Commercial Real Estate Poses Risk to Small and Regional Banks

According to the Wall Street Journal, U.S. banks doubled their commercial real estate (CRE) lending between 2015 and 2022, with many loans originated by small and medium-sized banks. According to WSJ analysis, bank’s total exposure to CRE—including indirect exposure such as bank lending to CRE financial companies, investments in CMBS, and foreclosed CRE properties owned by banks—is approximately $3.6 trillion. The refinancing cycle for CRE has been impacted by falling property values and rising interest rates leading to several notable defaults this year.

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