{"id":1004792036,"date":"2026-03-18T08:16:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T16:16:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/?p=1004792036"},"modified":"2026-04-14T03:19:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T11:19:35","slug":"cmbs-whos-winning-and-whos-losing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/cmbs-whos-winning-and-whos-losing\/","title":{"rendered":"CMBS: Who’s Winning, Who’s Losing?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Sarah Helwig<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The commercial real estate market continues to rally, with activity levels not since before the Global Financial Crisis. At the same time, distress among legacy loans continues to rise, highlighting a widening gap between the good and the bad. In 2025, issuance of commercial mortgage-backed securities reached $125 billion, up 19 percent year over year and more than triple 2023 levels. Yet Morningstar Credit\u2019s reported special servicing rate climbed to 10.7 percent in December 2025, up from 9.7 percent in 2024 and 7.2 percent in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a high level, this divergence reflects a fundamental shift in what is getting financed now compared to a decade ago. Property types such as data centers have surged in prominence, accounting for a growing share of new issuance. Office transactions are still occurring, but asset quality has become a major differentiator, with capital flowing to newer buildings with strong credit tenants, while older, functionally obsolete assets languish for years in special servicing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Property type matters<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even though office assets represent the largest share of loans in special servicing, they continue to be the most common property type in new deals\u2014accounting for more than a quarter of all loans originated in 2025. However, the office properties appearing in recent transactions look different from those sitting in special servicing. Specially serviced offices tend to be older, Class B\/C assets, often in buildings that cannot easily be modernized. New deals are dominated by modern, Class A, LEED\u2011certified buildings with long leases to high-quality tenants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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CPE Capital Markets Newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Executive Editor Therese Fitzgerald delivers the capital markets intel that moves the needle.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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