Year in Review: BSA's 2025 Milestones and 2026 Outlook

Year in Review: BSA's 2025 Milestones and 2026 Outlook

As we close out 2025, it is worth reflecting on what has been a transformative year for Barrow Street Advisors and the broader commercial real estate market. From market recovery to firm growth, 2025 has set the stage for an exciting 2026.

2025 Firm Highlights

Record Activity

Deal Volume: BSA arranged over $6 billion in financing across 120+ transactions in 2025

Average Deal Size: $50 million, reflecting our focus on institutional-grade transactions

New Client Relationships: Expanded our sponsor base by 30% with new institutional clients

Repeat Business: 75% of volume from existing client relationships

Geographic Expansion

Chicago Office: Opened in July 2025, providing dedicated coverage for the Midwest market

London Planning: Finalizing plans for our London office, expected to open in early 2026

National Reach: Executed transactions in 28 states plus Washington, DC

Notable Transactions

$400M Multifamily Portfolio: Arranged agency financing for a 3,200-unit portfolio across 6 Sunbelt markets

$175M Industrial Acquisition: Sourced construction-to-permanent financing for a cold storage development

$120M Mixed-Use Development: Structured a creative capital stack for a transit-oriented development

$85M Office Refinancing: Successfully refinanced a Class A office in Chicago amid challenging market conditions

Team Growth

Senior Hires: Added experienced professionals in Chicago and New York

Technology Investment: Enhanced our lender matching and deal management platform

Research Capability: Expanded our market research and data analytics function

2025 Market Observations

What We Got Right

Rate Stabilization: Our early-2025 call that rates had peaked proved accurate

Multifamily Resilience: We correctly identified multifamily as the strongest sector for lending activity

Industrial Sustained Performance: Our conviction in industrial fundamentals was validated

Recovery Timing: Our prediction of a second-half acceleration in transaction volume played out

What Surprised Us

Office Recovery Speed: Select Class A office markets recovered faster than we expected

CMBS Rebound: Securitized lending came back stronger and faster than anticipated

International Capital: Cross-border investment flows normalized more quickly than projected

Retail Performance: The retail sector showed more resilience than most market participants expected

2026 Outlook

Macro Environment

We expect the following dynamics to shape commercial real estate financing in 2026:

Interest Rates: Continued Fed easing with an additional 50-100 bps of cuts likely

Economic Growth: Modest GDP growth supporting CRE fundamentals

Employment: Stable labor markets maintaining occupancy and rent growth

Capital Flows: Increased institutional allocation to CRE as rates decline

Sector Outlook

Multifamily: Positive. Supply moderating while demand remains strong. Agency lending expected to reach record volumes.

Industrial: Positive. Nearshoring and e-commerce continue to drive demand. Cold storage and data centers are subsectors to watch.

Office: Cautiously Optimistic. Trophy assets in prime locations will continue to attract capital. The conversion opportunity will gain momentum.

Retail: Stable. Grocery-anchored and necessity retail remain investable. Mixed-use formats gaining institutional acceptance.

Alternative Sectors: Data centers, life sciences, and self-storage will attract growing capital allocations.

BSA 2026 Priorities

London Launch: Opening our London office to establish a transatlantic advisory platform

Technology Enhancement: Further investing in our proprietary lender matching capabilities

Sector Specialization: Deepening expertise in data centers, life sciences, and build-to-rent

Client Service: Maintaining our commitment to white-glove advisory for every engagement

Thank You

To our clients, lender partners, and team — thank you for an extraordinary 2025. The trust you place in Barrow Street Advisors drives us to deliver exceptional results on every transaction.

We look forward to an even stronger 2026.

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From all of us at Barrow Street Advisors — New York, Chicago, and soon London — we wish you a successful year ahead. Contact us to discuss your 2026 plans.