Banks And CRE Turmoil Worsens As Office Delinquencies Accelerate (Delinquency Rate Rose To 4.41% Last Month, Office Rose To 4.96%)

Its not a wonderful world for regional and small banks given the deterioration of office markets.

The latest data from Trepp, which tracks commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) securities market data, shows the delinquency rate of commercial property loans packaged up by Wall Street jumped again in July, with four of the five major property segments posting increases.

“While the rest of the US economy has seen relief in terms of higher equity prices, better-than-expected corporate earnings, and falling inflation numbers, the commercial real estate (CRE) market continues to be left behind,” Trepp wrote in the report.

Trepp data found the delinquency rate rose 51 basis points to 4.41% last month — the highest level since December 2021. Office delinquencies increased by 46 basis points to 4.96% — up more than 350 basis points since the end of 2022. The deterioration in the office segment is intensifying at an alarmingly rapid pace.

A broad overview of the US CMBS market shows the delinquency rate increased to 4.41%, a 51bps rise compared to the previous month, but still significantly lower than the 10.34% rate recorded in July 2012. The rate peaked at 10.32% in June 2020 during the government-forced Covid lockdowns.

Here are more highlights from the report:

Year over year, the overall US CMBS delinquency rate is up 135 basis points.
Year to date, the rate is up 137 basis points.
The percentage of loans that are seriously delinquent (60+ days delinquent, in foreclosure, REO, or non-performing balloons) is now 3.92%, up 20 basis points for the month.
If defeased loans were taken out of the equation, the overall headline delinquency rate would be 4.64%, up 51 basis points from June.
One year ago, the US CMBS delinquency rate was 3.06%.
Six months ago, the US CMBS delinquency rate was 2.94%.

To better understand what might come next for the CRE market, Kiran Raichura, Capital Economics’ deputy chief property economist, recently warned in a note to clients that the office segment might experience a 35% plunge in values by the second half 2025 and “is unlikely to be recovered even by 2040.”

According to swipe data from Kastle Systems, the US office occupancy rate is less than 50%. The figure has plateaued since September, indicating a new reality of remote work.

One major hurdle for CRE space is that “more than 50% of the $2.9 trillion in commercial mortgages will need to be renegotiated in the next 24 months when new lending rates are likely to be up by 350 to 450 basis points,” Lisa Shalett, chief investment officer for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, wrote in a note to clients.

Shalett expects a “peak-to-trough CRE price decline of as much as 40%, worse than in the Great Financial Crisis.”

Bank of America analysts expect challenges in the CRE space but noted, “They are manageable and do not represent a systemic risk to the US economy.”

Meanwhile, analysts at UBS warned:

“About $1.3 billion of office mortgage loans are currently slated to mature over the next three years.

“It’s possible that some of these loans will need to be restructured, but the scope of the issue pales in comparison to the more than $2 trillion of bank equity capital. Office exposure for banks represents less than 5% of total loans and just 1.9% on average for large banks.”

We’ve already seen major building owners returning their office towers and malls to lenders in California (here & here) and elsewhere (here). This will result in an uptick in CMBS delinquencies moving forward.

… and remember what we wrote during the regional bank crisis earlier this year — the note was titled “Nowhere To Hide In CMBS”: CRE Nuke Goes Off With Small Banks Accounting For 70% Of Commercial Real Estate Loans.

Meanwhile, The Federal Reserve is printing the night away.

Sam Cooke sang Joe Biden’s favorite song: “Only Sixteen.”

“So why did I give my heart so fast
It never will happen again
But I was a mere man of 80
I’ve aged a year since then.”

CRE Fire! Office Valuations Plummet As Fed Raises Rates To Fight Inflation (US Gross Domestic Income YoY Fell To -0.8% In Q1, NOT A Good Sign!)

Commercial real estate (CRE), particularly office space, reminds me of the Arthur Brown tune “Fire!” except that Jerome Powell of The Federal Reserve is the God of Hellfire! While fighting inflation caused by … The Federal Reserve and insane Federal spending (aka, Bidenomics). Call this the Over, Under, Sideways Down economy. The top 1% are doing quite well, while the lower 50% of net worth households are struggling.

The Q1 2023 NCREIF Office property (value) index shows declining office value since Q2 2022 as The Fed began raising its target rate to combat inflation.

From Trepp, we have this shocking table showing the decline the average total value loss over the span of around a decade. The oldest buildings experienced the largest reduction in value of 60%, and the newest experienced the least (but quite substantial) reduction of 52%. Although the newest buildings performed the best relatively, their 52% value reduction is easily the most concerning, and displays truly how much distress is present in the office sector. This group has the highest percentage of Class A buildings, but its reduction value over the past decade is still approximately on par with buildings constructed over half a century prior. With north of $150 billion in securitized maturities beyond 2023, these trends set a gloomy tone for their future and the performance of office properties as a whole.

Then we have this alarming headline from Trepp: “Commercial Mortgage Sector Faces Another Wall of Maturities as $2.75 Trillion Rolls by 2027.” An estimated $528.7 billion of commercial mortgages mature this year, according to Trepp data, which projects that next year, maturities will increase to $532.8 billion. The projections are based on data for the first quarter compiled using the Federal Reserve’s flow of funds and made various assumptions regarding loan terms for each of the major lender categories. The data would indicate that the market is facing a wall, if not a mountain of maturities that would make the 2015-2017 wall of maturities look almost inconsequential. During that period, roughly $1.1 trillion of loans were scheduled to come due. But attention was focused on the CMBS market, as more than $335 billion of loans were set to mature during the period.

Well, REAL gross domestic income fell -0.8% YoY in Q1 2023 as M2 Money growth crashes. Not a good sign for the US economy or commercial real estate.

Here is the Trepp Report on declining office values.

Of course, office properties are suffering from almost out-of-control crime in major American cities and the desire of workers to work from home rather than commute to work in cubicles.

But never fear! We have massively corrupt and compulsive liar Joe Biden as President!! He is the President of The 1%! Not the other 99%.

Call him Deep State Joe! The bully from Delaware.

Margin Accounts at Brokers and Dealers EXPLODES As CMBX Remains 30.5% Below Pre-Covid Levels (What Money Printing CAN’T Fix)

As we are all painfully aware, The Federal Reserve went on a 2nd money printing spree to allegedly stave-off the economic impacts of the COVID outbreak in March 2020. The first money printing spree took place in late 2008 as The Fed tried to stave-off the economic impacts of the housing bubble burst of 2008 and the ensuing financial crisis.

But for now, we have this horrifying chart showing the exploding margin accounts at security brokers and dealers (not, not the Walter White-type dealers, but Wall Street dealers). Notice the 400% surge in M1 Money stock after COVID struck.

Of course, the soaring stock market is feeding the margin loop, encouraged by The Fed. Check out the Shiller Cyclically Adjusted Price Earnings (CAPE) ratio after The Fed’s M1 printing storm.