The long-predicted distress cycle in commercial real estate is no longer a forecast – it is actively working its way through bank balance sheets and securitization trusts. Driven by a wall of maturities and caps on leverage, delinquency rates in sectors like urban office have reached post-GCF highs. This distress has opened a highly lucrative market for discounted note sales and “loan-to-own” strategies. Buying the debt has become the most effective way to acquire the real estate at a discount.