Bloomberg

Even as demand rises, Western producers aren’t keen on expanding.

With the purchase of mortgage lender Foundation Home Loans, Athene will pick up a $4.2-billion portfolio of mortgages.

Across the U.S., cash purchases accounted for 30 percent of home sales from January through April, on track with 2015 levels.

The deal builds on two initiatives by Blackstone: to build permanent capital through an expansion into insurance, and to pursue lower-cost rentals for its CRE business.

VineBrook Homes Trust, which operates more than 13,500 SFRs, has held discussions with advisers about going public.

The cost of hotel and motel accommodations in the U.S. surged 7.9 percent in June from a month earlier, the second-largest gain on record, according to the Labor Department.

The firm offered to take over the industrial REIT for $18.70 a share, in a rival bid to Sam Zell’s Equity Commonwealth.

Barry Sternlicht’s investment firm has been selling malls across the U.S. at money-losing prices.