Commercial, Multifamily Mortgage Originations Rise 16%: MBA

Commercial real estate borrowing and lending continued at a strong clip in the third quarter, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Third-quarter commercial and multifamily mortgage loan originations were 16% higher than the same time period a year earlier, the Washington-based trade group said. This increase was mainly driven due to more lending towards industrial and multifamily properties, which was up year-over-year 22% and 41%, respectively.

Meanwhile, the dollar volume of loans for office and retail properties both rose by 11%. Furthermore, hotel property loan originations were 4% higher than a year ago.

The only property loans that experienced fewer originations year over year were health care facilities, in which lending was down 43%.

Among investor types, loans originated for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac increased by 118% from a year earlier, the MBA said. There was also a 47% increase for commercial mortgage-backed securities loans, as well as a 1% uptick for life insurance companies. The dollar volume for commercial bank portfolio loans fell by 16%, the trade group revealed.

"Low rates coupled with growth in property incomes, property values and sales transactions have pushed year-to-date commercial and multifamily originations 5% above last year's pace," said Jamie Woodwell, vice president of commercial real estate research for the Mortgage Bankers Association.