Commercial lending

Mall landlords accustomed to offering rent reductions to ailing retailers are mulling a new strategy to forestall the industry's collapse: positioning themselves as lenders to tenants struggling to stay afloat.

Credible Labs, which lets consumers shop for the best rates on student loans, mortgages and other credits, would be part of an evolving digital strategy at Fox after the multibillion-dollar sale of many of its traditional media assets to Disney.

It’s hard to time the next economic slowdown. But lenders, many with lingering memories of the financial crisis, are taking steps now to limit exposure in commercial real estate, construction and other loan segments.

Bankers are downplaying such concerns, but others say a sharp decline in values on rent-regulated buildings means landlords will have less cash flow to acquire new properties.

The bill, similar to legislation that passed the chamber last year, would permit the inclusion of items such as rent and telecom payments to help consumers build their credit profiles.

As budget questions loom over the most popular Small Business Administration loans, lenders have embraced the previously overshadowed 504 program after a key policy tweak.

The Minneapolis bank reported growth across several lending and noninterest income categories in the second quarter, which offset net interest margin pressures and declining deposit service fees.

Life insurance companies increased their mortgage investments to levels higher than historical norms, creating more potential danger for their portfolios in the event of a real estate downturn, a Fitch Ratings report said.

The bank said it could record a $7 million charge in the second quarter after the client unexpectedly closed in May.

New York's sweeping rewrite of rent stabilization laws could pose a credit risk to lenders that finance capital improvements to regulated apartment properties, according to a report Monday by Fitch Ratings.