The red-hot CRE investment market should continue into 2022 as new capital enters the fray and inflation mounts—and the question is whether the lending industry can keep up with the frenetic pace. 

"Sellers will continue to drive terms and command short escrow periods for top-notch properties," writes Rob Murphy, Vice President of Structured Finance and Capital Markets at Transwestern, in a recent blog post.  And while the lending industry is facing pressure to deliver quick closing, "the commercial real estate debt market is firing on all cylinders," he says.

"Individual property transactions, fueled by low interest rates, have been trending near record levels for the last few months. However, the impressive pace of deal activity following a year of deliberate caution is causing headwinds for commercial real estate lenders," Murphy notes. "Current staffing shortages, vendor backlogs, and the larger supply chain issues are placing additional stress to closing timelines that lenders routinely met in the past. While it could take time for these issues to iron themselves out, users of acquisition debt are in a tough spot given they're competing with all-cash buyers in this seller's market for the best properties."