ORIX Corporation USA has agreed to acquire Hunt Real Estate Capital, in a move that will further position ORIX as a heavy-hitter in senior housing financing.
ORIX USA — part of Tokyo-based ORIX Corporation — has been steadily building its presence in the senior housing space. In 2010, ORIX invested in major senior housing lender RED Capital Group, and expanded to 100% ownership in 2016. In 2017, ORIX acquired Lancaster Pollard, which provides integrated investment banking, balance sheet lending, mortgage banking and private equity services. Both RED and Lancaster Pollard are based in Columbus, Ohio.
After the Lancaster Pollard transaction, the legacy RED senior housing team was integrated with the Lancaster Pollard team. In 2019, Lancaster Pollard was the nation’s top provider of senior housing and care HUD Lean loans — a distinction that it has achieved often in the past. Now, with New York City-based Hunt, ORIX gains another large commercial real estate lender with 25 U.S. offices and a sizable senior housing practice. Hunt offers the full range of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA financing, as well as proprietary bridge, term, and subordinated products.
“Senior housing is a key asset class for us, and we have terrific, specialized talent for the sector within all three teams,” Nick Gesue, CEO of ORIX Real Estate Capital, told Senior Housing News in an email. “Upon closing, a critical goal for us is to create one unified platform and brand, and our plan is to work expeditiously to make this happen.”
Kathryn Burton Grey, Hunt’s current senior managing director for senior housing and health care, previously led the senior housing group at RED.
Overall, the combined entity will have annual loan production in excess of $9 billion and a servicing portfolio of more than $40 billion across its whole range of multifamily business.
“This acquisition is a result of our efforts to create a top-tier national commercial real estate lender, one with the capital, skillset, and product range to address the needs of commercial real estate investors and developers more flexibly than traditional bank lenders,” Gesue said. “Our combined client base will benefit from the expanded comprehensive breadth of products and combined expertise across all asset classes.”
Upon the deal closing, James P. Flynn, Hunt Real Estate Capital’s president and chief investment officer, will be the CEO of the combined entity.
“The Hunt Real Estate Capital acquisition represents the culmination of our efforts to create a top-tier national commercial real estate lender, one with the capital, skillset and product range to more flexibly address the needs of commercial real estate investors and developers than traditional bank lenders,” said Terry Suzuki, ORIX USA President and CEO, in a press release issued Monday.
ORIX Corporation as a whole is a financial services giant with approximately $400 billion of assets under management.
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