The CRE refi market is tough as anyone in the business knows at this point. But the dual explanation of interest rates being high and many lenders — banks in particular — tightening standards and even pulling back from the markets is still fuzzy.

CRED iQ did some data analysis to get a better numeric understanding of at least one mechanism in place based on the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR). Rather than looking at a rate range the Federal Reserve sets for the federal funds rate, this is "a broad measure of the cost of borrowing cash overnight collateralized by Treasury securities," as the Federal Reserve Bangk of New York explains. Unlike the old LIBOR measure, the data is based on collected transaction costs and not self-reported numbers that banks could manipulate for gain.

The firm mentioned that floating rate CRE loans are a challenge when interest rates are rising, which makes sense. Unless an investor, developer, owner, or operator has planned ahead, the increasing rate tide means a good chance that whatever floating rate a plan has anticipated won't be enough.