2015 Year in Review - Mark Misto

What was your most notable project, deal, transaction or professional achievement in 2015? Every deal is unique and interesting but an $8.25 million loan secured by a fully leased office building on Bronx Blvd. comes to mind. The tenancy at the property includes social service companies and medical offices that complement the Montifiore Wakefield Hospital Campus located four blocks away. The borrower needed to close as soon as possible after signing a Time of the Essence purchase contract. We were able to underwrite and fund the transaction in a time frame that met our borrower’s needs. What real estate project, transaction, market trend or product had a significant impact on your industry in 2015? Clearly the biggest market trend that has impacted our industry is simply the sheer number of transactions happening in New York City. (http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/nyc-commercial-real-estate-sales-set-all-time-record-article-1.2299081)   The transaction volume is so strong and the pace is very quick. New York real estate investors need reliable capital sources with the ability to close quickly, or they routinely miss out on deals here. Traditional banks are continually slowed by increased regulation and NYC borrowers generally can’t afford to wait months to a close a loan, or risk waiting for the bank to choose not to close a loan at all. The rise of the non-bank lender is certainly a trend in New York. How will you be supercharging your productivity in 2016? We will be focusing on larger transactions ($5-15 Million). We are also in the process of hiring more staff, originators and analysts to expand our production capacity in the coming year. What emerging trends will drive investment and development in 2016? Increased volatility and uncertainty in the stock market continues to make real estate an attractive alternative. Despite how much activity we’ve seen in the past several years, there are still large swaths of the outer boroughs that are ready for redevelopment. We look forward to financing those acquisitions and renovations as investors start to refocus in the Bronx and Queens.