The growing importance of data centres in the commercial real estate market is prompting debt providers to adopt significantly stricter selectivity in lending. According to surveys by S&P Global Ratings, banks made loan commitments estimated at $121.91 billion for such properties in 2025, with an average loan volume of $1.2 billion. At the same time, issuance volume for commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) for data centres grew by 266 per cent to $11 billion, according to the CRE Finance Council. In the first half of 2026, CMBS issuance totalled $4.9 billion, representing a nine per cent share of the total market for single-asset securitisations.
Despite macroeconomic pressures from increased interest rates and inflationary tendencies resulting from the war in Iran, lending continues, with individual transactions even expanding in scope. However, Chris Lozinak, Managing Director in Newmark's global debt financing division, observes clearly defined caps for sectors and sponsors. The construction of data centres requires sound expertise to adhere to schedules and cost projections. Banks are therefore increasingly demanding robust track records and qualified management teams before providing long-term capital.
Private debt closes institutional financing gaps
In addition, the sector faces growing regulatory barriers. In July, New York Governor Kathy Hochul enacted a US-wide first moratorium on the construction of large data centres, coupled with new guidelines for energy, water, and environmental concerns. Against this backdrop, many traditional banks are pulling back from construction financing. Instead, private credit funds are increasingly stepping into this area, as they possess substantial investment capital and can act more flexibly.
Blue Owl Capital is playing a leading role here. In June 2026, the firm provided a $975 million loan for a joint venture between Corscale Data Centers and Affinius Capital to recapitalise a fully leased facility on the Gainesville Crossing Campus in Northern Virginia. Marc Zahr, Co-President of Blue Owl Capital, characterised the banks' caution as a technical adjustment to rapid supply growth. Furthermore, the market is drawing a clear line between pre-let schemes and purely speculative developments.
Robust fundamentals despite higher financing costs
Construction loans are almost without exception tied to pre-lettings to creditworthy corporations such as Amazon, Google, Microsoft, or Meta. After yields on ten-year US Treasuries exceeded the five per cent mark at the end of 2026 for the first time since 2007, bond investors are also acting noticeably more cautiously when taking on debt securities, weighing up alternative asset classes.
Operational demand nevertheless remains stable. According to a report by CBRE, the vacancy rate for data centres in North America fell to 1.4 per cent in the first half of 2026. Net absorption rose by 11.7 per cent year-on-year to 1,456.2 megawatts, whilst total capacity under construction increased by 24.8 per cent to a record 7,481.1 megawatts.
