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Size really does matter when it comes to conduit CMBS, as smaller deal sizes prompted by tepid investor demand -- particularly on triple-A tranches -- will keep issuance from reaching the peaks of the boom years.

B-piece buyers will continue to enjoy “healthier” level of interaction with originators than they did at the peak of the last cycle, as long as the level of competition remains in check, executives said during a panel discussion at the CRE Finance Council’s annual conference today.

Deutsche Real Estate Funds (DREF) has launched a delayed and scaled-back €44m bond issue to fund student housing in a deal believed to be the first of its kind in Germany for the asset class. The bond has a five-year term and carries a coupon of 4.675%. It is senior secured mortgage-backed and has a Creditform investment grade rating of BBB.

A panel of heavyweight US real estate developers took center stage for the opening session at the CRE Finance Council’s annual conference at the Marriott Marquis in New York City today, discussing a range of lending options that have proliferated as the real estate cycle heats up.

Year-to-date US CMBS issuance through May reached $45bn, approximately 27% higher than the same period in 2014, according to KBRA. May issuance totaled $8.6bn in May, up from $6.8bn in April.

The CRE Finance Council (CREFC) has issued a new update to its Investor Reporting Package in advance of this week’s CRE Finance Council 2015 Annual Conference, slated to begin this afternoon in New York City.

Hong Kong’s Gaw Capital Partners will "likely" seek to refinance $300m of debt on Seattle, Washington’s tallest building, the Columbia Center, after agreeing to pay a reported $725m for the property, Real Estate Capital has learned. The property is encumbered by a $300m A note and an $80m B note, the latter of which is expected to be paid off once the sale closes.

Goldman Sachs is marketing the securitisation of a single €191.5m loan it made for Apollo Global Management’s REITALY fund to purchase a portfolio containing 25 Italian assets. The €182.5m, five-tranche transaction includes a 10.4% debt yield and matures in May 2020 with the legal final maturity in May 2027.

MassMutual Financial Group affiliate Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers will provide a $556m construction loan for a 47-story office tower set to rise in Midtown Manhattan at 425 Park Avenue, developers L&L Holding Company and GreenOak Real Estate announced this week.

Issuers of single-family rental securities defended their business models, despite the limited success of their IPOs, at the Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Mortgage Finance Conference in Midtown Manhattan this week.