While some lenders are writing risky UK development loans, they are unlikely to destabilise the lending market, writes Mark Bladon of Investec Structured Property Finance
An uptick in acquisition financing, borrowers addressing debt needs ahead of Brexit, and an aversion to lending to retail are among the trends emerging from the latest report on UK property lending.
We might be at a late stage of the property cycle, but capital providers are determined to find routes into the market.
Almost a decade since the launch of the Spanish equivalent to the REIT regime, listed property vehicles are creating significant business in the debt space.
Lower bank lending volumes, the dominance of investment banks in emerging markets and growing pools of capital in the non-bank sector; clear trends emerged while compiling the latest Europe’s Top 40 Lenders.
Lending to a singular alternative real estate sector means a firm must be ready to underwrite a property type’s unique risk and demonstrate specialist expertise.
The far-right surge in Sweden’s election might not be a direct hazard for real estate investors and lenders, but it is a symptom of potentially damaging European political unrest.
On the 10th anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the real estate debt industry is in better shape, but lenders can never become complacent again.
A sector-wide dump of property is scheduled between now and 2020. The period will be a litmus test for the asset class.
Commercial real estate is a global investment market, meaning myriad factors – from trade wars to hedging costs – threaten to upset the sector’s smooth running.