In 2008 and 2009 commercial real estate values fell from the largely artificially high levels achieved at the cyclical peak in 2007.  The various indices (NCREIF, MIT, Moody’s) have catalogued the declines at between 28 and 45 percent.

With diminished valuations, many owners have found their properties well under water with respect to their debt levels.  Goedecke & Co. was active in 2009 in helping owners or buyers recapitalize their assets:

An apartment community of 90 units was overburdened with $5 million in securitized first mortgage debt.  Goedecke & Co. instigated the transfer of the loan from the master servicer to the special servicer, achieved a commitment for a $2.050 million discounted payoff (DPO) and facilitated the arrangement of $2.200 million in new financing to pay off the original loan at a 60% discount.

A retail property owned by European pension investors suffered from an effective constant of nearly 10.7%, given that its remaining $16.9 loan balance was scheduled to self-liquidate over the 14 year remaining loan term.  Goedecke & Co was able to negotiate from the life company lender a 1% ($169,000) payoff in lieu of the $3.2 million in contractual yield maintenance penalty, thus reclaiming vital cash flow for the owners, who were not interested in leverage at the property level.

A Midwestern industrial portfolio of 1.9 million sq.ft. was in receivership.  A buyer had negotiated a purchase of the properties and seller financing from the special servicer in the amount of $32 million but had only $4 million of the $7 million in equity cash needed to recapitalize the assets.  Goedecke arranged the investment of the necessary $3.0 million from its investor clients.

A country club in Connecticut had an interest-only, $4.4 million B note that was scheduled to amortize over just 24 months, beginning in 2010.  Goedecke & Co. negotiated a new loan term to amortize coterminous with the remaining eight year term of the A note, in return for a new market interest rate but with manageable debt service over the new term rather than the previous constant of more than 50%.

2010 is bringing similar recapitalization assignments, with DPO’s, writedowns in return for fresh equity investment, and note purchase opportunities.