender in order to keep momentum strong following an active 2018. What are the best ways lenders can work with developers to increase our nation’s affordable housing supply? Woodworth: Lenders should play a consultative and collaborative role. A financial institution has a unique opportunity to leverage its public-private relationships, bringing an array of resources to the table, including foundations, as well as public and private subsidy sources. It is also critical for a lender to bring multiple solutions to fill the capital stack. This could include construction or bridge financing, LIHTC equity and permanent lending solutions. Furthermore, banks have a desire and an obligation to serve their communities. Active — and creative — participation in delivering quality affordable housing plays a critical role in the sustainability of the communities we serve. Where is SunTrust’s sweet spot right now in terms of multifamily activity? Woodworth: SunTrust’s sweet spot is primarily focused in affordable housing, conventional multifamily — …

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Chad Thomas Hagwood, senior managing director and regional manager for the Southeast at Hunt Real Estate Capital, closes loans across the nation and sees opportunities in multiple sectors in 2019. While multifamily is still a standout, his scope extends beyond the industry buzzwords common today. Do you think refinancing activity will be as robust as it’s been in the recent past? Hagwood: There is no doubt refinancing will remain very active in 2019. Treasury yields have subsided from north of 3 percent and spreads are still extremely attractive. Many owners intend to hold their properties as opposed to selling. They realize they will have to pay top dollar to find a replacement property, or shell out a portion of their gains to Uncle Sam. It makes a great deal of sense to refinance and cash out versus sell, in many circumstances.  What has been Hunt’s most popular loan product as of late?  Hagwood: Both the 10- and 12-year fixed-rate conventional products with maximum IO [interest only] have been extremely popular with Hunt’s customers. In my opinion, the level of fixed-rate conventional business will continue to grow well into 2019 and beyond here at Hunt. The fixed-rate offering — compared with adjustable and floating …

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CHICAGO — Net absorption in office markets across the United States exceeded new construction in the fourth quarter of 2018, according to Cushman & Wakefield. This enabled the national office vacancy rate to drop to 13.2 percent.  Nationwide absorption during the fourth quarter totaled 20 million square feet and marked the 33rd consecutive quarter of positive absorption since 2010.  The total volume of space under construction increased slightly to 114.2 million square feet in the fourth quarter, up from 113.2 million in the third quarter. A total of 13.7 million square feet of new office projects delivered in the fourth quarter, bringing the total for 2018 deliveries to 52.7 million square feet, the second-highest amount of new space completed since 2010. Relative to inventory, the markets with the highest construction figures are San Mateo, Calif.; Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tenn.; Seattle; and Midtown Manhattan. On the west side Office markets in the Western United States performed the strongest in 2018 and accounted for 22.6 million square feet of net absorption, the highest volume since 2015. The lowest vacancy rates were seen in tech-driven markets like Seattle (6.2 percent vacancy) and San Francisco (6.4 percent).  According to Cushman & Wakefield, the western …

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Matt Rocco of Grandbridge Real Estate Capital

Matt Rocco, president of Grandbridge Real Estate Capital, realizes this year may not maintain the exact same lending velocity as last year. However, he sees plenty of opportunities in workforce and affordable housing, as well as in industrial real estate. This, combined with plenty of capital, may keep competition fierce for strong commercial assets in the foreseeable future. Many believe lending velocity may slow this year compared to 2018. What is your take on this? Rocco: We expect transactional velocity will be flat or down slightly as compared to 2018. This year and 2020 only have modest maturity activity. As a result, many new refinancing assignments will come from floating-rate loans that are converting into fixed-rate loan terms.  Given the very flat yield curve, we anticipate many clients will move from these floating-rate loans to match their ownership objectives. They will likely seek fixed-rate loan terms at the same coupon rate as their floating-rate alternatives. We also expect lending volume from CMBS, agency and life insurance companies to be flat or slightly down in 2019 compared to the record year in 2018. Are there any specific product types that seem particularly attractive in 2019? Rocco: We expect to see robust …

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Mark Gould M&T

Mark Gould, national production manager of M&T Realty Capital Corporation, believes the seniors housing continuum of care may hold vast opportunities for those with the know-how and discipline to weather any short-term storms. Where do lending opportunities – and challenges – lie in 2019? Gould: We have been active in the seniors housing sector for a very long time. We see this asset class continuing to grow in 2019 as the U.S. aging population will drive growth.  Challenges will lie with inexperienced parties trying to capitalize on the favorable demographic trends who do not fully understand the complexity of operating in the healthcare space. Wage pressures and nurse staffing shortages will further heighten the operating challenges in this space. I also think dollar volumes will stay steady. Rising rates have placed some DSC [debt service coverage] limitations and have required more equity into deals. There didn’t seem to be as many large portfolio deals in fiscal year 2018, which we believe resulted in a heightened number of transactions. This is an indication of a healthy market. Does the seniors housing market have room to grow beyond its 2018 activity?  Gould: We are seeing some very innovative solutions from our customers that …

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Hilary Provinse of Berkadia

Hilary Provinse, executive vice president and head of mortgage banking at Berkadia, highlights the trends, strategies and activity attendees should have on their radar ahead of MBA CREF 2019 in February. Coming off a strong and surprisingly consistent year in 2018, we’re feeling good about 2019. The year is off to an interesting start to say the least, and we’re keeping our eye on several factors. These include Treasury rates, the regulatory environment, tariffs and development costs that will impact our business. Even keeping these in mind, however, there are positive factors that point to the potential for continued economic strength and activity in the multifamily market. Fundamentals of the Economy Remain Very Strong Unemployment continues to fall, and jobless claims remain extraordinarily low. Despite the recent decrease in consumer confidence — volatile in its own right — it remains near the highest levels since 9/11. GDP growth also remains strong with consumption, investment and government outlays all supportive.  Multifamily Demand-Supply Dynamics Remain Solid The percent of population living in multifamily units has experienced a slow, but consistent, increase since the 2008 financial crisis. Loan maturities are expected to increase in 2019 versus 2018 across several sources. Maturities are inevitable events that …

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For decades, the Pacific Coast has defined the American avant garde. From the Beats and Hippies of the Fifties and Sixties to today’s coders, gamers, software engineers and social network titans, the West Coast has set the standard for contemporary cutting edge social and life-style evolution. Lately, the region has emerged as a global economic leader as well. The rise of Big Tech operations in the five Pacific Northwest metro areas we cover — the East Bay, Portland, San Francisco, San Jose and Seattle (the “Pacific 5”) — has altered their economic landscapes profoundly. From 2014 to 2017, nominal metropolitan GDP per capita increased more than three times faster than the national average, and personal income per capita — already considerably higher than the U.S. mean — increased at an 80 percent faster rate than the metropolitan norm. Wealth creation and income growth on this scale fueled commensurate demand for rental housing space, especially the luxury infill product favored by investors and developers. Total Pacific 5-occupied apartment stock increased at a 2.4 percent annual rate over the three years ended in 3Q18 (Reis) — 20 percent faster than the balance of the RED 50, RED Capital Research’s large market peer …

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Weidell-NorthMarq-quote-2019-Multifamily-Trends

We’re already well into the first quarter of 2019 and with that comes the many industry events, including NMHC’s Apartment Strategies Conference and MBA’s CREF 2019. Before the year — and conference season — gets fully underway, we want to share our perspective on the top financing and investing trends that may impact your multifamily investment opportunities in the coming months. 1. New Construction Generates Sales, Financing Opportunities Multifamily development has been robust in recent years, reaching a peak in 2018. About 280,000 apartment units were delivered in 2018, and more than 1.1 million units have been delivered during the past five years. Only about 25 percent of these units have sold at this point. Developers are expected to either place permanent financing on projects or implement exit strategies by increasingly bringing stabilized projects to market. 2. Value-Add Remains Popular, Profitable Investors looking to steer clear of some of the aggressive pricing for new properties will continue to target value-add opportunities. Value-add strategies that can be executed in short time frames of about 18 months will appeal to investors and lenders as vacancies tighten and rents rise in nearly every major market in the country. 3. Interest Rates May Plateau …

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Green bonds have been around since 2007, but they only really started to gain traction in 2014 when about $37 billion worth of bonds were issued in the U.S. That number jumped to $45.4 billion last year, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). These financing vehicles, which tout environmental and social good, can be big business. Fannie Mae accounted for much of these green mortgage-backed securities (Green MBS) with $19.8 billion contributed in 2018. These loans center on assets that have achieved green certification or those that can reduce their energy and water consumption. “Multifamily had another outstanding year in 2018, thanks to our lenders,” says Rob Levin, senior vice president for multifamily customer engagement at Fannie Mae. “Together, we supported all market segments, bringing liquidity to the market while building a balanced portfolio that reflects our strategy with strong credit quality and mission-rich business.” Getting With The Program Lenders are taking advantage of the government-sponsored entities’ (GSEs) sustainability programs at an accelerated pace. Walker & Dunlop structured $392.3 million in green financing for three multifamily properties in Southern California in June 2018. Class A communities the Medici and the Orsini I in downtown Los Angeles were financed through …

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