U.S. Multifamily Lending Spiked 19 Percent in 2018 to Record High $339.2 Billion

Wells Fargo, CBRE Capital Markets, JP Morgan Chase top US multifamily lenders in 2018

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's annual report of the U.S. multifamily lending market, favorable market conditions helped spur a 19 percent increase in multifamily lending in 2018 to a new high in dollar volume.

Last year, 2,669 different multifamily lenders provided a record $339.2 billion in new mortgages for apartment buildings with five or more units. Forty-five percent of the active lenders made five or fewer multifamily loans over the course of the year.

"Borrowing and lending backed by multifamily rental properties set a new record in 2018, driven by strong property fundamentals, rising property values, low interest rates, and strong demand from both borrowers and lenders," said Jamie Woodwell, MBA's Vice President of Commercial Research and Economics. "We've seen these trends continue throughout 2019 and expect multifamily borrowing and lending will rise again both this year and next."

MBA's annual multifamily lending report is based on its surveys of multifamily lenders, as well as the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data, which covers multifamily loans made by many smaller lenders, particularly commercial banks.

The $339.2 billion in originated multifamily mortgages went to a variety of investors. By dollar volume, the greatest share went to the Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (42 percent).

The top five multifamily lenders in 2018 by dollar volume were Wells Fargo, CBRE Capital Markets, Inc., JP Morgan Chase & Company, Berkadia, and Walker & Dunlop.