In a letter to Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Ranking Member Richard Shelby (R-AL), NAA/NMHC and others are urging lawmakers to carve out an exemption for commercial real estate in proposed financial reform legislation.
Specifically, NAA/NMHC are asking lawmakers to allow third-party investors—or B-piece buyers—of commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) to satisfy any risk retention or “skin-in-the-game” requirements imposed by reform. NAA/NMHC successfully secured such an exemption in the House of Representative’s financial reform bill (H.R. 4173) that passed last December. That bill requires CMBS issuers to retain 5 percent of the deal on their books, but recognizes B-piece buyers as meeting that requirement as purchasers of the first-loss position.
The letter is available at http://bit.ly/b6LXph. NAA/NMHC will continue to advocate against any “one-size-fits-all” provisions that would unnecessarily restrict credit to the apartment sector.