WASHINGTON, D.C. — Multifamily lending declined 49 percent year-over-year in 2023, according to a report by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). Lenders provided a total $246.2 billion for apartment buildings with five or more units last year, with 51 percent of active lenders making five or fewer multifamily loans throughout the year. The Washington, D.C.-based organization previously estimated that multifamily originations totaled $264 billion.
By volume, the top five multifamily lenders in 2023 included Berkadia, Walker & Dunlop, JP Morgan Chase & Co., CBRE and Greystone. Nearly half (42 percent) of the dollar volume went to the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
“The analysis shows that even with the drop in activity, the multifamily lending market remains broad and deep, with more than 2,500 different lenders making more than 36,000 mortgage loans backed by multifamily properties,” says Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s head of commercial real estate research.
The MBA report is based on its surveys of the larger multifamily lenders and the recently released Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data that covers multifamily loans made by many smaller lenders, particularly commercial banks.