Commercial Originations Surge

Originations of commercial and multifamily mortgage loans totaled $31.3 billion for the first quarter, up 39.6% compared with those of the first quarter of 2004, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.The MBA said multifamily property loan originations jumped 62% compared with the volume in the first quarter of 2004; office property originations climbed 29% over the same period; industrial property originations saw a 31% gain; hotel and motel properties originations rose 96%; and retail property-backed originations were up 4%. However, originations of health care loans by mortgage bankers fell 4% from those of a year earlier, the mortgage bankers' trade association reported. "With these new record origination volumes, 2005 is setting a pace well above anything we've seen in the past," said MBA chief economist Doug Duncan. Multifamily properties remained the leading property type originated, at 37.5% of the total originations. The MBA can be found on the Web at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.