Borrower-side counsel. Lender-side insight.
Huffenus & Mallos represents borrowers in complex commercial real estate lending and defeasance transactions. We know how lenders and servicers think, because that‘s the side of the table where we built our careers.
Borrower-focused.
Lender-informed.
Borrowers often are disadvantaged in commercial real estate finance transactions. Lender‘s counsel know exactly how these deals are structured and where the risk is concentrated. We bring that same insight to the borrower’s side, but put it to work for you.
Borrowers are frequently working with less specialized representation, and that gap means that provisions creating real exposures—such as bad boy carve-outs—are missed or under-negotiated.
Huffenus & Mallos was founded to close that gap. We spent years structuring, negotiating, and opining on these same agreements for lenders and servicers at large law firms, including the complex, multistate work that many smaller firms can’t handle. That substantive experience is rare on the borrower side, and we bring it to every matter.
OUR
SERVICES
CMBS lending and structured finance
Loan defeasance and related opinions
New York law enforceability opinions
Substantive non-consolidation opinions
NC local counsel work
Loan modifications and workouts
We’ve negotiated these deals from the other side of the table.
Licensed in North Carolina and New York, our firm is regularly referred by lender-side attorneys—professionals who know this work and trust us when knowledgeable representation is needed on the borrower’s side. We also issue the enforceability opinions that capital markets lenders require, work that demands jurisdictional licensing that most borrower-side firms lack.
The firm’s national client base is built on referrals and repeat engagements. Representative experience demonstrates the breadth of our practice:
- Represented borrower in $8.9M CMBS loan closing on The Vue, a 190-unit multifamily property in Bowling Green, Ohio
- Represented Interstate Development in the $48.5M refinancing of University Town Centre in Morgantown, West Virginia
- Represented a Georgia-based family office in the acquisition and CMBS financing of Singleton Square, a Kroger-anchored shopping center in Norcross, Georgia
- Assisted U-Haul in closing $307M in cross-collateralized loans secured by more than 50 self-storage properties across 22 states
- Assisted a major New York investor in the defeasance of a $40.7M loan secured by a commercial property in New York City
- Represented one of the nation’s largest sponsors of Delaware statutory trust (DST) real estate investment programs in two loans totaling $112M covering senior living facilities in Illinois
Meet the attorneys who represent borrowers with a lender’s perspective.
DANIEL S. HUFFENUS
Daniel S. Huffenus has over 30 years practicing law at the highest levels of commercial real estate finance. As a partner at Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP for over 20 years, he built and led a nationally recognized real estate finance practice while also serving as the managing partner of Katten’s 60+ attorney Charlotte office and holding several roles in senior firm management.
Dan’s practice currently focuses on representing borrowers in complex real estate finance transactions, with particular expertise in CMBS lending, loan defeasance, and modifications and workouts. He has represented lenders, borrowers, investors, sellers, and loan servicers across a wide range of asset classes, deal sizes, and transaction structures nationwide. Dan is licensed to practice in New York and North Carolina.
PARTNER—NC & NY
Barrett Mallos brings more than two decades of experience in complex commercial real estate finance to Huffenus & Mallos. As a partner in the Charlotte office of Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, he represented borrowers, lenders, and loan servicers across the full range of commercial real estate transactions.
His practice has particular depth in CMBS transactions, loan defeasance, and the representation of borrowers and servicers in loan modifications and workouts of distressed commercial real estate loans. Barrett also regularly issues legal opinions for commercial real estate finance transactions, including enforceability opinions under New York law, perfection and priority opinions for defeasance transactions, and specialized opinions related to bankruptcy and corporate structure.
Barrett is licensed to practice in North Carolina and New York. He has been recognized as a Leader in the Law by North Carolina Lawyers Weekly (2017) and was selected as one of the Charlotte Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 (2016).
PARTNER—NC & NY
BARRET MALLOS
Protect your position before the deal is done.
If you have a transaction in progress or want to understand whether your current representation is the right fit, reach out to Huffenus & Mallos.