Commercial lending

Banks are taking back more farmland through foreclosure than at any point in the past three years as low crop prices, epic flooding and the Trump administration’s trade spat with China have left many farmers struggling to pay their debts.

The bureau issued three policies removing the threat of legal liability for approved companies that test new products.

The industry has taken some steps to lower barriers to affordable housing, but some observers say that more can be done.

A year after the major credit bureaus agreed to strip tax liens and civil judgments from consumers' credit files, a new study says it is hampering lenders' credit decisions. But proponents of the move insist it was the right call.

The Hamilton, Ohio City Council soon will consider whether to require owners to register their vacant industrial or commercial buildings.

Extell Development, facing an Aug. 30 maturity for a construction loan, signed an agreement for a new loan on the New York property, using the unsold units in the 815-apartment project as collateral.

Prospective buyers of the boarded-up East Hills Mall recently reached out to Bakersfield city officials with a new vision for demolishing and redeveloping the property into a village-like mixed-use center.

The second half of 2019 is a prudent time to examine the CRE market in the context of an inevitable slowdown, taking into account how the current landscape is impacting lending practices.

Kristy Kim was an immigrant success story with a degree from Berkeley and a lucrative job — except her lack of credit history precluded her from getting a car loan. She started TomoCredit to help the many young folks who struggle to qualify for a credit card.

Blooma has developed a software product that combs databases to create property profiles for commercial real estate lenders. It can drastically cut origination costs and approval times and help banks identify safer loans, the company says.