Troubled U.S. commercial properties have more than doubled this year with the value of assets in default, foreclosure or bankruptcy topping $107 billion. April was the record month with $19.5 billion added to the total, approximately $13.5 billion of which is attributed to the bankruptcy of General Growth (GGP). Many of GGP’s mortgages were in trouble before the April filing; GGP’s secured debt obligations account for about 100 properties with $18 billion of mortgages, most of which were securitized.

Excluding GGP, the growth of newly troubled properties moderated slightly in April and May with $5.5 billion of assets added in each month. June, however, is shaping up to be among the worst of the year with over $10 billion of newly defaulted mortgages recorded so far.

Hotels and retail properties are emerging as the most problematic sectors. Distress in retail, including GGP, has risen 133% ytd. Distress in the hotel sector, bolstered by the recent bankruptcy of Extended Stay, is up 216%. In contrast, office distress is up 118% ytd. Trouble for development sites is starting to moderate as many shaky land deals have already gone bad.

Perhaps more alarming than the rapid growth in the distress totals is the very modest rate at which troubled situations are being resolved. While $60.5 billion of troubled assets have been added ytd, just $4.1 billion have been resolved this year. In far more situations, modifications and short-term extensions are being granted, but these can hardly be considered resolved, only delayed.

Distress is not only widespread geographically and by property type, but also by borrower type. Excess leverage is endemic to every type of investor, all of which are facing difficulties refinancing mortgages as they come due.