Loan Origination Requests are Down Slightly in October, Cambridge Realty Capital Reports

CHICAGO, IL--With no end to the credit crisis in sight, loan origination requests processed by Cambridge Realty Capital Companies for the month of October were down slightly from the same month last year and loan dollar volume was off as well.

But year-to-date volume remained ahead of last year’s total for the same 10-month period, as senior housing/healthcare borrowers continued to try finding ways to get things done despite election year distractions, the stock market crash and all the pessimistic news impacting the economy, Cambridge Chairman Jeffrey A. Davis (top right photo) observed.

In October, Cambridge processed 24 origination requests totaling $278.1 million compared with 30 requests totaling $368.4 million for the same month last year. For the year-to-date, origination requests were down from 310 in 2007 to 286 this year.

However, year-to-date dollar volume of $4.3 billion in 2008 was ahead of last year’s total of $3.9 billion through October. Presumably, attempts to fund more expensive new construction activity is pushing this year’s volume totals higher, he speculated.

Davis points out that lenders close a relatively small percentage of the loan origination requests received, but believes it’s useful to track this information as an indication of market directions.

“What the numbers suggest to us is that the industry is dealing with a lot of bad news rather well,“ he said.


CONTACT: Evan Washington. Phone: (312) 521-7603. Fax: (312) 357-1611. E-Mail: ew@cambridgecap.com