NEW YORK (Reuters) - The amount of U.S. commercial real estate loans outstanding increased 5.8 percent in 2016 from a year earlier to $2.96 trillion with loan growth nearly matching property appreciation, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Tuesday.
The level of commercial mortgages outstanding increased by $46 billion or 1.6 percent in the fourth quarter from the third quarter, the Washington-based industry group said.
“Commercial and multifamily mortgage debt outstanding grew roughly in line with property values in 2016,” Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research, said in a statement.
Property values appreciated by 8 percent in 2016, surpassing their pre-recession levels, he said.
Multifamily debt outstanding rose to $1.14 trillion at the end of last year, up 9.6 percent from 2015. It grew 2.4 percent in the fourth quarter from the third quarter, according to the MBA.