Despite a quarter-over-quarter drop in commercial real estate originations, a year-over-year gain was led by the government-sponsored enterprises and industrial property lending.
An estimated $111 billion in commercial mortgages were closed during the first-three months of this year. The total includes multifamily production.
CRE loan originations tumbled from the final-three months of last year, when commercial mortgage production was estimated at approximately $153 billion.
But activity accelerated from an estimated $102 billion in CRE loan closings during the first-three months of last year.
The estimates were based on
an analysis of the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations along with previously reported origination data.
Out front of the quarter-over-quarter decline were loans originated for commercial mortgage-backed securities and conduits, which sank from the fourth-quarter 2016 by 40 percent — more than any other investor type. The category was down 17 percent from the first-quarter 2016.
A 29 percent decline between the fourth-quarter 2016 and the first-quarter 2017 was recorded for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But the GSEs saw a 33 percent year-over-year increase — more than any other investor type.
CRE loan originations for life insurance companies were down 28 percent from three months earlier but unchanged from a year earlier.
With a 19 percent drop from the final quarter of 2016, commercial banks had the smallest decline. Bank CRE lending, though, rose 11 percent from the same period last year.
Hotel lending plunged more from the fourth-quarter 2016 than any other property type: 58 percent. The category sank 40 percent from one year prior — the worst year-over-year performance.
Originations of loans secured by retail properties tumbled 48 percent from three months earlier and were down 23 percent from 12 months earlier.
A 39 percent month-over-month decline was reported for health care property loans, though the category was up 22 percent on a year-over-year basis.
Industrial property loan production retreated 37 percent from the last quarter of last year but jumped 40 percent from the first quarter of last year — the largest year-over-year gain.
Multifamily originations slowed by 29 percent from the prior period but rose 14 percent from a year prior.
Lending on office buildings was off 26 percent from the previous quarter — the smallest decline of any property type — and up 2 percent from a year previous.
