Commercial real estate lending

Lower borrowing costs, reduced exposure to the urban office sector and flattening vacancy rates could collectively save lenders from beleaguered corners of the commercial real estate market.

Treasury yields rose the day after President-elect Donald Trump was picked. The short-term result: It's harder for commercial real estate lenders and borrowers to find common ground.

The added capital will help the New Jersey-based regional bank reduce its commercial real estate footprint faster and give it wiggle room to grow elsewhere, analysts said.

Affiliates of real estate company Tishman Speyer and investment firm Henry Crown & Co. are selling $3.4 billion of commercial mortgage-backed securities in a deal that's expected to price Thursday.

The regional bank has already seen a large reduction in "criticized" loans, and it expects that trend to pick up as lower borrowing costs alleviate the pain in the commercial real estate sector.

First Foundation in Dallas recently got a $228 million capital injection led by Fortress Investment Group. Now it's announced plans to pivot away from its heavy focus on multifamily loans, which lost value as interest rates rose.

Dean Wheeler will drive the firm's growth push in the U.S. and follows the London firm promoting Serenity Morley to COO, to drive growth globally.

Commercial real estate-related angst explains about 80% of issuer-level spreads in the US investment-grade debt market, with lenders with lower exposure generally trading tighter.

Washington Trust shares plunged after the Westerly, Rhode Island, company disclosed it booked an office deal in the third quarter, boosting the size of its portfolio while other lenders are pulling back.

The company sold debt in three parts, according to a person familiar with the deal, including selling more of an existing bond due in 2053. The reopening of the 30-year bond yields 1.6 percentage point over Treasuries.