CLS CRE Closed Deal Report
CLS CRE Closed Deal Report: Q1 2026
By Trevor Damyan, Commercial Mortgage Broker at Commercial Lending Solutions
Report number: Q1 2026 | Coverage period: January 1, 2026 to March 31, 2026 | Published: April 25, 2026
CLS CRE closed deal volume in Q1 2026 reflected a market regaining momentum after the rate-driven slowdown of late 2024. Total Q1 2026 closed volume aggregated across the CLS CRE pipeline was meaningfully higher than Q4 2025, with multifamily continuing as the largest vertical, industrial holding strong as the second largest, and meaningful contributions from specialty owner-user (SBA-financed) and senior care. Median time-to-close compressed modestly across all channels, particularly on bridge debt fund executions and SBA 504 owner-user acquisitions. Capital source mix in Q1 2026 favored agency multifamily, life co, and bridge debt fund, with SBA programs maintaining stable volume share.
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Section 1
Volume by Vertical
CLS CRE Q1 2026 closed deal volume aggregated by property vertical. Volume excludes any pending transactions and reflects only deals closed within the quarterly coverage period.
| Vertical |
Volume Share |
Median Deal Size |
Sample Profile |
| Multifamily (market-rate stabilized) |
32% |
$8.5M |
Class B garden multifamily, 24 to 80 units typical |
| Multifamily (value-add / transitional) |
12% |
$10.2M |
Class C value-add, 50 to 200 units typical |
| Multifamily (affordable / workforce) |
8% |
$15.4M |
LIHTC, workforce, NOAH preservation |
| Industrial (warehouse / distribution) |
14% |
$7.2M |
Class B industrial, 30,000 to 150,000 sq ft |
| Industrial (specialty / cold / IOS) |
5% |
$9.8M |
Cold storage, IOS, manufacturing |
| Specialty owner-user (SBA-financed) |
10% |
$3.4M |
Auto, daycare, fitness, restaurant, vet |
| Senior care |
5% |
$11.8M |
Assisted living, memory care, SNF |
| Office (Class A CBD / medical) |
4% |
$14.2M |
Trophy office, medical office building |
| Retail (grocery-anchored / STNL) |
5% |
$6.8M |
Grocery-anchored, drug store NNN |
| Hospitality |
3% |
$8.5M |
Select-service, boutique hotel |
| Self-storage |
2% |
$5.4M |
Climate-controlled, mixed product |
Key takeaways
- Multifamily across all sub-categories represented 52 percent of Q1 2026 closed volume, the highest share of any vertical group.
- Industrial volume share at 19 percent reflected continued institutional capital concentration in the asset class.
- Specialty owner-user (SBA-financed) at 10 percent reflected strong owner-operator acquisition activity across auto, daycare, fitness, restaurant, veterinary, and similar niches.
- Office volume held at 4 percent, dominated by Class A CBD and medical office; commodity office volume remained negligible.
- Retail volume at 5 percent was concentrated in grocery-anchored and credit STNL; non-credit retail remained constrained.
The vertical mix in Q1 2026 reflected continued strength in multifamily and industrial as the institutional core asset classes, supported by meaningful owner-operator activity in specialty SBA-financed niches. Office and retail remained constrained reflecting structural demand challenges, while senior care and hospitality maintained stable transaction volume.
Section 2
Volume by Capital Source
CLS CRE Q1 2026 closed deal volume by capital source channel. Volume reflects the senior debt component of each transaction.
| Capital Source |
Volume Share |
Median Deal Size |
Notes |
| Fannie Mae DUS |
16% |
$8.2M |
Conventional and Small Loans |
| Freddie Mac Optigo |
18% |
$7.4M |
Conventional and SBL |
| Life insurance company |
11% |
$22.5M |
Trophy multifamily, industrial, retail |
| CMBS conduit |
9% |
$15.8M |
Mixed-use, non-conforming multifamily, retail |
| Bridge debt fund |
13% |
$11.2M |
Value-add, lease-up, transitional |
| Bank balance sheet (regional / national) |
12% |
$5.8M |
Mid-market loans with depository |
| Specialty / community bank |
5% |
$3.2M |
Local market financing |
| SBA 504 |
8% |
$2.8M |
Owner-operator real estate |
| SBA 7(a) |
3% |
$0.9M |
Operating business + working capital |
| HUD 232 / 221(d)(4) |
2% |
$32M |
Senior care, workforce / affordable |
| Hard money / private capital |
2% |
$1.4M |
Fast-close, sponsor cure |
| Mezzanine / preferred equity |
1% |
$3.5M |
Capital stack gap (junior to senior) |
Key takeaways
- Combined Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac agency executions represented 34 percent of Q1 2026 volume, consistent with multi-quarter institutional multifamily concentration.
- Bridge debt fund volume at 13 percent reflected continued value-add and transitional financing activity, particularly in Sun Belt and Mountain West markets.
- SBA programs (504 + 7(a)) at 11 percent represented one of the most consistent owner-operator volume contributors.
- Life insurance company executions at 11 percent featured larger median deal sizes ($22.5M) reflecting the trophy and institutional concentration of life co allocations.
- Hard money and private capital at 2 percent reflected niche execution; the broader institutional bridge market dominated transitional financing volume.
The capital source mix in Q1 2026 reflected a maturing market where institutional channels (agency, life co, CMBS) dominated stabilized financing while bridge debt fund captured the transitional segment and SBA programs sustained the owner-operator niche.
Section 3
Geographic Distribution
CLS CRE Q1 2026 closed deal volume by metro market. Volume reflects deals closed in or for properties located in each metro.
| Metro Market |
Volume Share |
Concentration Notes |
| Los Angeles metro |
16% |
Multifamily heavy, including affordable / EDI / ED1 ground-up |
| New York metro (NYC + NJ + LI + Westchester) |
12% |
Multifamily heavy with rent-stabilized and 485-x exposure |
| Texas metros (Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, San Antonio) |
14% |
BTR, multifamily, industrial heavy |
| Florida metros (Miami, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville) |
9% |
Multifamily, hospitality, retiree-driven specialty |
| Sun Belt (Phoenix, Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville) |
11% |
Multifamily, industrial, BTR concentration |
| Mountain West (Denver, Salt Lake City, Boise) |
5% |
Multifamily and industrial growth |
| Pacific Northwest (Seattle, Portland) |
4% |
Industrial and multifamily institutional |
| Bay Area (San Francisco, San Jose) |
5% |
Multifamily and life sciences |
| Chicago metro |
4% |
Multifamily, industrial, specialty |
| Mid-Atlantic / Northeast |
8% |
Multifamily, retail, mixed-use |
| Other (multiple metros) |
12% |
Geographic diversification |
Key takeaways
- Texas metros (Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, San Antonio) collectively at 14 percent represented one of the largest geographic concentrations, driven by BTR, multifamily, and industrial activity.
- Sun Belt growth markets (Phoenix, Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville) at 11 percent reflected continued institutional capital flow into the region.
- Florida metros at 9 percent featured meaningful retiree-driven specialty activity (RV park, marina, senior care) alongside core multifamily.
- Los Angeles at 16 percent reflected the CLS CRE LA-headquartered concentration, with notable affordable / EDI / ED1 ground-up activity.
- NYC metro at 12 percent reflected significant multifamily activity including rent-stabilized refinances and 485-x ground-up structuring.
The geographic distribution in Q1 2026 reflected continued institutional capital concentration in Sun Belt growth markets and Texas, with traditional gateway markets (LA, NYC) maintaining meaningful share through specialty and structural activity.
Section 4
Time to Close
Median time from term sheet to close by capital source channel across CLS CRE Q1 2026 closed deals.
| Capital Source |
Median Days to Close |
Q1 2026 vs Q4 2025 |
| Fannie Mae DUS Small / Freddie Mac SBL |
38 days |
3 days faster |
| Fannie Mae DUS Conventional |
62 days |
Flat |
| Freddie Mac Optigo Conventional |
58 days |
2 days faster |
| Life insurance company |
72 days |
5 days faster |
| CMBS conduit |
78 days |
Flat |
| Bridge debt fund |
32 days |
4 days faster |
| Bank balance sheet |
55 days |
Flat |
| SBA 504 (real estate only) |
82 days |
8 days faster |
| SBA 504 + 7(a) combined |
92 days |
5 days faster |
| HUD 232 / 221(d)(4) (acquisition) |
395 days |
Flat |
| Hard money / private capital |
11 days |
1 day faster |
| Loan assumption |
44 days |
Flat |
Key takeaways
- Bridge debt fund close timelines compressed approximately 4 days versus Q4 2025 reflecting more efficient documentation workflows and lender competition.
- SBA 504 + 7(a) combined timelines compressed 5 days reflecting CDC and SBA processing efficiency improvements.
- Agency multifamily timelines held within historical norms with minor compression on Freddie SBL.
- HUD execution timelines held flat at approximately 13 months, reflecting the structural HUD review and approval process.
- Hard money and private capital remained the fastest execution channels at 11 days median, used selectively for tight close requirements.
Time-to-close trends in Q1 2026 reflected modest efficiency gains across most channels, with HUD timelines holding stable as expected given the structural review process. The competitive dynamics in bridge debt fund executions appear to be driving faster close cycles.
Section 5
Deal Size Distribution
CLS CRE Q1 2026 closed deal count distribution by deal size band.
| Deal Size Band |
Count Share |
Volume Share |
Notes |
| Under $2M |
8% |
1% |
Small balance specialty owner-user |
| $2M to $5M |
26% |
12% |
Owner-user, small balance multifamily, specialty |
| $5M to $10M |
28% |
20% |
Mid-market multifamily, industrial, specialty |
| $10M to $20M |
20% |
26% |
Mid-market institutional |
| $20M to $50M |
13% |
28% |
Institutional |
| Over $50M |
5% |
13% |
Large institutional |
Key takeaways
- The $5M to $10M deal size band represented the highest deal count share at 28 percent and 20 percent of total volume.
- The $10M to $20M band at 20 percent of count contributed 26 percent of volume, the highest weighted contribution of any single band.
- The Over $50M band at 5 percent of count contributed 13 percent of volume, reflecting concentrated large-deal contribution.
- Small balance specialty owner-user under $2M represented 8 percent of count but only 1 percent of volume, reflecting the smaller individual deal sizes.
- Distribution shape was consistent with multi-quarter patterns of mid-market concentration.
Methodology
How This Report Was Produced
This report aggregates data from the CLS CRE Q1 2026 closed deal pipeline. Volume metrics reflect the senior debt component of each transaction at close. Median deal sizes are calculated within each category. Geographic distribution is based on property location. Time-to-close is measured from signed term sheet to funded close. Sample size is sufficient for the aggregated metrics presented; specific transaction details are anonymized to protect borrower and lender identity. The pipeline is national in scope with deals across approximately 35 metros and substantially all major capital source channels. Data is collected internally from CLS CRE deal management systems.
Detailed methodology, data definitions, and sample composition are documented at /research/methodology.html.