MBA: Originations climb in fourth quarter

LAS VEGAS - Fourth-quarter 2009 commercial and multifamily mortgage loan originations were 12% higher than during the same period last year and 15% higher than during the third quarter of 2009, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations.

“Commercial and multifamily mortgage originations picked up in the fourth quarter, but remain at a low level in absolute terms,” said Jamie Woodwell, vice president of commercial real estate research at the MBA.

“The trend shows stability coming back to the market, but the pick-up in volumes really indicates just how low origination levels had fallen.”

The 12% overall increase in commercial/multifamily lending activity during the fourth quarter was driven by increases in originations for all property types except multifamily. When compared to the fourth quarter of 2008, the increase included a 105% increase in loans for hotel properties, a 101% increase in loans for retail properties, a 59% increase in loans for industrial properties, a 4% increase in loans for office properties, a 1% increase in health care property loans, and an 8% decrease in multifamily property loans.

Among investor types, loans for life insurance companies saw an increase of 112% compared to last year’s fourth quarter. There was also a 17% increase in loans for commercial bank portfolios, an 82% decrease in loans for conduits for CMBS, and the dollar volume of loans for Government Sponsored Enterprises (or GSEs - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) saw a decrease of 26%.

Fourth quarter 2009 mortgage originations were 15% higher than originations in the third quarter 2009. Among investor types, loans for commercial bank portfolios saw an increase in loan volume of 39% compared to the third quarter 2009, loans for life insurance companies saw an increase in loan volume of 35% compared to the third quarter 2009, conduits for CMBS decreased by 50% during the same time span, and originations for GSEs decreased 15% from the third quarter to the fourth quarter 2009.

Compared to the third quarter of 2009, fourth quarter originations for health care properties saw a 58% increase. There was a 34% increase for retail properties, a 30% increase for hotel properties, a 19% increase for industrial properties, a 4% increase for multifamily properties, and a 12% decrease for office properties.