Blackstone Mortgage Rebounds as It Rebalances Away From Office

After resolving $2.3B in troubled loans, BXMT is refocusing on apartments and warehouses.

Nina Dale
February 13, 2026

Together with

Good morning. After a year of cleaning up office-heavy loans, Blackstone Mortgage Trust is back on offense. The REIT resolved $2.3B in impaired debt and funneled nearly $7B into multifamily and industrial.

Today’s issue is sponsored by OnDeck—connecting CRE teams with fractional talent across acquisitions, AM, development, and lending.

🎙️Worth a listen: This week on No Cap, Trimont CEO Bill Sexton explains the inner workings of CRE loan servicing and why the credit cycle is already shifting.

CRE Trivia 🧠

Which new sport is making its Winter Olympics debut at the 2026 Games?

(Answer at the bottom of the newsletter)

Market Snapshot

S&P 500

GSPC

6,832.76

Pct Chg:
-1.57%

FTSE NAREIT

FNER

811.25

Pct Chg:
+0.39%

10Y Treasury

TNX

4.102%

Pct Chg:
-0.081

SOFR

30-DAY AVERAGE

3.66%

Pct Chg:
-0.00

*Data as of 2/12/2026 market close.

Portfolio Pivot

Blackstone Mortgage Rebounds as It Rebalances Away From Office

Blackstone Mortgage foreclosed in December on 1800 Larimer, a 544,195 SF office property in Denver. (CoStar)

Blackstone Mortgage Trust (BXMT) doubled down on apartments and warehouses in 2025, deploying $7B as credit conditions steadied.

By the numbers: BXMT closed about $6.8B to $7B in 2025 investments, with more than 80% to 85% focused on multifamily and industrial loans, bank portfolios and net lease assets. It originated $5.7B in loans—$1.4B in Q4, all in multifamily and industrial—bringing its total portfolio to $20B.

Credit cleanup: The REIT has resolved $2.3B in impaired loans since its Q3 2024 peak, including $575M in Q4, cutting the balance to about $100M. The portfolio is now 99% performing, up from 96%, with no new watchlist additions.

Diversification push: BXMT has reduced office exposure by 50% since 2021, with U.S. office now at 20% of net loan exposure. Multifamily (26%) and industrial (24%) account for half the portfolio, while bank loan and net lease ventures—now 5%—add diversification and discounted buying opportunities.

REO strategy: Real estate owned rose to $1.3B in Q4, including the foreclosure of Denver’s 1800 Larimer office tower. Management said it expects to selectively sell owned assets, with at least one Texas multifamily property under contract, and redeploy proceeds into core lending.

➥ THE TAKEAWAY

What’s ahead: As market tailwinds build and bank consolidation picks up, Blackstone Mortgage—having largely resolved impaired loans and reduced office exposure—is refocusing on multifamily, industrial and discounted bank debt to power its next growth phase.

TOGETHER WITH ONDECK

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✍️ Editor’s Picks

Market shift: Crexi's January report reveals which secondary markets saw the biggest surge in listing activity—signaling where opportunity may be emerging. (sponsored)
Amazon anchor: Blue Owl has loaned $335M to Wynwood Plaza, an Amazon-anchored mixed-use project in Miami, marking a major bet on the city's tech-and-culture-driven growth.
Construction squeeze: The Fed’s latest SLOOS shows banks continue tightening construction credit, constraining development pipelines and refinancing options.
AI recalibration: Brokerages including JLL, CBRE, and Cushman face investor scrutiny over AI spending as firms balance automation gains against margin pressure.
Empire absorbed: Nuveen will buy 222-year-old Schroders for $13.5B, creating a $2.5T asset manager and accelerating consolidation among European fund firms.
Strategic retreat: Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance posted lower fourth-quarter earnings and a prior-year loss even as it moved to offload nearly its entire $9B CRE loan portfolio to Athene.

🏘️ MULTIFAMILY

NOI pressure: Multifamily REITs forecast NOI declines in 2026 as rent growth softens, banking on demand recovery to stabilize performance.
BTR resilience: Build-to-rent operators downplayed proposed corporate ownership bans, though public capital sources could face headline and policy risk.
Demand cooling: A softer job market is cooling apartment demand in several major metros, pressuring occupancy and rent growth.
Population drag: A U.S. population shortfall has shaved an estimated $100B from economic output, clouding long-term housing demand assumptions.
CA slowdown: Apartment construction is cooling across California as lenders and equity partners grow more selective, tempering future supply.

🏭 Industrial

Wage divergence: AI and data center hiring is driving outsized wage growth in select hubs, widening labor cost gaps across markets.
Pineville buildout: Construction has begun on the final parcel in Pineville’s industrial corridor, completing a key Charlotte-area logistics pipeline.
Storage scrutiny: NYC sued Extra Space Storage over alleged pricing and consumer practices, raising compliance risk for storage operators.
Industrial launch: Becknell launched a private perpetual-life industrial REIT, expanding fundraising options for stabilized logistics portfolios.

🏬 RETAIL

Retail expansion: A firm led by former Blackstone executives made its first retail acquisition, signaling renewed institutional interest in the sector.
Boston financing: A Boston-area retail center secured $81M in financing, underscoring lender support for stabilized grocery-anchored assets.
Closings slowdown: After a spike in announced store closures, forecasts call for a slower pace in 2026, easing retail vacancy fears.

🏢 OFFICE

ICE expansion: ICE is opening more than 100 offices nationwide, creating unexpected pockets of demand for small-format office space.
Wynwood record: Miami’s Wynwood recorded its largest office deal to date, supporting pricing in emerging submarkets.
Park Avenue: Ken Griffin acquired a 60% stake in a 1.9M SF Park Avenue redevelopment, reinforcing conviction in trophy office repositionings.

🏨 HOSPITALITY

Waldorf sale: The Chinese owners of the Waldorf Astoria plan to sell the renovated NYC hotel, testing demand for ultra-luxury hospitality assets.
Conversion push: Hilton’s CEO urged owners to accelerate brand conversions in 2026 to sustain pipeline growth amid slower new builds.

INVESTOR SENTIMENT

Is CRE Turning Cautious or Leaning Back In?

Where is CRE sentiment heading next? Take our 5-minute Fear & Greed Survey and help shape the data investors are watching across sectors.

Responses are 100% anonymous, and you’ll get early access to the results.

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📈 CHART OF THE DAY

By the end of 2025, job growth across the U.S. had broadly stalled or turned negative in blue-collar, white-collar, and government sectors, leaving Services as the only sector still adding jobs, though at a slowing pace.

CRE Trivia (Answer)🧠

Ski mountaineering will debut at the 2026 Winter Olympics, combining uphill climbing with downhill ski racing that tests endurance, speed, and technical skill.