Blackstone Mortgage Trust and Walker & Dunlop (NYSE: WD) have entered into a joint venture to originate, hold and finance multifamily bridge loans.
Walker & Dunlop, one of the nation’s largest non-bank originators of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development loans, will contribute 15 percent of the venture’s equity capital and BXMT will contribute 85 percent.
The joint venture’s floating rate, first mortgage loan product targets assets prior to their eligibility for permanent agency financing. This comprises an addressable market estimated to be upwards of $20 billion.
Steve Plavin, BXMT’s chief executive officer, said, “Walker & Dunlop’s market leading multifamily and agency loan footprint makes it an ideal partner for us as we seek to help borrowers bridge their financing until an agency take out. We are very excited about the increase in investment volume that the joint venture will provide for BXMT.”
Walker & Dunlop chairman and CEO, Willy Walker, added, “The JV with BXMT will allow us to significantly expand our bridge lending business better serving our client base’s vast demand for capital and unlocking growth potential commensurate with the scale of our agency origination business.”
Blackstone Mortgage Trust is a real estate finance company that originates senior loans collateralized by commercial real estate in North America and Europe. The turst is externally managed by BXMT Advisors, a subsidiar yof The Blackstone Group, one of the world’sleadinginvestment firms, with over $360 billion in assets under management.
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Walker & Dunlop is one of the largest commercial real estate services and finance companies in the United States providing financing and investment sales to owners of multifamily and commercial properties.
