Lender Link Report | February 2025

In this episode of the Private Lending Insights Podcast, I provide some of my own insights about what’s happening in private lending, my predictions for 2025, an update on what’s happening at Lender Link, the conference circuit for this year and more.

Summary of Private Lending Insights Episode 7

This episode is Rocky Butani’s Lender Link Report for February 2025.

Recap of 2024 in Private Lending

• 2024 was a strong year for most private lenders, despite high interest rates.
• Some lenders struggled with loan volume compared to previous years.
• DSCR loans (Debt Service Coverage Ratio loans) accounted for about 20-40% of most lenders’ portfolios.
• Short-term lending (rehab, bridge loans, ground-up construction) remained the majority.
• The commercial and multifamily sectors faced challenges and did not see record loan volume.

Loan Defaults and Market Trends

• Majority of defaults were maturity defaults (borrowers unable to refinance).
• Payment defaults were less common but problematic for borrowers without equity.
• Forcasa platform now provides extensive private lending data (loan volume, transactions, foreclosures).
• Future episodes will include more data-backed insights with collaboration from Lightning Docs, Liquid Logics, and SFR Analytics.

Why Private Lending Thrives in Any Market

• Private lending remained resilient despite a struggling real estate market.
• Rocky entered private lending in 2009 during a recession, recognizing its stability.
• New lenders continue to enter the industry, but questions remain on whether demand will sustain long-term.

Predictions for 2025

• Private lending expected to remain strong.
• Interest rates unlikely to change significantly in the short term.
• Securitization market is expanding, leading to more available capital.
• Average private lending rates in 2024 were around 11%, with a possibility of dropping to 10-10.5% later in 2025.
• DSCR rental loan volume should stay strong, even if rates remain high.
• Growing trend in wholesale lending (white-label programs, table funding, broker programs).
• We will soon launch a new wholesale section to feature lenders offering wholesale programs.

PrivateLenderLink Updates

• Increased website traffic and continued strong engagement.
• Building an AI-powered lender recommendation system:
  • Will allow users to enter loan details and receive instant lender recommendations and quotes.
  • Requires extensive knowledge base training, lender database restructuring, and user interface development.
  • Significant undertaking, but progress is underway.

Private Lending Industry Conferences

• Rocky is scaling back attendance to focus on AI project.
• Overview of top private lending conferences:
  • NPLA (National Private Lenders Association) – 3 events per year.
  • LeverageCon (National Lending Experts) – 3 events per year.
  • Fortra Law Conferences (Innovate & Captivate) – 2 events per year.
  • Private Lender Expo – Rocky has not yet attended.
  • American Lending Conference – March event in Henderson, NV.
  • California Mortgage Association – Strong focus on California private lending.
  • AAPL (American Association of Private Lenders) – Annual event in November (Rocky has attended every year since 2013).
• Our website has a dedicated page listing private lending conferences for 2025.
• We plan to create a monthly-updated securitization resource on the site.

New Lenders Added to PrivateLenderLink.com

• KeyPoint Credit Union – First non-private lender listed; offers 5- to 10-year commercial real estate loans in 40+ states.
  • No prepayment penalties.
  • Loan amounts: $1M – $10M.
• Spectra Lending – Bridge lender specializing in land and cannabis-use properties.
  • Interest rate: 2.5% per month.
  • Loans: $750K – $10M in 20-25 states.
• WeLend – New York-based lender specializing in residential investment and multifamily loans.
  • Focus on New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Philadelphia.
  • One of the few lenders actively lending in NY despite its foreclosure laws.