Although bad real estate loans triggered the credit crisis in 2007, they have taken a back seat to sovereign debt contagion in the present phase of global financial turmoil. But the market ignores real estate loans at its peril, particularly those made to finance construction and land developments. European banks have less exposure to real estate loans than US banks overall but in such markets as the UK and Ireland, nearly a third of all commercial real estate loans are in default, according to a new...
