Industries

A new report on bank-held commercial real estate and C&I loans indicates troubled borrowers may be skipping payments on loans they won't be able to refinance or extend over the next year, leading to a potential wave of defaults over the next four to six quarters.

Blackstone Group, which led Wall Street's initial foray into the single-family rental business, is making a new investment in suburban houses at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is pressuring traditional commercial real estate.

Commercial real estate deals have been in a deep freeze as lenders give borrowers slack to defer payments and landlords are reluctant to drop asking prices.

The transaction is the first in two years for MidCap, which provides startup and expansion financing for biosciences/healthcare and technology firms backed by VC and private equity.

The industry’s turmoil, including 'strategic options' being pursued by corporate debt obligors like Transocean and Seadrill, has sparked the biggest wave of restructurings since 2017, when the effects of the last oil price downturn reverberated through the industry.

Borrowers will likely have to put more assets on the line to get forbearance extensions.

But the 30-year fixed remains below 3%, which should continue to support increased demand.

The global pandemic and stalled trade negotiations have discouraged farmers and ranchers from taking on more debt and made banks uneasy about extending more credit.

No two properties are alike, so lenders are tailoring their approaches for modification, forbearance and repayment of loans to a sector devastated by the pandemic.

Mortgage rates fell 2 basis points this week, remaining near their historic lows as they have for the past month with the markets roiled by uncertainty, according to Freddie Mac.