UMB Bank, a subsidiary of UMB Financial Corporation (Nasdaq: UMBF), expanded its commercial real estate team in key markets including Kansas City, Fort Worth, Phoenix, St. Louis and Denver.
During the past 18 months, UMB has heightened its presence and lending efforts in the commercial real estate industry, starting with the hire of Cydney Gurgens as director of Commercial Real Estate in Kansas City, Mo.
Gurgens hired nearly 20 associates throughout UMB’s eight-state regional footprint to source and originate construction and mini-perm loans to clients as well as manage the portfolio of existing loans. In the fourth quarter of 2015 alone, UMB added $170.9 million in CRE loans and $49.5 million in construction loans with multi-family and senior housing projects among the top categories.
“While UMB has always played a lending role in the commercial real estate sector, we have expanded that focus during the past 18 months and have been very successful in doing so,” said Tom Terry, executive vice president, chief lending officer at UMB Bank. “Our credit standards have stayed the same, but we believe there is room for growth in our CRE portfolio, especially in the multi-family and senior living areas.”
UMB’s recent team expansions in the Phoenix market include:
Stephen Loonam has been named regional commercial real estate manager in Phoenix, Ariz. In his role, he is responsible for managing the commercial real estate team and portfolio in Arizona as well as business development. Loonam has more than 25 years of real estate experience including land entitlement, structured joint venture equity, and financial services. He has worked at UMB since 2009. Prior to his role at UMB, he was director REO and special assets in the western United States at AmTrust Bank.
