News & Publications
» Overview of Loan Servicers' Roles & Modification Requests
July 3, 2009 - Commercial real estate owners that financed their properties over the last several years are facing significant issues in their ability to satisfy loan covenants and continue meeting debt service obligations. Loan modifications and other concessions are, or soon will be, required to avoid a default and foreclosure. Identifying and obtaining the needed modifications that will likely be agreed to by the lender or servicer involves complex analysis with which few borrowers are familiar. This process is significantly more complicated when the loan has been securitized and the borrower must navigate the complex process of dealing with master, primary and special servicers to obtain the desired outcome. Further information on the loan servicers' roles and ARH's proven approach to achieve the needed modifications are discussed in greater detail in the following article, Overview of Loan Servicers' Roles & Modification Requests
» Loan Servicing Issues? ARH Delivers for Borrowers.
May 21, 2009 - ARH is assisting borrowers on a wide variety of problems they are encountering with their loan servicers. Currently, servicers are overwhelmed with reviewing property financial statements and evaluating debt service coverage failures or other performance breaches along with the complexity of implementing cash management procedures to take control of property cash flows and the disbursements of funds for operating expenses. Your loan is among hundreds of others that your servicer is dealing with in addition to the significant influx of distressed, defaulted and non-performing loans. To get results you must be proactive, understand your rights and obligations under the controlling loan documents and understand how to move your loan to the top of the servicer's list. ARH's team leverages its legal and loan underwriting experience along with established senior level contacts at loan servicers to protect your interests and get results where borrowers have otherwise been unable. For a summary of recent successes assisting borrowers with loan servicing issues see Servicer Success Stories.
» Current Financeable Hotel Deal Parameters
May 2009 - Lenders are utilizing significantly more conservative underwriting standards and deal structures when evaluating the financing of hospitality assets. In the face of double digit RevPAR declines over the the last year with further declines expected across all markets and chain scale classes, lender's are reducing leverage and raising in-place minimumm DSCR requirements along with adopting far more conservative deal terms and structures that had eroded over the last decade. Each deal stands on its own merits and enjoys its own unique credit risks and risk mitigants but if your deal satsifies the parameters listed in the Current Financeable Hotel Deal Parameters Guide, ARH's team will find you financing.
» Operating & Reserve Account FDIC Coverage
February 18, 2009 - During the course of 2008 38 community, regional and national banking institutions failed and were either seized by the FDIC or brokered to another institution on an emergency basis. The FDIC has realized claims of over $15 billion under its deposit insurance program and 13 additional banks have already failed since January 1, 2009. The FDIC modified its insurance programs for personal and commercial deposit accounts last October to extend coverage but commercial real estate investors' operating and reserve accounts may still be at risk if held by an institution that fail. The Client Advisory Memo - FDIC Programs addresses the potential risks, provides information to assess the health of your bank and suggests solutions to protect the full balance on deposit.
» Borrower Services Overview
Winter 2009 Edition - Over the next several weeks all borrowers will be reviewing their 2008 year end results and preparing the financial statements required by lenders. Every asset class in every geographic market has seen some level of performance deterioration whether in RevPAR for hotels or rents and occupancy levels for multifamily, office and retail while operating expenses such as taxes, labor and utilities have been escalating.
Your lender or servicer will be conducting a detailed review of the financial statements you provide for 2008 and will be reunderwriting the loan based on the trailing 6 or 12 month operating results per their underwriting criteria to evaluate whether certain low DSCR, Debt Yield or other performance tests have been triggered allowing the lender to take control of property cash flow oftentimes cutting off management fees on owner managed properties.
ARH's experienced team sharing both banking and legal backgrounds are expert in assisting borrowers with preparing the required financial reporting materials, conducting a current underwriting analysis and serving as a liaison with the lender or servicer in ensuring that their review and underwriting is correct, consistent with applicable standards and is not manipulated to allow the lender to take control of your property cash flow. Please see the Borrower Services Brochure for a more detailed explanation of the services ARH can provide including Tax Assessment Analysis, Discounted Loan Payoff or Loan Restructuring Analysis and Modifications.