U.S. Commercial, Multifamily Mortgage Debt Reaches $3.5 Trillion

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's latest Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Debt Outstanding quarterly report, the level of commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding in the U.S. rose by $45.4 billion (1.3 percent) in the first quarter of 2019. Total commercial/multifamily debt outstanding climbed to $3.46 trillion at the end of the first three months of the year. Multifamily mortgage debt alone increased $17.9 billion (1.3 percent) to $1.4 trillion from the fourth quarter of 2018. "Mortgage debt backed by commercial and multifamily income-producing properties continues to grow at a strong pace, with three of the four major capital sources - banks, life companies, and the GSEs and FHA - growing their holdings by more than one percent during the first quarter of 2019," said Jamie Woodwell, MBA's Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research. "REITs, finance companies and nonfinancial corporate businesses also showed strong appetites last quarter, with each growing their holdings by more than $1 billion. The depth and breadth of growth among investors signals the interest in the sector."