“Multifamily borrowing and lending remained strong in 2020, despite the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Jamie Woodwell, vice president of commercial real estate research at MBA. “Robust financing for properties increased refinancing activity through government-backed loans, and consistent mortgage availability from banks led the market to a level of mortgage originations that was essentially flat from the record year of 2019.”
Almost half (46%) of the $359.7 billion of multifamily mortgages originated last year went to mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The top five multifamily lenders in 2020 by dollar volume were Walker & Dunlop, Berkadia, CBRE, Wells Fargo, and Greystone.