Hanley’s $1.11B Retail Run: Leverage & Progress 📈

Table of Contents

• Renewal Strategy Play

• Latest News

• Property Management Upgrade Move

Life Company Capital: Reprice, Re-Risk & Still De-Risk

Life insurers are changing from the purely safest money to massed allocators, tightening spreads and embracing CM2 risk as $805.5B in 2026 originations collide with $875B of maturing commercial mortgages. For borrowers, that means more life company options and structures. With more scrutiny on risk, documentation, and sustainable portfolios.

3 quick steps:

1. Map your lender stack by risk appetite: Segment banks, debt funds, agencies, and life companies, are tagging each by CM1–CM3 for comfort, bridge appetite, and modern asset exposure.

2. Time maturities into advancement era: Aligning the current and future 2026–2028 maturities with life company allocation boosts & restructures, prioritizing refis making insurers 2x capital.

3. Design a dual‑track structure: Pair fixed‑rate, non‑recourse life company term debt with targeted bridge tranches to cover lease‑up, repositioning, and capex while keeping exit paths open.

Expected result: 

Owners transfer from binary leftovers refis to a more calibrated capital stack where life companies standardize durable, low-risk term debt, while expanding as CM2 flexibility unlocks yield, restructures hassle, and protects sustainable plans through passing cycles.

🏢 Hanley’s $1.11B Retail Boost Powers Executive Promotions

Corona Del Mar’s retail sales leader Hanley Investment Group encourages Dylan Mallory to EVP, Brad Dessy and Sean Cox to SVPs, leveraging Midwest precision, SoCal-Texas reach, and coastal deals execution. This is supported by 2025’s record $1.11B across 208 transactions in 33 states. Amplifying their client-driven national strats. See full article.

Why this matters (fast take):

• 📈 Record volume, leadership lift: $1.11B sales, 3.2M sq ft, 208 deals with a 20-year high, taking in Q4’s 94 in only around 90 days.

• 🎯 Retail edge sharpened: Mallory’s repeat Midwest intel, Dessy’s cross-market collab, Cox’s lifecycle mastery drive advisory wins.

🏦 Life Companies: The New Risk‑Calibrated Lenders in CRE

Life insurers are boosting CRE allocations, embracing CM2 risk, and nudging into modern-times assets as 2026 originations are projected to jump 27% to $805.5B with capital still stacked. Historically conservative, they grew CRE volume 23% in 2025 while tightening spreads and using bridge capital to lift short‑term yield. See full article.

Fast move:

• 📊 Risk turned up, not loose: Allocations are rising, some life cos targeting nearly 2x 2025 capital as Moody’s tracks migration.

• 🧮 Yield with guardrails: Residential mortgage‑backed exposure is nearing 4% of invested assets with prepayment & extension risk.

🏘️ Multifamily Heat Cools as Vacancies Climb

NAHB economists flag a cooling rental cycle as a record 7.3% national multifamily vacancy rate collides with fresh supply, softening rents in metros like Phoenix and Tampa while constrained markets like New York and Chicago hold firmer. Sales rose 15% in 2025 and completions hit a 38-year high, comparing pre-pandemic norms. See full article.

Fast move:

• 📉 Vacancies up, values reset: Rents are easing in supply-heavy metros, vacancies are climbing, and multifamily values at 28%.

• 🏗️ Starts down, big builds dominate: Starts are projected to slip through 2027 even as more than 50+ unit buildings lead completions.

Vacancy-Era Ops: Turn 7.3% Empty Units into an Advantage

NAHB flags a cooling multifamily cycle with a record 7.3% vacancy rate, values 28% below 2022 peaks, and a 38-year high in completions as new supply meets softer demand. Rents are weakening in supply-rich metros like Phoenix, Tampa, and Las Vegas while staying firmer in constrained markets such as Chicago, New York, and Philadelphia.

3 Steps to Roll This Out:

1. Rebuild your demand and pricing map: Segment assets by metro supply, track rent rolls versus vacancy, and reset rents & concessions where pressure is highest.

2. Operationalize “high-completion” discipline: In flooded and 50+ unit markets, speed turns, refresh standards, and sharpen amenities before discounting.

3. Prioritize retention over replacement: Structure renewals for versatile renters, pair upgrades with measured rent moves, use MPI/MOI signals to stay ahead.

Expected result: 

Teams move from absorbing the 2026 cooldown to running a vacancy-aware strategies that protects NOI, stabilizes occupancy, and keeps assets competitive as starts slow and vacancy records stays scarce.

📊 Take This Edition’s Poll: