MBA CREF | Top Takeaways

The Barry Slatt Mortgage team attended this week’s 2019 Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Commercial Real Estate Finance Conference in San Diego, California. The following are our top takeaways from the annual event.

1. The market for debt equity is very liquid and there is a positive sentiment around the commercial real estate finance business.
2. Real estate in most major markets throughout the country are considered to be healthy.
3. Spreads for most fixed-rate loans increased significantly in November and December of 2018 with the volatility that was created by Wall Street. Since the beginning of 2019, spreads for most fixed-rate loans have started to narrow.
4. The 10-Year Treasury has been hovering around 2.70%. Most 10-year fixed-rate loans are being made in the 3.90-5.0% range.
5. The mood at the conference can best be described as cautiously optimistic among lenders, mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers, and other mortgage professionals.
6. Most insurance companies have significant allocations for 2019.
7. The CMBS market is stable and lenders are willing to compete for business.
8. Bank lenders are active.
9. Agency lenders are aggressively seeking multi-family loans in all markets.
10. There are many active funds seeking investments in equity, bridge debt, mezzanine debt, and construction lending.