An annual report from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) showed a record high level of multi-family lending for 2021.
In 2021, 2,215 different multi-family lenders provided a total of $487.3 billion in new mortgages for apartment buildings with five or more units, according to the MBA’s annual report of the multi-family lending market.
Last year’s $487.3 billion is a 35 percent increase from 2020’s total of $359.7 billion.
“Twenty-twenty one saw a record level of borrowing and lending backed by multi-family rental properties,” MBA Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research Jamie Woodwell said in the press release accompanying the report. “Strong property fundamentals, rising values and low interest rates all contributed to the jump in volume, as well as strong demand from every capital source to make multifamily loans. The mix of lenders in the data show the depth and diversity of the apartment lending market.”
Woodwell continued, “The first half of 2022 saw continued lending momentum, but significant changes in equity and debt markets – due to higher interest rates and economic uncertainty – have affected the demand and supply of debt. Our latest forecast anticipates that 2022 volume will fall 10 percent from last year’s record levels.”
MBA’s report is based on its surveys of the larger multi-family lenders and the recently released Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data that covers multifamily loans made by many smaller lenders, particularly commercial banks.
The $487.3 billion of multi-family mortgages originated in 2021 went to a variety of investors. By dollar volume, the greatest share (34 percent) went to depositories.
The top five multifamily lenders in 2021 by dollar volume were Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase & Co., Berkadia, Walker & Dunlop and CBRE.