Dennis Schuh

What are the biggest headwinds and tailwinds to increased transaction activity today?  

Elevated borrowing costs, negative leverage and cost of capital for headwinds; and the forward curve, expectations of lower rates, a large volume of maturing loans, improving supply and a demand landscape for certain asset classes for the tailwinds.

Which lending and investment opportunities that didn’t exist last year are Starwood leaning into as we speak?  

Massive data center financings.  

As a nonbank, what’s your biggest competitive advantage over banks?

Our people, and providing creative and flexible solutions on larger loans.

It’s hard to pick your favorite child, but which transaction made you most proud this year, and why? 

We did a very large mezzanine loan to build a pre-leased data center to an investment-grade tenant at an attractive risk-
adjusted return. [Editor’s note: Starwood Property Trust was the mezzanine lender in the $2 billion financing for CIM Group and Novva Data Center’s data center project in West Jordan, Utah. J.P. Morgan was the senior lender in the deal, which closed in March.] 

Describe your upcoming pipeline in one word, then elaborate on your choice?  

Healthy. A combination of refinance opportunities, investment sales activity picking up, especially for certain in-favor asset classes and unprecedented activity in the data center space.  

Lighting Round:

“The Summer I Turned Pretty” or “The Morning Show”?

“Landman.”

Biggest moment of 2025: Taylor Swift’s engagement or Fed rate cuts?

Only one broke the internet. 

Data centers: Been there done that, or Gimme more?

Gimme more. 

Where will rates be one year from now?

Lower.

How do you shake off market stress?

Golf and walking my dog.

NFL or college football?

NFL.

What song would be the theme tune of your life?

A mashup of “I’m Still Standing” and “Walking on Sunshine.”

Ultimate dinner party: Pick three guests (dead or alive)?

Bill Murray, Muhammad Ali and Eddie Vedder.

Thanksgiving: Are you the chef or spectator/taster?

I deep-fry the turkeys every year in the backyard.

Holiday wish?

“There’s room for everyone on the Nice List.” —Buddy the Elf