Shafiq Hirani CCIMReal Estate Advisor, REMAX Distinctive · Real Estate Advisor at RE/MAX Distinctive Commercial | Washington, DC | Your Guide To Profitable Real Estate Ventures

Apartment Owners: Refinance at 7%? Handle the Squeeze! #shorts

25 Sept 2026 · 1 min

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In this concise advisory, Shafiq Hirani CCIM warns apartment owners about the tightening refinancing environment. He urges owners with loans maturing in the next 6‑24 months to model those loans at the current ~7% mortgage rate, noting that borrowing costs are rising weekly while national rent growth remains below 1%. The resulting cost‑to‑equity gap can erode value unless owners first improve expenses or increase Net Operating Income (NOI). Hirani emphasizes that at a 7% rate each dollar saved is far more valuable than at 4%, illustrating that recovering $20,000 of NOI can translate to over $330,000 of property value at a 6% cap rate. The overall message is a call to proactively manage cash‑flow and NOI to survive the refinancing squeeze.

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If your loan matured this month, could your building cover the payment at 7%? If you have a loan maturing in the next 6 to 24 months, model it at a 7% mortgage because that is the market you are actually refinancing into. Your borrowing cost climbs every week. Your rents do not. National rent growth is under 1%. The gap comes out of your equity at refinance unless you close it on the expense side first. You cannot move the 10-year. You can move your NOI. And at 7%, every dollar matters more than it did at 4%. Every $20,000 recovered is worth over $330,000 in value. At a 6% cap. Apartment owners, if your loan matured this month, could your building cover the payment at 7%?