Commercial Observer – Power Finance 2025

Ralph Herzka (left) and Brian Brooks

By Larry Getlen

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

When Charles Dickens wrote these words, odds are he didn’t have Meridian Capital Group’s 2024 in mind. But could any other single sentence better describe a real estate finance and investment firm shut out of all Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac deal-making, yet still achieving over $13 billion in originations in the 12 months ending March 31?

Now that the bans are over and Meridian is active again in the Fannie and Freddie marketplaces, CEO Brian Brooks notes that the company’s other focus areas never skipped a beat. “We survived a really difficult time pretty strongly,” said Brooks. “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were only about 15 percent of Meridian’s business. But there are counterparties that see them as a Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval. So, obviously, it was a very high priority for us to get that back, which is really why I was brought in in the first place.”

Meridian made changes, including the appointment of two independent board members (one a former Fannie Mae EVP) and the company’s first chief risk officer, as well as the development of several new and in-depth review processes.

“The approach here was, we’re going to build an enduring, sustainable model that would become the model for the rest of the industry so we never have to do this again,” said Brooks. “That meant putting in place three lines of defense the way a bank would.”

While this was happening, the firm’s business was still full steam ahead, providing mortgage brokerage and advisory services for 823 loans across 39 states and brokering 48 transactions. 

This included a $295 million construction financing package for the second phase of Kushner Companies’ 1 Journal Square development, and $120 million in financing for the acquisition of a rent-stabilized 25-building portfolio in Brooklyn and Manhattan.