Emerging Technology

January 22, 2015

When asked about the important emerging technologies in the marketplace, Tom Fink replies, “I think we still have a long way to go before technology is really a factor in the commercial real estate market space. But, I think it’s still an exciting time…There is a lot of room to grow."

He comments that commercial real estate still really loves its paper and its spreadsheets, but there has been more of an initiative to put the information on the internet so people can have access to it. The broker community seems to be a very popular target audience but he is starting to see more and more technologies that are targeted to help people that rent a lot of space in the market.

Transcript

EISNERAMPER:It's my pleasure today to introduce Tom Fink, Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Trepp LLC. Trepp was founded in 1979 and is the leading provider of information analytics and technology to the commercial mortgage backed securities, commercial real estate and banking markets. Welcome Tom. We see that the Trepp last week sponsored a CRE tech intersect. What are the other emerging technologies that we see are important in the marketplace?
Tom Fink:Well, I think one of the things that we see in the technology space, Aaron, is that first of all, commercial real estate still really loves it's paper and it’s spreadsheet, but we are beginning to see a lot more efforts and a lot more initiatives to put the information that makes real estate Martin's clip on the Internet so people can have access to it.

So again, people are still trying to serve the broker community. That seems to be a very popular target. Though, we're starting to see more and more technologies that are really targeted to the tenants and the people that, you know, rent a lot of space in the market to help them do that. We're also beginning to see the emergence of crowdsourcing and internet raising of capital, so it's no longer but a big pitch book together. Go to one institution after another, talk to your friends and neighbors. It's put it up on the website and let people come in and take advantage of the crowdsourcing. So I think we still have a long way to go before technology is really a factor in the commercial real estate market space, but I think it's still an exciting time. I still think there's a lot of room to grow.

EISNERAMPER:Thank you very much for your insights and thought leadership.

Tom Fink: It was my pleasure. I've always liked working with you and the folks at EisnerAmper.

EISNERAMPER:Thank you so much. For more information, go to EisnerAmper.com.

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More in This Series

Government Sponsored Organizations

What role are government-sponsored organizations playing in the real estate market today? Tom Fink stresses that government-sponsored agencies are still very important factors in today’s real estate marketplace.

Non Performing Debt

What is the change in the level of non-performing debt and which way is the trend going? Tom Fink discusses the delinquency severity breakdown, saying “we’ve seen a real decline in the overall level of delinquencies in the market.”

NY Delinquency Rate Performance

How is the New York metropolitan real estate investment market doing? Tom Fink discusses the tri-state area commercial mortgage-backed security delinquency rates. It shows that New York State is outperforming its cohorts in NJ and PA.

Higher Interest Rates

Would a rise in interest rates affect the coming wall of maturities? Tom Fink states that if interest rates were to go up substantially that would provide an issue for the marketplace because of the uncertainty of the volatility.

Trends in the Various Lending Classes within Real Estate

In terms of safety and risk, what trends can be seen in the different lending classes? Tom Fink thinks credit standards have loosened over the last two to three years as more money becomes available and borrowers get better terms and conditions.

International Question

After discussing New York, Tom Fink discusses markets around the world from an equity perspective and how there's an awful lot of money is still available for pursuing equity investments in real estates around the globe in terms of debt.

Domestic Findings

The New York real estate market is doing relatively well. How is New York doing compared to the country as a whole? Tom Fink illustrates by showing the nation sectioned into regions and shows the delinquency rate in each region.

Future Trends in the Real Estate Market

Tom Fink discusses the estimated upcoming commercial real estate debt maturities with annual maturities by lender type. The last 3 years have shown a continued erosion of the amount that’s due in 2016 and 2017 as people pre-pay loans.

Current State of the Market

The real estate industry has made a strong rebound since 2009 – it’s healthy, back on its feet and active. Rates continue to be at a historic low and there is still a huge amount of stimulus outstanding.