"The low interest rates that prevailed for most of the year helped us and the rest of the industry tremendously, but right now we are not seeing a pent-up demand" for new financing in 2003, Twitty/Orlando president Mark L. Findura tells GlobeSt.com. "The screen is a little blurry" for 2003.

Findura projects that his company--and possibly the rest of the industry--will be down 10% to 20% in loan production next year. "There aren't many (investment) players sitting on the sidelines" with loan applications for new projects, Findura says. "The (commercial real estate development) market has really slowed down."

"There is ample money available in the lending community but lenders are becoming more strenuous" in qualifying borrowers and their projects, the mortgage banker tells GlobeSt.com.

For example, in the last 30 days alone, Findura says the amount of loan applications is down 50% from the previous month. Still, for the first 45 days of the new year, Twitty/Orlando will be closing on $64 million in new permanent and equity loans. After that, the rest of the year will be "a question mark," Findura says.

His firm booked $165 million in the first and second quarters of this year, $100 million in the third quarter and $93.2 million in Q4. Third-quarter production comprised $83 million in apartment financing; $18.52 million in retail loans; $2.9 million on a single industrial property; and $4.85 million on two office-property loans.

Twitty/Orlando is closing two loans today for $19.2 million and $5.1 million. Foxfire of Auburn, AL is receiving $19.2 million from Archon Financial, a Goldman Sachs company based in Dallas. The 10-year permanent financing is on the 282-unit, 24-acre, 94%-leased Key Isle Apartments on McGuire Road in metro Orlando's Ocoee/Windermere submarket. Monthly rents at the class A property are $695 to $1.290.

The interest rate is 5.5%. "That tells you what kind of a market this has been in 2002," Findura says. Brokers Rod Reppe and Bob Thaggard represented Archon.

Throughout the year, interest rates have ranged largely from 5.5% to 6.25% or 160 to 200 basis points over corresponding Treasury bonds. Terms generally were five to 10 years with 30-year amortization periods and loan-to-values of 75% to 80%.

In the second closing, Archon provided a $5.1 million permanent loan to USA Realty Fund II on the 78,000-sf, 13-acre Riverwalk Publix Shopping Center in Newport Richey, FL.