Multifamily, commercial lending slow amid credit crunch

Commercial and multifamily mortgage loan originations remained low in the third quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations, released Nov. 13.

Third-quarter originations were 53 percent lower than during the same period last year, and the year-over-year decrease was seen across all property types and most investor groups, according to the survey.

When compared to the third quarter of 2007, the overall 53 percent decrease included an 87 percent decrease in loans for hotel properties, a 61 percent decrease in loans for office properties, a 59 percent decrease in loans for health care properties, a 39 percent decrease in loans for industrial properties, a 30 percent decrease in multifamily property loans, and a 30 percent decrease in retail property loans.

Among investor properties, conduits for commercial mortgage-backed securities saw a significant decrease of 93 percent.

There also was a 71 percent decrease in loans for commercial bank portfolios, and a 27 percent decrease in loans for life insurance companies. The dollar volume of loans for government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac saw an increase of 15 percent.

"Uncertainty stemming from the credit crunch, and now the deteriorating economy, has led to a continued pull-back among both lenders and borrowers," said Jamie Woodwell, MBA's vice president of commercial real estate research, in a news release.

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