Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
A Cook County judge ruled against an AmTrust RE affiliate on a $260 million CMBS loan on Chicago's Illinois Center towers, clearing the way for a Nov. 12, 2026 sheriff's sale.
Cook County Associate Judge Edward Robles ruled in September 2026 against an AmTrust RE affiliate on its $260 million CMBS loan covering Illinois Center, the twin-tower, roughly 2.1-million-square-foot office complex at 111 E. Wacker Drive and 233 N. Michigan Avenue in Chicago's East Loop, as reported by The Real Deal and Bisnow on October 19 and 20, 2026. The ruling clears the way for a Cook County sheriff's sale of the property on November 12, 2026, with special servicer LNR Partners, LLC expected to credit-bid on behalf of the CMBS trust's bondholders and take title. The towers were most recently appraised at $66 million, an 83% drop from the $390 million valuation when the loan originated in 2015.
$260M CMBS loan; Nov. 12, 2026 sheriff's sale of towers appraised at $66M
Why it matters: The case shows how far Chicago's office distress has advanced for aging towers financed at pre-pandemic valuations: a once-signature East Loop complex now appraised at roughly a sixth of its loan-era value, with the borrower no longer contesting foreclosure. It is a template for how CMBS special servicers are handling deeply underwater assets with falling occupancy -- taking title through a sheriff's sale rather than extending further workout negotiations -- that other Chicago-area office owners facing legacy CMBS maturities should watch.
Oct 19, 2026
Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Chancery Division
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
New York's Fourth Department affirmed a ruling cutting a CMBS special servicer's foreclosure fee request from roughly $588,000 to $250,000 and denying note-rate interest on top of default interest.
On October 9, 2026, New York's Appellate Division, Fourth Department unanimously affirmed an Erie County damages judgment in a commercial mortgage foreclosure brought by the trustee of the JPMBB Commercial Mortgage Securities Trust 2014-C24, acting through special servicer LNR Partners, LLC, against borrower Stradtman Park, LLC. The trust had asked for roughly $588,000 in attorneys' fees and got $250,000, and it was refused note-rate interest of $120,882.59 on top of $583,938.25 in default-rate interest. The appellate panel found both rulings supported by a fair interpretation of the evidence.
$3.6 million CMBS loan; $588,000 fee request cut to $250,000
Why it matters: The decision is a reminder that a foreclosure is an equitable proceeding, so contractual fee and interest provisions in CMBS loan documents are enforced only to the extent a court finds them reasonable and proven. Special servicers that bill out-of-market rates or stack default interest on top of note-rate interest without documenting the math risk a substantial haircut. Borrowers in smaller markets gain a template: local expert testimony on customary foreclosure rates can cap what a securitized lender recovers.
Oct 9, 2026
New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Fourth Department
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
A Cook County judge appointed a receiver for 625 North Michigan Avenue, a 28-story Magnificent Mile office tower, after Golub and BlueFive defaulted on a $50.6 million CMBS loan at maturity.
Citibank, N.A., as trustee for CMBS bondholders, and special servicer LNR Partners moved to foreclose on 625 North Michigan Avenue, a 28-story, roughly 290,000-square-foot office tower on Chicago's Magnificent Mile, after landlords Golub & Company and BlueFive Capital defaulted on a $50.6 million loan that matured on March 6, 2026 without repayment. A Cook County judge appointed Scott Shefman of Friedman Real Estate Management as receiver for the property on June 16, 2026.
$50.6 million CMBS loan alleged in default
Office
Why it matters: Illustrates the now-familiar path from special servicing to formal default notice to court-appointed receivership for maturity-defaulted office CMBS loans in gateway downtowns, even on a trophy corridor like the Magnificent Mile. Owners of office towers with loans originated during the low-rate, aggressive-underwriting era of the late 2010s should expect special servicers to move quickly to a receivership request once a maturity default notice issues, shifting day-to-day control of leasing and operations away from the sponsor while the foreclosure proceeds.
Jun 16, 2026
Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Chancery Division
