Hunt Mortgage Group's entry into CLOs is in keeping with an emphasis on new products which Flynn identified in a 2016 interview with GlobeSt.com. “Certainty of execution is important for borrowers, and that's why we're consistently working with several partners to develop products that will provide that certainty to borrowers,” Flynn said last September. “And I think there will be a market for some of those on a permanent basis.”

Earlier this year, Hunt Mortgage launched HFX, a fixed-rate loan product that's intended to provide an alternative to CMBS conduit loans. With loan sizes ranging from $7.5 million to $25 million, HFX provides seven-year terms with spreads locked in at the time of application

NEW YORK CITY—Hunt Mortgage Group said Friday it had closed on its first commercial real estate collateralized loan obligation, Hunt CRE 2017-FL1. It will finance approximately $350 million of Hunt Mortgage Group-originated floating-rate bridge loans.

James Flynn, president and CIO at New York City-based Hunt Mortgage, calls the debut CLO “a major milestone” for the company. It provides the company with “a predictable and stable source of long-term non-recourse balance sheet financing which will serve to supplement our existing warehouse lines.”

The CLO transaction entailed selling approximately $291 million of investment-grade notes to 15 different institutional investors. Hunt Mortgage is retaining the first loss non-investment grade piece of just under 17%. The deal provides for a replenishment period for primarily multifamily assets, giving the asset manager, Hunt Investment Management, the ability to replace collateral with qualifying Hunt Mortgage loans as existing deals mature or pay-off.

The securitization effort was led internally by the head of the company's proprietary lending business, Mike Becktel, managing director at Hunt Mortgage Group. “We were very pleased with the execution, and believe the levels achieved are a clear reflection of the strength of the collateral as well as the overall platform,” Becktel says.

Hunt Mortgage Group's entry into CLOs is in keeping with an emphasis on new products which Flynn identified in a 2016 interview with GlobeSt.com. “Certainty of execution is important for borrowers, and that's why we're consistently working with several partners to develop products that will provide that certainty to borrowers,” Flynn said last September. “And I think there will be a market for some of those on a permanent basis.”

Earlier this year, Hunt Mortgage launched HFX, a fixed-rate loan product that's intended to provide an alternative to CMBS conduit loans. With loan sizes ranging from $7.5 million to $25 million, HFX provides seven-year terms with spreads locked in at the time of application