The Commercial Real Estate Lending Survey is conducted annually and provides an overview of lending conditions that impact commercial transactions nationally, based on responses from commercial real estate members. The 2012 survey shows that while commercial markets turned a corner in 2011, commercial lending standards have tightened in the past year for small businesses and have remained an obstacle to a major portion of contracted transactions for smaller properties.

Report Highlights

• Sixty-seven percent of REALTORS® found that the lack of available financing caused at least one transaction to fall through.
• Nearly 30 percent of smaller commercial properties were purchased with cash in 2011, reflecting the tight credit environment.
• More than half of respondents reported that the lending environment is just as stringent as a year ago, while 23 percent say it is more stringent; 20 percent say it is less stringent but not near historical averages.