Scaling The Power Of A World-Class Institution For The D.C. Multifamily Market
When JPMorgan Chase Client Manager Greg Werly looked to close a financing deal with a client acquiring three apartment buildings in Alexandria, Virginia, Werly had the national Commercial Term Lending team on his side. Backed by JPMorgan Chase’s certainty of execution, speed and local knowledge of the Washington market, JPMorgan Chase took the client from contract to commitment in just 29 days, significantly faster than the 60 to 90 days typical for the industry.
The deal speaks to the institution’s understanding of clients’ needs and pain points, and its long-term commitment to the D.C. multifamily market.
“D.C. has all of the ingredients for success,” JPMorgan Chase Head of Commercial Term Lending for the Northeast Kurt Stuart said. “You have urban infill, a vibrant local economy and a healthy renter population. It is a strategic growth opportunity, and we are focused on building our capabilities to be the simplest bank for our clients to do business with, irrespective of what point in the real estate cycle we are in.”
JPMorgan Chase provides term financing from $500K to over $25M for the purchase or refinance of stabilized apartment buildings across 13 major markets in the U.S. The commercial term lending platform provides nonrecourse balance sheet loans at 30-year terms. JPMorgan Chase complements its loan offerings with application simplicity and cost-effective execution. A big part of that process involves partnering with clients who are themselves experts in the local market.
“Most of our clients are locally based owner/operators, and our team’s boots on the ground approach mirrors that,” Werly said. “We regularly tour communities and buildings and meet with clients to ensure that we’re speaking the same language and have deep knowledge of the submarkets.”
JPMorgan Chase and its clients leverage that knowledge to adjust to shifting trends in the multifamily sector. In D.C., sales volume has softened in favor of refinancing, JPMorgan Chase Regional Sales Manager Will Oehler said. This created an opportunity for Werly to work with borrowers to explore putting money back into their buildings and building wealth.
Many of the multifamily owners JPMorgan Chase has worked with in D.C. purchase property with the intent of passing it down to the next generation. The commercial term lending team gives borrowers a hassle-free way to plan for the future.
“Our clients are business people and they need to plan, and in order to do that, they need certainty,” Oehler said. “Greg’s clients can be confident that in 35 to 45 days, what was issued in a term sheet is going to come to fruition. That certainty is invaluable in a market with interest rate volatility and all sorts of headwinds.”
The Feel The Free campaign is an example of how JPMorgan Chase seeks to deliver a better and easier loan process. Feel The Free waives four major costs for borrowers: lender legal, appraisal fees, processing fees and Uniform Commercial Code filing costs. JPMorgan Chase also brought back its retention product feature, which allows customers to return after 24 months to refinance without any prepayment costs.
Both are part of the institution’s goal to create a streamlined process that reduces paperwork and delays so borrowers can close on time.
“Feel The Free and JPMorgan Chase's retention feature are great examples of how we are consistently looking at our solution set, and finding ways to innovate it to create a better client experience,” Oehler said.
Like its clients, the JPMorgan Chase team is invested in the D.C. market. Beyond commercial term lending, the institution launched a $10M, three-year investment to help drive inclusive economic growth in underserved D.C. neighborhoods, most notably in Wards 7 and 8.
As part of this investment package, $5M is being awarded to a D.C.-based collaborative of Community Development Financial Institutions to address racial and economic disparity through the firm’s $125M PRO Neighborhoods annual competition. The competition encourages CDFIs to align talent, technology and capital to revitalize underserved neighborhoods around the U.S.
A strong leadership team ties these services together. Stuart, who is several months into his role as head of commercial term lending Northeast, has been with JPMorgan Chase since 2015. Oehler also brings years of experience to the table. Both serve as conduits between Werly and the national team as he leads the charge in D.C.
“Will's and my focus is to take the broad capabilities of the firm and make sure Greg has access to all those tools and the support he needs to deliver locally for our clients,” Stuart said. "That’s really what leadership is about for us.”
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