Ann Atkinson named small balance loan and market real estate production manager, Ed Hussey moving into the role of head of conventional agency lending

IRVINE, Calif. – May 2, 2022 – Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Regions Bank and a nationwide commercial real estate lender, today announced it has added 11 new hires to support the next phase of the company’s strategic growth following its acquisition by Regions Bank. Notable new hire Ann Atkinson joins Sabal Capital Partners as small balance loan and market real estate production manager. The additional new hires will support origination, underwriting and servicing for Sabal’s agency and non-agency programs, which include Freddie Mac Optigo® Small Balance, Freddie Mac Optigo® Conventional, Fannie Mae Small Loans, and Sabal’s CMBS conduit loan program. Ed Hussey, formerly head of agency lending at Sabal, is moving into the role of head of conventional agency lending.

“Through an experienced team, a passion for a superior client experience, and the union of Sabal’s and Regions’ finance capabilities, we are well positioned to accelerate our growth while connecting more clients with high-value services,” said Troy Marek, head of Real Estate Capital Markets for Regions Bank. “These new additions reflect continued momentum as Sabal Capital Partners and Regions Bank offer a distinctive blend of customized insights and leading-edge technology to meet the specialized needs of clients.”

In her new role, Atkinson is responsible for managing small balance and market real estate production. Atkinson comes to Sabal after two decades with Fannie Mae, where she most recently led a team responsible for production strategy and loan deliveries from the nationwide network of Fannie Mae DUS Lenders. She also managed Fannie Mae’s Small Loan Program, implementing and overseeing multifamily small loan production strategy nationally. Prior to Fannie Mae, Atkinson was a multifamily credit underwriter with Berkshire Mortgage Finance. She earned her Bachelor of Science in finance from Northern Illinois University and is based in Northbrook, Illinois.

“Ann Atkinson’s experience is invaluable to the Sabal lending platform, which traditionally specializes in multifamily small balance loans,” adds Marek. “We are extremely pleased to add her, as well as all of these incredibly skilled individuals, to our rapidly expanding team.”

The additional new hires at Sabal include:

• Daniel Conn, underwriter (Charlotte, North Carolina)
• Colin Daruns, transaction analyst (Dallas, Texas)
• Eric Amend, portfolio analyst (Pasadena, California)
• Kate Mann, underwriting manager (Great Neck, New York)
• Austin Barrett, production associate (Phoenix, Arizona)
• Tony Le, portfolio analyst (Pasadena, California)
• Grant deWilde, director CMBS trading, (New York, New York)
• Timothy Kraics, transaction analyst (Setauket, New York)
• Brian Walior, transaction manager (Dallas, Texas)
• Cynthia Zelaya, servicing associate (Pasadena, California)

In addition to its new hires, Sabal has named Ed Hussey, formerly the head of agency lending, as head of conventional agency lending. In this new role, Hussey will focus on expanding the production of the conventional loan business, which now includes the full spectrum of agency conventional loan products for multifamily lending that, combined with an active balance sheet, position Regions and Sabal uniquely to service customers. As part of this expansion, the team will be adding new origination and origination support positions to support superior levels of service across the client base.

For eligibility and details on Sabal’s robust multifamily and commercial real estate loan programs, visit www.sabal.com.

About Sabal Capital Partners, LLC

Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Regions Bank, is a national commercial real estate lender that has originated nearly $6 billion in financing and maintains a $5 billion servicing portfolio. Sabal Capital Partners keeps brokers and borrowers ahead of the curve with comprehensive debt solutions encompassing both agency and non-agency options. The lender is recognized for advancing the industry with SNAP™, an innovative proprietary technology platform that optimizes origination and servicing and enhances the customer experience. Sabal Capital Partners is a nationally rated Commercial Primary Servicer and Commercial Special Servicer by Morningstar with a CS2 ranking, an S&P Global rated Commercial Mortgage Loan Special Servicer with an average ranking, as well as a Fitch rated CMBS Primary Servicer with a CPS2- ranking and CMBS Special Servicer with a CSS3+ ranking. For more details, visit www.sabal.com.

About Regions Financial Corporation

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF), with $163 billion in assets, is a member of the S&P 500 Index and is one of the nation’s largest full-service providers of consumer and commercial banking, wealth management, and mortgage products and services. Regions serves customers across the South, Midwest and Texas, and through its subsidiary, Regions Bank, operates approximately 1,300 banking offices and more than 2,000 ATMs. Regions Bank is an Equal Housing Lender and Member FDIC. Additional information about Regions and its full line of products and services can be found at www.regions.com.

# # #

Bulk of 80 Loans Financing Affordable and Workforce Rental Properties, Emphasizing Current Demand within the Sector Amidst Housing Affordability Crisis

Irvine, Calif. – April 05, 2022 – Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Regions Bank and a nationwide commercial real estate lender, today announced the successful close of approximately $264 million in multifamily property loans during the period of January 1 through March 31 of this year. Totaling 80 loans for 80 properties across 21 states from coast-to-coast, the transactions include both acquisition and refinance loans, and represent transactions from three of the company’s many offered loan programs only. The bulk of the multifamily loans were financed through small balance Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac agency programs serving affordable and workforce rental properties, reflecting deep demand within the sector today amidst an ongoing home affordability crisis in the United States.

“Sabal continues to address borrower needs within the affordable and workforce housing sector and our Q1 pipeline reflects that,” says Ed Hussey, head of agency lending for Sabal Capital Partners. “These loans are important as they ensure that rental units across the country remain available to individuals and families who can’t afford market rate apartments near their places of employment.”

Current research indicates ten million low-income renter households routinely spend more than half, when ideally they should spend no more than 30%, of their income on rent. Additionally, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour falls well short of both the two-bedroom and one-bedroom National Housing Wages. While 30 states, the District of Columbia, and numerous counties and municipalities now have minimum wages higher than the federal minimum wage, the average minimum wage worker must still work nearly 97 hours per week (almost two full-time jobs) to afford a one-bedroom rental home at fair market rate.[i]

27 of the 80 total loans were completed through Fannie Mae’s Multifamily Small Loan program, which provides loans up to $6 million for smaller rental properties that tend to be more affordable, are concentrated in urban areas close to transportation and jobs, and that provide housing for working families. 47 of the completed loans were financed through Freddie Mac’s Optigo® Small Balance Loans Program, which offers $1 million – $7.5 million loans nationwide for small apartment properties between 5 and 50 units and which serve the nation’s workforce.

The remaining six loans were closed via Sabal’s CMBS Conduit loan program, which provides non-recourse loans up to $50 million for core commercial real estate properties, including multifamily communities, located nationwide. All of the CMBS loans provided financed multifamily properties with the exception of one, which financed a self-storage asset. Of the 80 transactions, 18 financed acquisitions and 62 were refinance loans. The 80 loans do not include transaction activity for the remaining, combined Sabal Capital Partners and Regions Bank portfolio of loan programs. The company’s complete acquisition, refinance and construction solutions offering includes Fannie Mae DUS, Fannie Mae Affordable, Fannie Mae Small Loans, Freddie Mac Affordable, Freddie Mac Optigo® Small Balance Loans, Freddie Mac Optigo® Conventional, USDA, FHA/HUD (both MAP and LEAN), Bridge, Structured Adjustable Rate Mortgage Loans and CMBS Conduit programs.

The 2022 first quarter transaction closings follow the recent news of the Regions Bank acquisition of Sabal Capital Partners announced on December 2, 2021.

All of Sabal’s loan programs are accessible through SNAPÔ, the proprietary online lending platform that enables unparalleled efficiencies and convenience for brokers and borrowers throughout the loan process, from application through servicing. Visit www.sabal.com.

About Sabal Capital Partners

Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Regions Bank, is a national commercial real estate lender that has originated nearly $6 billion in financing and maintains a $5 billion servicing portfolio. Sabal Capital Partners keeps brokers and borrowers ahead of the curve with comprehensive debt solutions encompassing both agency and non-agency options. The lender is recognized for advancing the industry with SNAP™, an innovative proprietary technology platform that optimizes origination and servicing and enhances the customer experience. Sabal Capital Partners is a nationally rated Commercial Primary Servicer and Commercial Special Servicer by Morningstar with a CS2 ranking, an S&P Global rated Commercial Mortgage Loan Special Servicer with an average ranking, as well as a Fitch rated CMBS Primary Servicer with a CPS2- ranking and CMBS Special Servicer with a CSS3+ ranking. For more details, visit www.sabal.com.

---

[i] National Low Income Housing Coalition, Out of Reach 2021: The High Cost of Housing, https://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/oor/2021/OOR_2021_Mini-Book.pdf 

###

Owen Bouton and Michael Cozza to join as CMBS managing directors, Christopher West to serve as production manager

Irvine, Calif. – February 16, 2021 – Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a diversified financial services firm specializing in commercial real estate, lending and investing, today announced it has added 14 new hires to support its strategic growth as a nationwide lender providing a comprehensive range of multifamily and commercial real estate (CRE) debt solutions. The new team members span Sabal Capital Partners’ agency and non-agency programs, which include Freddie Mac Optigo Small Balance, Freddie Mac Optigo Conventional, Fannie Mae Small Balance, Bridge AFR and S-CRE, Sabal Capital Partners’ CMBS program.

Owen Bouton and Michael Cozza have been hired as managing directors of the company’s Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS) group, which provides non-recourse loans up to $50 million on commercial real estate properties nationwide.

With more than 15 years of experience, Bouton is a skilled CRE loan originator. Most recently, Bouton served as an executive director of loan production at CIBC, where he headed southeastern balance sheet and CMBS origination efforts for floating and fixed rate loans totaling $100 million. He has also served as vice president of loan production at Hunt Mortgage Group and vice president of loan production at LStar Capital. Based in Atlanta, he has been involved in more than $2.75 billion in financing throughout his career. He graduated from Wake Forest University with a bachelor’s degree in sociology and earned his MBA from Georgia State University.

“With an impressive breadth and depth of loan offerings, Sabal boasts some of the industry’s most comprehensive debt solutions,” said Bouton. “I look forward to leveraging my experience in the CMBS space to further expand Sabal’s presence in the marketplace.”

With more than 25 years of experience, Cozza is a knowledgeable and innovative originator with strong client relationships and extensive borrower and mortgage broker contacts.   Previously, Cozza served as executive director and senior loan originator at CIBC World Markets, where he generated more than $19 million in revenue across all property types and closed approximately $1.1 billion in fixed and floating rate CRE loans. Cozza has also served as vice president and loan officer at Northfield Bank as well as vice president and senior loan originator at JP Morgan Capital. Based in New Jersey, he earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Hofstra University.

“Providing a unique life of loan experience, Sabal’s CMBS offerings fill an important gap in the marketplace,” said Cozza. “The company is well positioned to expand its CMBS business in 2021, and I look forward to being part of such a dynamic, client-centric team.”

Additional hires for Sabal’s non-agency loan programs include:

• Darius Rybinski, conventional underwriter (Nashville, Tennessee)
• Lisa Dunn, conventional underwriting analyst (Lebanon, Ohio)
• Luan “Jay” Tang, portfolio analyst (Pasadena, California)

On the agency lending side, Christopher West joins Sabal as production manager of term lending sales, where he originates loans through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. With 10 years of experience, West is a client-oriented originator with extensive experience in real estate finance, multifamily loan origination, underwriting and property valuation. He previously served as mortgage originator at Greystone Servicing Co., where he originated approximately $20 million in multifamily loans. He has also served various roles at Basis Investment Group, Walker & Dunlop and CBRE. Based in Atlanta, he earned his bachelor’s degree in management and entrepreneurship from Clemson University.

“These hires will be extremely instrumental in Sabal’s growth as we continue to expand our loan pipeline and teams to serve more borrowers and brokers nationwide,” said Pat Jackson, founder and CEO of Sabal. “We have continued to counsel and provide solutions for our customers without interruption throughout COVID-19 and look forward to a strong year in 2021 bolstered by the expertise of these additional team members.”

Additional hires for Sabal Capital Partners’ agency programs include:

• Collin Rodgers, senior underwriter, term lending (Sarasota, Florida)
• Varduhi Hunanyan, underwriter, term lending (Sunland, California)
• Judy Huynh-Smith, underwriting analyst, term lending (Murphy, Texas)
• Scott Regan, senior associate, production and sizing (New York City)
• Gamil Saad, servicing associate (Pasadena, California)
• Kerri Spalding-Thompson, underwriting manager (Irvine, California)
• Brendan Whaley, underwriting analyst (Kansas)
• James Nguyen, programmer analyst (Ontario, California)

For information on Sabal’s loan programs, visit www.sabal.com for details and eligibility.

About Sabal Capital Partners, LLC

Headquartered in Irvine, California, Sabal Capital Partners, LLC and its commercial real estate lending and servicing subsidiaries and affiliates have originated over $4 billion nationally through their highly specialized wholesale lending platform. Sabal strives to keep clients and investors ahead of the curve, representing a corporate philosophy based upon the core practices of innovation, partnership, commitment to excellence and entrepreneurship. Sabal’s dedication to advancing the financial services industry has led to the development of SNAP™, an innovative platform designed to optimize the lending and investment processes and enable a highly efficient interaction between Sabal and its client and investor base. Sabal is a nationally rated Commercial Primary Servicer and Commercial Special Servicer by Morningstar with a CS2 ranking, an S&P Global rated Commercial Mortgage Loan Special Servicer with an average ranking, as well as a Fitch rated CMBS Primary Servicer with a CPS2- ranking and CMBS Special Servicer with a CSS3+ ranking. For more information about Sabal, visit www.sabal.com.

# # #

Portfolio to refinance 25 affordable apartment properties in the San Fernando Valley, Palms and Mar Vista Areas of Los Angeles

Irvine, Calif. – Jan. 27, 2021 – Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a diversified financial services firm specializing in commercial real estate, lending and investing, today announced the close of a $73 million portfolio encompassing the refinance of 25 multifamily properties in the San Fernando Valley, Palms and Mar Vista areas of Los Angeles. The portfolio, called LA 25, represents 25 loans and 403 units that were refinanced by Sabal Capital Partners using its Fannie Mae Small Loan Program.

Comprising affordable apartment units, the portfolio provides lower cost rentals in key regions of Los Angeles County, which is commonly considered one of the country’s most expensive regions. Sabal closed the portfolio in 30 days, from term sheet to funding, with 65% loan-to-value (LTV).

“With a speed to close well below industry average, as well as low LTV, this portfolio demonstrates the efficiency of Sabal’s loan programs,” said Pat Jackson, founder and CEO of Sabal. “We were able to deliver quickly and efficiently even during the end of year rush, reflecting our steadfast commitment to providing streamlined service to borrowers and brokers nationwide.”

Sabal financed the properties through the Fannie Mae Small Loan Program, which provides fixed- and variable-rate financing up to $6 million for the acquisition or refinance of existing, stabilized, conventional multifamily properties with five or more units. Program highlights include lower cost of execution, competitive rates, certainty and speed of execution for borrowers and streamlined third-party reports.

All of the properties included in LA 25 are classified as affordable rental housing, a class of apartment properties which is confounded by significant supply and demand issues. According to The State of the Nation’s Housing Report 2020, by Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, regulatory barriers – often at the state and local levels – make it difficult for the private market to supply well-located, affordable housing. The lack of new development drives heightened demand for existing affordable rental units.

“Our country is experiencing a dire shortage of affordable housing, and this problem is only amplified in high-cost areas such as Los Angeles,” added Jackson. “Financing lower cost apartment properties, such as the ones included in this portfolio, is crucial to keeping them available to lower income renters.”

For information on Sabal’s full suite of loan programs, including the Fannie Mae Small Loan Program, visit www.sabal.com for details and eligibility.

About Sabal Capital Partners, LLC

Headquartered in Irvine, California, Sabal Capital Partners, LLC and its commercial real estate lending and servicing subsidiaries and affiliates have originated over $4 billion nationally through their highly specialized wholesale lending platform. Sabal strives to keep clients and investors ahead of the curve, representing a corporate philosophy based upon the core practices of innovation, partnership, commitment to excellence and entrepreneurship. Sabal’s dedication to advancing the financial services industry has led to the development of SNAP™, an innovative platform designed to optimize the lending and investment processes and enable a highly efficient interaction between Sabal and its client and investor base. Sabal is a nationally rated Commercial Primary Servicer and Commercial Special Servicer by Morningstar with a CS2 ranking, an S&P Global rated Commercial Mortgage Loan Special Servicer with an average ranking, as well as a Fitch rated CMBS Primary Servicer with a CPS2- ranking and CMBS Special Servicer with a CSS3+ ranking. For more information about Sabal, visit www.sabal.com.

# # #

Sabal’s Servicing Portfolio Now Exceeds $4.3 Billion in Approximately 1,500 Commercial Real Estate Loan Assets

Irvine, Calif. – January 5, 2021 – Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a diversified financial services firm specializing in commercial real estate, lending and investing, today announced its servicing entity, SCP Servicing, LLC, has been assigned ratings by both S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings. The company, whose servicing portfolio now encompasses 1,500 commercial real estate loans valued at $4.3 billion, is also Morningstar rated.

“These ratings reflect the institutional strength of our lending and servicing platforms,” says Pat Jackson, founder and CEO of Sabal Capital Partners. “As both a commercial real estate lender as well as an investor in distressed and non-performing debt assets, Sabal’s ratings are notable for building added trust among our investors, customers and sellers.”

S&P Global Ratings assigned SCP Servicing a Commercial Mortgage Loan Special Servicer rating with an average ranking and an above average sub-ranking for management and organization. S&P Ratings indicates that the ranking reflects Sabal’s experienced senior management and well-designed organizational structure that supports the special servicing platform; comprehensive training regime that is largely delivered on-the-job; good leverage of third-party asset management and special servicing system; internal control environment built on a solid framework for its current volume; small dedicated asset management team; and special servicing resolution track record.

Fitch Ratings assigned Sabal a new rating for CMBS Primary Servicer with a CPS2- ranking, as well as a new rating for CMBS Special Servicer with a CSS3+ ranking. Fitch notes the primary servicer rating reflects Sabal’s strong primary servicing experience, including a concentration in loans secured by multifamily properties; experienced yet small management team with key-person risk; well-integrated servicing systems yielding strong reporting abilities for quality control and streamlined loan boarding; sufficient controls with limited internal reviews; and robust asset administration capabilities.

According to Fitch, Sabal’s CMBS Special Servicer rating reflects the company’s workout history, including resolving FDIC commercial real estate portfolios and securitized non-performing loan transactions; sufficient technology to handle a large volume of defaulted loans; the small size of the special servicing group, including two asset managers; and sufficient internal controls primarily relying upon technology and credit committee reviews.

Sabal is also a Morningstar rated Primary and Special Servicer with a MOR CS2 ranking. Additionally, Sabal is SOC 1 Type 2 and REG AB Compliant by Grant Thornton.

“Being rated by all three of these agencies renders significant third-party credibility to Sabal’s business, teams, infrastructure and controls, as well as our ability to scale up in assets,” adds Jackson.

For information on Sabal and its robust suite of multifamily and commercial real estate loan offerings, visit www.sabal.com.

About Sabal Capital Partners, LLC

Headquartered in Irvine, California, Sabal Capital Partners, LLC and its commercial real estate lending and servicing subsidiaries and affiliates have originated over $4 billion nationally through their highly specialized wholesale lending platform. Sabal strives to keep clients and investors ahead of the curve, representing a corporate philosophy based upon the core practices of innovation, partnership, commitment to excellence and entrepreneurship. Sabal’s dedication to advancing the financial services industry has led to the development of SNAP™, an innovative platform designed to optimize the lending and investment processes and enable a highly efficient interaction between Sabal and its client and investor base. Sabal is a nationally rated Commercial Primary Servicer and Commercial Special Servicer by Morningstar with a CS2 ranking, an S&P Global rated Commercial Mortgage Loan Special Servicer with an average ranking, as well as a Fitch rated CMBS Primary Servicer with a CPS2- ranking and CMBS Special Servicer with a CSS3+ ranking.  For more information about Sabal, visit www.sabal.com.

# # #

Irvine, Calif. – Dec. 7, 2020 – Sabal Capital Partners, LLC, a diversified financial services firm specializing in commercial real estate, lending and investing, today announced it has hired Edward Hussey as head of agency lending. Based in Virginia, Hussey will be responsible for managing production across all of Sabal’s Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and other agency products and overseeing the recruiting, training and management of the lender’s nationwide production team. Hussey brings more than 30 years of experience in mortgage lending across credit, underwriting and production, including eight years as vice president at Freddie Mac, to his new role at Sabal.

“Given Ed Hussey’s deep credit and production expertise, including extensive experience working closely with Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, I’m confident that he will add immense value to Sabal from day one,” says Pat Jackson, founder and CEO of Sabal. “He understands the nuances of our agency lending programs and has the skill to build out our production team while furthering its reputation as the leading resource for those seeking to acquire, refinance and rehabilitate commercial properties.”

Sabal is a nationwide leader in agency finance solutions, with programs including Fannie Mae® Small Loans, Freddie Mac Optigo® Small Balance Loans and Sabal’s newest offering, Freddie Mac Optigo® Conventional Loans.

Before joining Sabal, Hussey served as senior vice president, head of multifamily production for agency lending at SunTrust Bank, now Truist Bank, where he managed a nationwide loan production platform and served as the primary liaison to both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He also played an instrumental role in preparing Pillar Financial for acquisition by SunTrust Bank. Prior to that, he held several vice president roles at Freddie Mac overseeing multifamily credit risk for the enterprise risk management division, credit policy and asset valuation for the credit management division and terms of business management for the multifamily division. Hussey also previously held roles as chief underwriter and senior vice president of Wells Fargo Multifamily Capital and chief underwriter and vice president of Standard Mortgage Corporation.

“Sabal is a powerhouse in the agency lending space, and I am honored to be joining this nationally respected team,” says Hussey. “I look forward to leveraging my expertise to further expand Sabal’s presence in the market while delivering excellent service for brokers and borrowers.”

Hussey earned an MBA from George Washington University and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Louisiana State University. He is a Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) and earned his sustainable management certificate from Duke University.

Edward Hussey joined Sabal in his new role on December 1.

For more information on Sabal’s complete multifamily and commercial real estate lending offerings, visit www.sabal.com for details and eligibility.

About Sabal Capital Partners, LLC

Headquartered in Irvine, California, Sabal Capital Partners, LLC and its commercial real estate lending and servicing subsidiaries and affiliates have originated over $4 billion nationally through their highly specialized wholesale lending platform. Sabal strives to keep clients and investors ahead of the curve, representing a corporate philosophy based upon the core practices of innovation, partnership, commitment to excellence and entrepreneurship. Sabal’s dedication to advancing the financial services industry has led to the development of SNAP™, an innovative platform designed to optimize the lending and investment processes and enable a highly efficient interaction between Sabal and its client and investor base. Sabal is a nationally rated Commercial Primary Servicer and Commercial Special Servicer by Morningstar with a CS2 ranking, an S&P Global rated Commercial Mortgage Loan Special Servicer with an average ranking, as well as a Fitch rated CMBS Primary Servicer with a CPS2- ranking and CMBS Special Servicer with a CSS3+ ranking. For more information about Sabal, visit www.sabal.com.