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 …
