Nov
15
At Long Last, a Measure of Mezzanine Loans
ByInvestors in high-yield real estate now have a way to compare their returns and performance against an industry-standard benchmark, thanks to John B. Levy & Co.’s creation of the first mezzanine loan index.
Indexes proliferate in financial markets as a way for investors to benchmark investment strategies and manager performance. The commercial real estate market is no different, as there are multiple indexes that measure the performance of public and private real estate, property types, different geographies and investor strategy.
One key exception, however, has been mezzanine debt, an investment type that grew substantially during the last cycle. Mezzanine loans are difficult to measure, in large part because each is relatively unique and most investors are private entities that are loathe to share performance information…
