In 2008, 2,877 different multifamily lenders provided a total of more than $88 billion in new financing for apartment buildings with five or more units, according to an annual report from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The 2008 dollar volume represents a 40 percent decline from 2007 levels. In terms of total dollar volume, the top five multifamily lenders in 2008 were PNC Real Estate, Wachovia, Wells Fargo Bank NA, Capmark Financial Group Inc., and Deutsche Bank Commercial Real Estate.
"Multifamily lending volume was down in 2008, but even in the face of the credit crunch, there was a broad and diverse market offering mortgages to apartment building owners," said Jamie Woodwell, MBA's vice president of commercial real estate research. "There is a core group of dedicated multifamily lenders that originated a large number of loans in 2008. In addition, there is a broad group of smaller institutions that each originated a small number of loans, but collectively offered borrowers a wide range of options. In fact, 26 percent of lenders who made multifamily loans in 2008 made just one, and two-thirds made five or fewer."
The MBA report is the most comprehensive view available of the multifamily lending market and includes:
■ A detailed summary of the $88 billion multifamily market,
■ Profiles of distinct market segments, including the very-small loan (loans of $1 million or less) lender segment,
■ A listing of 2,877 lenders who made multifamily loans in 2008, including their lending volume, number of loans made and average loan size, and
■ A listing of metropolitan areas and the volume of very-small loans made in each in 2008.
The report is based on data from the MBA 2008 Commercial Multifamily Annual Origination Volume Summation and the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The MBA survey targets specialized commercial/multifamily originators and covered $181 billion in commercial/multifamily loans in 2008. The HMDA data adds multifamily loans from banks, thrifts and other institutions that meet certain single-family origination thresholds. When combined, the two datasets provide the most comprehensive assessment of the multifamily mortgage market available.
For more information, visit www.mortgagebankers.org.
