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PRIMEDIA’S NATIONAL REAL ESTATE INVESTOR RANKS BANK OF AMERICA AS THE No.1 DIRECT LENDER IN 2001
Results of the 11th Annual Top Lender Survey Indicate Growth in Lending Among the Multifamily Housing Market; Steady Decline in Office Property Lending
Atlanta, Georgia – April 8, 2002 – PRIMEDIA’s National Real Estate Investor, the leading source of information for commercial real estate professionals, announced today the results of its 11th Annual Top Lender Survey, awarding Bank of America the top spot with $21.6 billion financed in 2001 as a direct lender. The survey ranks the industry leaders among direct lending institutions and financial intermediaries, and for the first time includes a separate category to recognize the achievements of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under the heading of Government-Sponsored Enterprises.
“For over a decade, this in-depth survey has stood as a benchmark for performance in the field of commercial real estate as we identify and rank the leading players in the industry,” said Matt Valley, editor of PRIMEDIA’s National Real Estate Investor. “Our readers look to the Top Lender Survey to understand which organizations are currently impacting the lending market and to get a sense of what trends can be expected in both the short and long term.”
In addition to the rankings, an introduction to the survey includes information about the dominant industry trends from the past year, and indicates that overall lending in the multifamily housing market increased in 2001 while lending for office properties declined significantly. The steady cash flow generated by apartments makes the sector attractive to lenders. However, the high vacancy rate in the office sector has discouraged new development, resulting in a drop in lending for that property type. At the same time, the Top Lender Survey notes that several key items are likely to impact lenders in the year ahead, including the issues surrounding terrorism insurance coverage and rising interest rates.
With Bank of America leading the way among direct lenders, the other top five finishers in this category included:
- No.2 - Lehman Brothers
- No.3 - Credit Suisse First Boston
- No.4 - Goldman, Sachs & Co.
- No.5 - UBS Warburg
On the financial intermediary side, Bank of America again took the top honors, having arranged $33.4 billion in financing for commercial real estate in 2001. The following organizations rounded out the top five:
- No.2 – GMAC Commercial Mortgage Corp.
- No.3 - Goldman, Sachs & Co.
- No.4 - Holliday Fenoglio Fowler
- No.5 – L.J. Melody & Co.
PRIMEDIA’s National Real Estate Investor identified the top 50 performers in each of these two categories, and added a special section to highlight the lending totals of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The rankings are based on responses to the Top Lender Survey questionnaire and reflect total dollars financed or arranged in commercial real estate during the 2001 calendar year.
Additionally, with reference to statistics compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association of America (MBA), the Top Lender Survey takes a look back at last year’s lending trends and notes that lending for multifamily properties soared 33% for the year and multifamily loans accounted for 48% of all originations in 2001 vs. 43% in 2000. However, despite this growth in lending in the multifamily housing market, the MBA statistics indicate that lending for office properties dropped by almost $400 million.
PRIMEDIA’s National Real Estate Investor expects overall commercial real estate lending to continue to grow in the year ahead, but raises concerns about the impact that terrorism insurance and rising interest rates are likely to have on the industry as a whole in 2002.
A complete listing of the rankings and results from the 2002 Top Lender Survey can be found in the April issue of PRIMEDIA’s National Real Estate Investor, available on April 8, or by visiting www.nreionline.com.
About PRIMEDIA’s National Real Estate Investor
National Real Estate Investor is the leading authority on commercial real estate trends. The magazine’s readers represent a cross-section of disciplines — brokerage, construction, development, finance/investment, property management, corporate real estate, and real estate services. No other publication provides as much independent research on a variety of topics that pertain to the office, industrial, retail, hotel and multifamily markets as NREI.
About PRIMEDIA
PRIMEDIA is the new tradition in media. With 2001 sales of $1.7 billion from a unique combination of traditional and new media properties, it is the leading targeted content and integrated marketing solutions company in both the consumer and business-to-business sectors. The Company is the #1 special interest magazine publisher in the U.S., with more than 290 titles such as Seventeen, Automobile, Motor Trend, New York, Fly Fisherman, American Baby, Telephony and American Demographics; the #1 producer and distributor of specialty video with 18 satellite and digital video product lines, including Channel One Network; and the #1 news and information group on the Internet, led by About.com. PRIMEDIA's stock symbol is: NYSE: PRM. More information about the Company can be found at www.primedia.com >.
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