Small balance lending demandhas taken off. Sabal Capital Partners is a leaderin this space, working with Freddie Mac's smallbalance loan program, which focuses on workforce housing. To keepup with the strong demand for small balance loan, defined as loanswith a value of $1 million to $7.5 million, Sabal has adoptedtechnology to create efficiencies, and it has become a cornerstoneof the firm's business. We sat down with PatJackson, CEO of Sabal Capital Partners to talk about thedemand for small balance loans and how the firm is leveragingtechnology to support the high demand.

GlobeSt.com: What has demand been like this year forsmall balance lending, and why?

Pat Jackson: Demand for commercialsmall balance loans has been exceptionally high year-to-date,following high volume in 2017, as well. There is currently a realneed for acquisition and refinance debt in the $1 million to $7.5million range, specifically for multifamily properties. Many ofthese properties are workforce housing located in, or near, majormetropolitan regions where employment is strong, populations arehigh, for sale homes are expensive and many are simply priced out.Freddie Mac's Small Balance (SBL) Program, which Sabal is a majorlender partner to, is designed to provide finance that willultimately keep these properties in play and affordable forAmerica's workers.