Moody’s Investors Service is worried about increasing leverage in commercial MBS conduit deals, which reached peak levels not seen since 2007. Issuance of non-agency commercial MBS has been strong in recent years, boosted by demand for conduit deals. In a recent report, Moody’s noted that the credit quality of conduit deals continues to deteriorate, with the third-quarter pipeline indicating further increases to loan-to-value ratios derived by the rating service. The Moody’s LTV ratio on conduit CMBS hit...
If the pace continues over the second half of the year – and strong consumer demand for apartments suggests it will – 2015 would become the best year ever in agency multifamily MBS.
The enormous amount of capital flowing into the commercial real estate financing industry is the biggest factor that has shaped the market in recent years, according to Brian Stoffers, global president at CBRE Capital Markets. “It’s recognized as a good place to be if you’re an asset allocator, and it’s recognized as an institutional play with growth opportunities and cash flow,” he said speaking on a recent real estate panel in Miami. “So that kind of capital flow has driven [capitalization] rates lower.” Commercial real estate lending levels are exceeding...
An increase in short-term interest rates will have an outsized impact on commercial MBS among structured finance assets, according to Moody’s Investors Service. In a report released last week, the rating service said higher interest rates will be credit negative for existing deal performance and new issuance for commercial MBS and largely neutral for residential MBS and most ABS sectors. As interest rates rise, Moody’s said term default risk on loans backing new issue commercial MBS will increase because the loans’ debt service coverage ratios will be lower than the DSCRs at the time of origination of loans in outstanding deals. “Rates on loans backing new conduit deals will increase, thereby reducing DSCR in relation to a given property’s cash flow,” the rating service said. “New conduit deals are typically backed by loan pools that were originated no more than ...
Although the big three rating agencies have had a strong hold on rating commercial MBS for most institutional investors, the tides may be changing as bond buyers begin to relax their guidelines. Some of the largest bond buyers have been vocalizing frustration that the big three ratings firms, Moody’s Investors Service, Standard & Poors and Fitch Ratings, are being hired less, resulting in fewer bond offerings to choose from, according to a recent Bloomberg article. That’s good news for smaller ratings agencies like Kroll Bond and Morningstar. “We have proven...
A ruling late last week by the New York Court of Appeals will likely help provide certainty to non-agency MBS issuers regarding liability from breaches of representations and warranties while limiting claims from investors. The appeals court confirmed a lower court’s ruling in ACE Securities v. DB Structured Products, determining that the statute of limitations for claims of breaches of representations and warranties starts when a deal is closed – not when a potential breach is discovered. “Representations and warranties concern...
One problem with the (latest) refi boom ending is that some loan officers working at net branches start getting nervous and begin seeking better product menus elsewhere...
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority started publishing pricing data for a broad range of ABS this week in an effort to increase transparency. Industry participants suggest that the new disclosures will prompt a decrease in trading and have some impact on pricing. The ABS pricing details are available through the Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine and include deals issued as 144A private placements. “The dissemination of transaction information in ABS is...