A pair of money managers have taken a page from the 2009 playbook with a focus on distressed CMBS debt. Bloomberg News reported that hedge fund Axonic Capital and startup Metamorphosis Hotel Capital Partners are picking apart CMBS as they hunt for bargains, according to people with knowledge of the funds’ strategies. 

Although the two money managers have different plans for how to gain possession of the underlying assets, their end goals are similar: to take control of, fix and flip ailing properties for significant profit.

In the current environment, the thinking is that bank-financed properties may continue to receive time from their lenders to meet interest obligations, but buildings with securitized mortgages likely have less flexibility to avoid being sold off should they miss looming payment deadlines. That creates an opportunity for savvy firms to pounce, Bloomberg reported.

“This is an interesting strategy that’s proven successful in other asset classes,” Paul Norris at asset management firm Conning & Co. told Bloomberg. “We expect to see more hedge funds do this,” although he added that he’s not pursuing the strategy himself.