Survey: Bankers optimistic about commercial real estateMortgagePress.comCommercial real estate bankers
Commercial real estate bankers continue to regard commercial
real estate favorably, and are actively looking to lend in this
sector, according to the latest survey released by Bridger
Commercial Funding. While they expect the major property sectors to
exhibit relative stability in rents and occupancy levels during
2004, this is the first time in two years that a majority of
bankers surveyed expect to increase their commercial real estate
exposure, suggesting that the market has passed its trough and is
recovering.
Two additional signs of recovery in commercial real estate
revolve around the trend in credit standards and bankers' overall
sentiment toward the sector. After reporting tightening credit and
underwriting standards in surveys conducted in 2002 and 2003,
bankers now indicate that those standards have not changed.
Similarly, the survey found a movement toward bullishness about the
sector from neutral sentiments reported since 2002.
Within each major property sectormultifamily, retail, office,
warehouse/industrial and lodgingthe majority of respondents foresee
moderate performance in 2004. However, among all respondents, there
was a bias toward moderate-to-strong performance for multifamily,
retail and warehouse/industrial, versus a bias toward
moderate-to-weak performance for office and lodging.
In a notable shift in trend, the majority of bankers surveyed
have become more cautious on retail properties and downgraded their
outlook to moderate from strong. This suggests that bankers may
have become more skeptical about the ability of consumers to
continue to sustain economic growth as they have during the past
two years.
In another bullish sign for commercial real estate, loan demand
is expected to be moderate to strong for all purposesconstruction,
acquisition and value-added lending, as well as for mini-perms,
according to the bankers surveyed.
Bridger's Survey of Lenders' Commercial Real Estate Perspectives
is conducted semiannually, and covers commercial real estate loan
officers at banks nationwide. The results of the survey were
tallied from responses by 75 different financial lodging
institutions nationwide that on average hold more than $500 million
in commercial real estate loans.
For more information, visit www.bridgerfunding.com.
