US Commercial and Multifamily Borrowing Increases in Q1

On Thursday, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported that commercial and multifamily mortgage loan originations were 52% higher year-over-year in Q1 but declined 30% from 2025Q4, according to its Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations.

MBA said the year-over-year increase in lending activity was driven by higher originations for healthcare, retail, hotel, industrial, and multifamily properties. The dollar volume of loans for healthcare properties increased 209% from a year earlier, while retail originations rose 148%, hotel lending increased 85%, industrial lending climbed 56%, and multifamily originations advanced 49%. Office property loan originations decreased 2% from Q4.

Among investor types, the dollar volume of loans for investor-driven lenders increased 133% year-over-year. Loan originations for depositories rose 80%, while government-sponsored enterprise lending—including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac—increased 38%. Life company loans rose 9%, while commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) loans declined 14%.

Commenting on the report, MBA Associate Vice President of Commercial Research Reggie Booker said:

“Commercial and multifamily originations increased 52% on an annual basis in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting a meaningful rebound in lending activity. The most notable increase was the 80% rise in depository lending, driven in part by the large volume of bank-held loans maturing this year and the need to refinance those positions. While overall activity declined from the fourth quarter of 2025, that slowdown is consistent with typical first-quarter seasonality and does not detract from the broader improvement in market conditions.”