Merchants Capital

NEW YORK (Feb. 18, 2020) – Mortgage banking company Merchants Capital today announces the hiring of Evan Gibson as Vice President of Debt Strategies. Gibson brings with him a diverse background in capital markets and commercial real estate to Merchants Capital. Most recently, Gibson served as the head of a direct lending platform for a top HUD lender, with a focus on health care and multifamily asset classes, which included both value-add and stabilized properties. Gibson is a graduate of the University of Washington with a degree in mathematics. In his new position, Gibson will lead Merchants Capital’s Debt Strategies group, which will focus on developing both bridge and permanent debt solutions outside of the typical balance sheet and agency landscape. Based in the company’s New York City office, Gibson will work collaboratively with Merchants’ originations, credit and capital markets teams to roll out these new solutions to clients. “When we look around an increasingly competitive agency lending marketplace, our company needs to continue to find ways to deliver innovative products to our customers,” said Brian Sullivan, COO of Merchants Capital. “Evan’s deep experience and key contacts will support the growth of this new channel, giving our producers more tools in their kit to find industry leading solutions for their clients.” Gibson is also a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, where he was a Team Leader at 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion. In 2009 he deployed to Now Zad in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province as both a Reconnaissance Marine and Scout Sniper. “I’ve been fortunate to see all sides of multifamily and health care agency execution, which has taught me just how critical the need is for innovative approaches to these deals in the marketplace. I am looking forward to developing the unique alternatives that will be key to our growth,” Gibson said. “The team at Merchants shares my vision to lead the industry with the client’s needs first in mind.” To learn more about Merchants Capital and its services, visit www.merchantscapital.com or find Merchants Capital on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

We are thrilled to announce that Merchants Capital CEO Michael Dury has been named to the Indianapolis Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 list. This list consists of local business and professional leaders who have achieved success and excelled in their field before the age of 40. Those who have demonstrated leadership, initiative and dedication in pursuing their careers, and who are likely to continue such achievements in the future, all make up this prestigious group of recipients. Dury received his MBA from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business and started working at Merchants Capital shortly after graduation. At just 35, Dury is one of the top loan originators nationwide. His personal loan production value is on par with some of the top lending firms in the U.S. Our CEO is a pillar in the Indianapolis community and the state as a whole. His efforts have been highly influential in the financing and creation of many notable market-rate and affordable multifamily properties around Indiana, including a recent first-of-its-kind loan to preserve and renovate affordable housing for the low-income residents of Carriage House, a Section 8 housing development in Evansville. A local powerhouse who has spent his entire career at Merchants Capital, Dury has helped grow the company from a humble team of eight to 100 employees across four offices (Carmel, New York City, St. Paul and Chicago), in addition to leading acquisitions and bringing in talent to establish those high-production locations. In September, we cut the ribbon on our $25 million, 120,000-square-foot headquarters in the City of Carmel’s Midtown district – a commitment to the long-term, sustainable growth in the state that Dury played a pivotal role in. One of his most notable triumphs was announcing that we were named No. 10 on the Top 25 U.S. Affordable Lenders of 2018 list by Affordable Housing Finance. Additionally, we have been named one of the Best Places to Work in Indiana four years in a row. Dury’s career in the Indianapolis market has been one of immense growth and leadership. From his first role overseeing a small team to helping Merchants Capital become the billion-dollar corporation it is today, he is unstoppable. Above all, his ability to build relationships with developers, keep promises to bring safe, new and affordable housing to low-income individuals around the nation, and seeing opportunity when others see obstacles separates our CEO from all others. Read his IBJ profile here. To see the full list of nominees, click here.

As we approach the midpoint of 2019, one of the most surprising market developments has been the resurgence of the bond bull market. Yields on US 10 Year securities which is viewed as the benchmark rate for GNMA project loan securities, are currently hovering at 2.14%. For perspective, those levels were last seen September of 2017 and since that point there have been FIVE fed funds rate hikes by the FOMC. Furthermore, over the last six months, we’ve experienced over a 100 basis-point drop in 10 Year yields. To say this would be a surprise to market participants at the beginning of the year would be an understatement. In a Bloomberg survey taken 11/9/2018, the average 2019-year end forecast for the 10 Year Treasury was 3.45%, with most of the market believing there would be two hikes in 2019. As with most market predictions, this may serve as good reminder to take it with a grain of salt. A few factors are behind this resurgent bond market. Geopolitical tensions continue to produce headlines daily. The inability of the U.S and China to reach common ground over the yearlong “Trade War” has lead to lower expectations for global economic growth. According to a study prepared by Trade Partnership Worldwide, if all tariffs proposed by the U.S were implemented, combined with Chinese retaliation, it is estimated to curb U.S GDP by (~1%) annually. Meanwhile, this period of uncertainty has led to a flight to quality in safe-haven assets, which has acted as a catalyst for the bond market rally (yields fall as bond prices rise). Other risks abroad include, a dimming outlook for Euro area growth, potential fallout from Brexit proceedings, and mounting tensions between the U.S and Iran in the Middle East. Another more recent development that could cause some concern would be the commingling of political issues with economic policy as seen with the U.S threatening to place tariffs on Mexico if they are unable to take more action on U.S immigration. With regards to monetary policy, the Fed continues to preach patience going forward. Despite not hitting its 2% inflation target, the U.S economy seems to be on solid ground as we near the later stage of its expansion cycle. However, policy makers are now in the market’s crosshairs, as virtually the entire yield curve is below the fed funds rate and the likelihood of an interest cut in July 2019 is 78% while December 2019 is above 90%. While inflationary data may not support a cut, going forward it will be interesting to see if the FOMC deviates away from its data driven decision making and bows to market forces. After a tumultuous start to the year due to the government shutdown, GNMA project loan securities have come back to life, as investors have tightened spreads ~15 basis points since January. Strong demand looks likely to stay as prepayment speed assumptions tick up. Broker dealers; who provide capital to this space, largely have clear balance sheets and appetite to do deals, feeding the natural supply and demand fundamentals needed to keep spreads in check. We continue to see strong demand for Agency products regardless of spikes in market volatility and lower yields. Spreads on shorter term DUS paper have held firm year to date, while we’ve seen some tightening farther out the curve as more investors are trying to get their hands on yield. Merchants Capital Corp. (MCC) has originated and closed more than $13 billion in loans since its inception in 1990 and now services more than $10 billion. Merchants Capital Markets group serves as a conduit between MCC customers and the real estate capital markets by marketing GNMA and FNMA securities directly to Wall Street in order to obtain the best execution.

CARMEL, IN – Mortgage banking firm Merchants Capital has secured $51 million in agency funding for a homeless shelter in the Crown Heights neighborhood of New York City on behalf of Heights Advisors, a leading social impact investor, and Samaritan Daytop Village (SDV), a nationally-recognized human services organization. The project – known as 267 Rogers - embodies an emerging model that New York City is utilizing to eradicate homelessness in the future. Through the Freddie Mac Affordable Housing Capital Markets Execution (CME) Loan Program, this transaction represented an opportunity for Merchants Capital and Freddie Mac to establish themselves as a key counterparty and partner in financing public-benefit multifamily buildings that serve residents most in need. “It has been deeply gratifying to work on the deployment of capital on a project that allows homeless families to live in dignity,” said Mathew Wambua, executive vice president at Merchants Capital. “Projects like 267 Rogers allow the Merchants Capital team to be creative and innovative in solving problems and seeking new financial strategies and structures to solve those problems while serving an immediate need right here in our community.” The property was effectively built as a 165-unit multifamily development under the typical 80/20 structure in New York City. This property is unique, however, in that rather than renting 80% of the units to market-rate tenants, they instead partnered with the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) and SDV to offer transitional housing to homeless families. Thus, the entire property offers affordable housing wherein, 80% of the units are reserved for transitional housing and the remaining 20% are set aside for families earning 60% of the area medium income (AMI) or below. Through the partnership with SDV, the property is able to offer supportive services to all tenants, including employment and job readiness services, daily living workshops, and personal financial management, as well as education and child care assistance programs. “It is a priority for us to contribute and be responsive to the communities we work within. We are excited to work with Steve Banks and the DHS staff to create fully-integrated, quality housing for families in need,” said Rachel Foster, principal and founder of Heights Advisors. “We greatly appreciate the financing the Merchants Capital team was able to provide. We look forward to continuing to work alongside the city and those in the private and nonprofit sector to bring new solutions to the housing crisis.” In April 2016, Mayor de Blasio announced a major restructuring of the way homeless services in New York City are delivered, creating an integrated and streamlined management structure for DHS and the Human Resources Administration (HRA) under the commissioner of the Department of Social Services. The Mayor’s new anti-homelessness plan represents a paradigmatic shift from the way in which previous administrations have mobilized to combat chronic homelessness, transitioning out of the 360 scattered apartment sites and commercial hotel facilities and replacing them with approximately 90 new multifamily transitional housing shelters. New York City plans to open approximately 20 new multifamily transitional housing shelters annually in the next five years to reach its goal of opening approximately 90 new shelters. 267 Rogers represents one of the first multifamily transitional housing shelters that has been developed as the cornerstone of the new mayoral plan.

We are pleased to announce the promotion of Emmett Donovan to FHA Deputy Chief Underwriter!  This is an incredible accomplishment and one that takes years of hard work and perseverance. As a former Vice President at Draper and Kramer Commercial Mortgage Corp., Emmett successfully underwrote all types of FHA loans and helped produce over $1 billion in HUD insured loans. In his capacity at Merchants, Emmett serves as Senior Vice President and as a voting member of the FHA Loan Committee. Emmett Donovan Emmett is a graduate of the University of Kansas and holds an MBA in Finance from the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business at DePaul University. CONGRATULATIONS EMMETT! EMMETT DONOVANSENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, FHA DEPUTY CHIEF UNDERWRITERChicago, Illinois

CARMEL, Ind. (April 18, 2019) – Leading mortgage banking company Merchants Capital today announces the opening of a production office in Chicago, located at 131 S. Dearborn St. in The Loop – the company’s fourth office nationwide. Lee Oller has been hired as executive vice president to lead the Chicago team. Oller brings 26 years of experience as a Chief and LEAN Underwriter and has produced more than 350 closed transactions involving the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) loan platforms. She brings a deep understanding of FHA, multifamily and affordable housing that will allow Merchants Capital to grow its local presence in Chicago and regionally across the Midwest. “Merchants Capital is well known in the industry for its passion for multifamily and affordable housing,” Oller said. “The biggest draw to joining Merchants was the ability to diversify our lending products especially Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The additional tools at our disposal, along with Merchants commitment to growth and innovation with the support from its banking operation, Merchants Bank, made the decision easy because of the direct benefit to clients.” Joining Oller in the new Chicago office are four senior vice presidents: Susan Schnoll, Alan Cravitz, Brian Black and Emmett Donovan. Schnoll is recognized in the Wisconsin market for her HUD lending knowledge. Cravitz, Black and Donovan bring more than 80 years of combined multifamily lending experience to the team. “This veteran team complements each other and has worked together for many years,” said Oller of the employees joining her in the new Chicago office. “Our expansion to Chicago with this talented group is a very meaningful step in increasing our national lending footprint,” said Michael Dury, president of Merchants Capital. “Lee’s ability to lead is remarkable. We are very excited to introduce her team to our diverse lending products that will allow them to offer a wide variety of solutions.” This expansion follows Merchants Capital’s announcement that it is now servicing more than $10 billion in loans and was named No. 10 on the Top 25 Affordable Lenders of 2018 list by Affordable Housing Finance. The company continues to seek driven employees for a number of positions in all four offices, including New York City and Saint Paul, Minnesota. For career opportunities, visit our careers page.

To our valued customers, Since opening our doors in 1990, the Merchants Capital team has worked tirelessly to become nationally recognized as a leader and premier provider and servicer of multifamily, senior and student housing. Recently, our hard work and commitment was recognized by Affordable Housing Finance. We’re proud to announce that Merchants Capital was named in the Top 10 Affordable Housing Lenders of 2018!This accomplishment is evidence of our commitment to advancing affordable housing nationally and ranks us among the top affordable lenders in the country. In 2018 alone, our originations team closed 207 loans and generated nearly $2.6 billion in new loan production nationwide.  That included $1.10 billion in affordable housing, demonstrating a 146 percent increase in affordable housing production compared to 2017. Over the past 28 years, Merchants Capital has originated and closed more than $13.8 billion in loans. Thank you for your continued support and loyalty. We wouldn’t be where we are today without your commitment to Merchants Capital. Sincerely, Michael R. Dury, President, Merchants Capital WE ARE MERCHANTS CAPITAL A Multifamily, Affordable, and Healthcare Lender offering a direct way to access fixed rate, long-term, non-recourse financing via our bank, Merchants Bank, all with a single point of contact.

Developments to provide more than 650 affordably priced units for NYC residents CARMEL, IN (Mar. 29, 2019) – Mortgage banking firm Merchants Capital has secured financing for two affordable housing developments, totaling more than $180.6 million, in the New York City area: MEC 125th Street and Caton Flats. Both transactions executed a novel risk-share structure between Merchants Capital, Freddie Mac and New York City Housing Development Corporation (NYCHDC) as the local housing finance agency. These risk-share loans are structured as permanent forward commitments to take out the new construction loans. “The creativity of these two transactions is unparalleled. We are incredibly thankful to our partners at Freddie Mac and NYCHDC for their inventiveness, as well as to our clients for their commitment to ensuring the development of truly transformative projects,” said Mathew Wambua, executive vice president at Merchants Capital. “These projects are a testament to our continued mission to provide quality affordable housing to workforce and low-income families.” Located in East Harlem, MEC 125th Street is a 19-story, 404-unit mixed-use, mixed-income complex that will bring much needed affordable and market-rate units to this revitalized neighborhood. In coordination with NYCHDC, New York City Housing Preservation and Development (NYCHPD), New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYC EDC), Freddie Mac, Citi Community Capital, Blank Rome LLP and Sidley Austin LLP, MEC 125th Street is key in providing greater affordability to residents in Manhattan. The development was financed through a $120 million, 35-year Freddie Mac Forward Commitment loan secured by Merchants Capital on behalf of The Richman Group Development Corporation. “We are excited to be partners in what will be a remarkable addition to thriving East Harlem and to be part of the community,” said Kristin Miller, president of The Richman Group Development Corporation. “This is the culmination of the efforts of many talented people and organizations, as well as over 10 years of hard work and perseverance. It will be amazing to see this project come to fruition.” Fifty percent of the project’s apartments will be offered at rents ranging from 37 percent of the area’s annual median income (AMI) to 80 percent AMI. An additional 23 percent of units will have rents ranging from 130 percent AMI to 145 percent AMI, and the remaining 27 percent will be market rate. The development site is conveniently located one block from the 125th Street Subway and two blocks from Harlem 125th Metro North Station, providing easy access throughout the city and the greater New York Area. The second development, Caton Flats, is the much-anticipated revitalization of the Flatbush Caton Market (FCM), a destination of Caribbean commerce, entertainment and culture in New York City. The approximately 280,000-square-foot, 255-unit project is being developed by BRP Development, Urbane Development and the Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CACCI) in coordination with the NYCHDC, the NYCHPD, NYC EDC, Freddie Mac, Citi Community Capital, Blank Rome LLP and Sidley Austin LLP. Loan proceeds will fund the development of mixed-income housing, ground floor retail, space for community groups, a business incubator, and a new home for the Flatbush Caton Market. Merchants Capital secured the loan through the new Freddie Mac Non-LIHTC Forward Commitment on behalf of BRP Development Corporation. Non-LIHTC forwards are unfunded, forward commitments for affordable housing developed by nonprofits and subsidized, rent-restricted affordable housing that for-profit developers can use for their new multifamily construction or substantial rehabilitation projects. “The financing secures the future of Caton Flats as an incredible source of affordable housing and economic opportunity for community residents and entrepreneurs,” said Andy Cohen, director of development for BRP Companies. “In addition to providing the neighborhood with much-needed housing, Caton Flats will also serve as a center of commerce, entrepreneurship and culture for Flatbush and the surrounding community.” Ten percent of the Caton Flats apartments will be priced affordably at 37 percent AMI. Fifteen percent of the units will be set at 57 percent AMI, and another 25 percent set at 90 percent AMI. The other half of the Caton Flats apartments will have rents capped at 130 percent AMI.

CARMEL, Ind. (Mar. 29, 2019) - Mortgage banking firm Merchants Capital announces today that it has reached a major milestone. As of Dec. 28, 2018, Merchants Capital, formerly PR Mortgage & Investments, now services loans in excess of $10 billion for Merchants Bank and other investors. Since its inception in 1990, Merchants Capital has originated and closed more than $13.8 billion in loans. In 2018 alone, Merchants Capital closed approximately 207 loans and generated nearly $2.6 billion in new loan production nationwide. In 2017, the company closed more than $1.7 billion in new loans. “We are extremely proud of our servicing teams for their continued commitment to providing the highest quality of service to our borrowers,” said Michael R. Dury, president of Merchants Capital. “Reaching this milestone is not only a testament to our highly driven team, but also to our valued customers who trust us and our skilled expertise in providing a direct way to access financing via our bank, Merchants Bank, with a single point of contact.” Merchants Capital provides servicing for a variety of loan types – including Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA – to meet the needs of a diverse portfolio of affordable, multifamily and healthcare housing loans. The company’s team of professionals specialize in managing the needs of multifamily and healthcare facility loans, providing skilled expertise to investors and borrowers. This milestone comes on the heels of the company’s rebrand to Merchants Capital, which renewed and elevated the company’s commitment to providing and servicing multifamily housing. Merchants Capital also recently announced its new $25 million, 100,000 square-foot headquarters in Carmel, Indiana, opening in 2019. The development will bring an estimated 150 bank employee jobs to the Carmel Midtown area.

Merchants Bancorp has once again been named by S&P Global Market Intelligence as the #1 Best-Performing Community Bank in the State of Indiana for 2018, #6 nationally. Rankings are based on financials year ended December 31, 2018 for banks with $3B to $10B in assets. See the rankings at S&P Global.