Proactive Portfolio Monitoring:
Industry Insights & Actionable Strategies

Overview

This session focuses on the benefits of proactive portfolio monitoring in the evolving construction and real estate lending landscape. Key topics discussed included macroeconomic and industry trends, liquidity and balance sheet management, risk monitoring, and early warning indicators.

Meet the Speakers

Katie Wilson, Value Realization Principal

Bre Milanovich, Sr. Subject Matter Expert

John Ricciardi, Subject Matter Expert

Ryan Blake, Executive Vice President, First Bank

Key Takeaways

Takeaway 1: Proactive portfolio monitoring is essential in the current landscape of construction lending.

Banks are focusing on understanding and managing liquidity, determining if extensions are needed, and whether permanent financing will be kept within the bank. They are also concerned about the potential for significant right-sizing of credit due to increasing interest rates. “Banks are expecting increased focus and scrutiny from regulators, particularly in their higher risk construction in CRE books,” said Built Value Realization Principal Katie Wilson.

Bre Milanovich mentioned that banks are seeking more predictability and forecasting of draw amounts, using historical draw data and schedules to anticipate future draw amounts. John Ricciardi added that banks are increasingly leveraging technology solutions to gain transparency into their CRE portfolios, allowing for real-time tracking of liquidity, loan disbursements, and exposure analysis.

Takeaway 2: Effective balance sheet management requires tailored reporting and proactive risk monitoring.

Katie Wilson emphasizes the importance of tailored reporting for different audiences within a bank, such as senior management, loan officers, and risk managers. “Each report needs to be specific to the audience that is consuming it and they need to contain the key performance indicators,” she said.

John Ricciardi added that banks should monitor their portfolio closely and be prepared for changes in regulations and lending criteria. “It’s important to keep a finger on the pulse of industry regulations, monitor your portfolio closely and be prepared for change and in most cases proactive about adjusting lending criteria,” he said. Ryan Blake added that with Built, “Banks can track liquidity, monitor, loan disbursements, and analyze their exposure in real time.” 

Takeaway 3: Frequent inspections lead to shorter construction project timelines

Bre Milanovich shared data showing that more frequent inspections during construction projects result in shorter overall completion timelines. “The more frequent that inspections are occurring on the project, the less time the project is spending in active construction,” she said.

Banks should define their stale loans, set up contractor monitoring, and consider using pre-scheduled inspections to ensure projects are on track and compliant. Bre also mentioned the importance of having a dedicated team to process draws and monitor early risk warning indicators before they become issues.

For more information on how Built enables proactive portfolio monitoring for lenders of all sizes, talk to our team of experts today by visiting getbuilt.com/demo-request.