The delinquency rate for commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) rose by 35 basis points to 6.65% in March, according to new data from Trepp Inc. Year-over-year, the overall CMBS delinquency rate is up 198 basis points from 4.67%.
Last month, the overall delinquent balance was $39.3 billion, up from $36 billion in February.
“Prior to this month, the overall rate had fallen for two consecutive months,” said Vivek Denkanikotte, Trepp research associate. “It is now back up near its four-year high. One driver of the increase was the multifamily sector, which is up 98 basis points in March to 5.44%. The multifamily rate has now climbed 360 basis points over the past year, from 1.84% to its current level – the highest the rate has been since December 2015, when it stood at 8.28%.”
Denkanikotte added, “On the loan level, the largest newly delinquent loan was a massive multifamily portfolio loan with an outstanding balance just under $1 billion.”
Among the other property sectors, only the office delinquency rate was in decline in March with a two basis point dip to 9.76%. The industrial delinquency rate increased 26 basis points to 0.60%, the lodging delinquency rate increased 76 basis points to 7.19%, and the retail delinquency rate increased 33 basis points to 7.82%
