Already one of the nation’s largest commercial and multifamily financiers, Walker & Dunlop has its sights on more. To that end, the company announced this week that it acquired iCap Realty Advisors, a mortgage banking firm based in Atlanta, Georgia that provides debt placement solutions for all commercial real estate asset classes.
iCap has historically originated between $700 million and $1 billion of annual brokered volume through a broad range of capital providers, and now the iCap team is joining Walker & Dunlop.
iCap's five bankers and brokers and their support staff have all joined Walker & Dunlop’s capital markets group. That includes Managing Directors Alfie Means and David Collie, who will oversee the team’s origination activities.
Walker & Dunlop’s capital markets team has already seen substantial growth in 2018, with its brokered loan originations rising by 10% in the past year to $5.7 billion.
And the company has plans for more, according to Walker & Dunlop Chairman and CEO Willy Walker.
“We are thrilled to welcome the talented iCap team to Walker & Dunlop,” Walker said in a statement.
“With the goal to grow our annual loan originations to $30 to $35 billion by the end of 2020, we have been very focused on expanding our capital markets presence into major markets where we are under-represented, such as Atlanta,” Walker added. “As one of the largest mortgage banking firms in Georgia, iCap will immediately benefit Walker & Dunlop through its deep client relationships and strong deal flow.”
iCap also services approximately $2 billion of life insurance company loans, most of which are expected to be added to Walker & Dunlop’s servicing portfolio by the end of the year.
Means and Collie said that their team is thrilled to join Walker & Dunlop.
“The Walker & Dunlop platform was extremely attractive to us due to its market reputation, leading position in multifamily, and strategic growth objectives,” Means said.
“Our team looks forward to continuing to grow our client base and origination volumes as part of Walker & Dunlop's national platform and brand,” Collie added.
