The Complete Guide to Private Commercial Real Estate Loans
Commercial real estate investors across New York, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas face the same recurring problem: the best deals demand speed, and banks simply cannot move fast enough. A retail strip center available at a discount through a motivated seller, a warehouse at auction requiring a 14-day close, an office building whose conventional lender pulled out at the last minute — these are the exact scenarios where Sab Tera Lending funds deals every week.
We are a direct private lender, not a broker. When you call us, you are speaking with the people who make the lending decisions. We do not send your file to a committee, a bank, or an outside investor. Our capital is proprietary and discretionary, which is why we can issue a same-day term sheet and close in 14 to 21 days when banks take 60 to 120.
What Is a Commercial Real Estate Bridge Loan?
A commercial real estate bridge loan is a short-term (12 to 36 months), interest-only loan secured by a commercial property. It is designed to "bridge" a gap: between purchase and permanent financing, between vacancy and stabilization, between acquisition and refinance. Unlike a bank mortgage that requires years of income history, debt coverage ratios, and months of underwriting, a bridge loan is underwritten primarily on the property value and exit strategy.
Commercial bridge loans are the primary tool used by active investors who need to move quickly on deals that banks cannot or will not touch — distressed properties, transitional assets, special-purpose buildings like auto repair shops, and time-sensitive acquisitions.
Office Building Loans — Fast Private Financing
Whether you are acquiring a suburban office park in Dallas, a medical office building in Newark, or a multi-tenant office complex in Miami, Sab Tera Lending provides fast bridge financing based on current property value and tenancy. We finance single-tenant and multi-tenant office, owner-occupied (where the borrowing entity occupies a portion), net-lease office, and value-add repositioning plays where an office is being re-tenanted or converted.
We underwrite office loans on the as-is rent roll for stabilized properties, and on the as-stabilized value for transitional or vacant office buildings. If you have a clear plan to fill vacancy and a competitive price on the asset, we can fund it.
Retail Property Loans — Strip Centers, Freestanding Retail, and NNN
Our retail lending covers the full spectrum: anchored strip centers with national tenants, unanchored neighborhood strips, freestanding single-tenant retail (NNN), downtown storefront retail, and inline mall spaces. Retail is among our most active commercial categories, particularly in the NYC metro, South Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton), Houston, Atlanta, and Charlotte markets.
We do not require the property to be fully leased. Retail properties with partial vacancy are frequently funded based on the as-stabilized value, with a bridge loan structured to allow time for re-tenanting. If the deal makes sense, we fund it.
Warehouse and Industrial Loans — Private Bridge Financing
Demand for warehouse and industrial space remains elevated across all nine of our service states — driven by e-commerce logistics, last-mile distribution, and manufacturing reshoring. We finance warehouse acquisitions and refinances in New Jersey (the premier logistics corridor in the Northeast), Long Island, Houston's industrial parks, Miami's Airport submarket, Atlanta's I-85 corridor, and the Charlotte-to-Raleigh industrial triangle.
We fund standard warehouses, light industrial flex space, distribution centers, cold storage, and manufacturing facilities. We are particularly active in NJ, TX, FL, and GA for industrial bridge loans in the $500,000 to $5,000,000 range.
Auto Repair Shop Loans — Special-Purpose Commercial Financing
Auto repair shops, auto body shops, transmission specialists, quick-lube centers, and tire shops are classified as special-purpose commercial real estate. Many banks will not lend on these properties at all due to their single-use nature, and those that do require lengthy underwriting processes. Sab Tera Lending regularly finances auto repair and auto body shop real estate across our entire service territory.
We evaluate auto repair shop loans based on the real estate value (land and improvements), the building's income potential (existing lease or owner-user occupancy), and the exit strategy. If you are purchasing the property as an investment with a lease in place, or as an owner-operator, we can structure a loan around the deal's specific metrics.
Common auto repair shop loan scenarios we fund: purchasing the building as an owner-occupant to stop paying rent; acquiring a leased auto repair property as an investor; pulling cash-out equity from an owned auto shop to expand or fund another acquisition; bridging an auto shop property while arranging SBA 504 permanent financing.
Car Wash Loans — Private Financing for Car Wash Real Estate
Car wash properties — express tunnel, full-service, in-bay automatic, and self-service — are among the most attractive special-purpose commercial investments due to their low staffing requirements, high margins, and long-term lease structures. We provide commercial bridge loans for car wash real estate acquisitions and refinances in all nine service states.
Self-Storage Loans — Acquisition and Bridge Financing
Self-storage facilities represent one of the most resilient commercial asset classes, with strong performance across economic cycles. We provide bridge loans for self-storage acquisitions, lease-up phase financing, and cash-out refinances for stabilized facilities. We finance indoor and outdoor storage, climate-controlled facilities, RV and boat storage, and mixed-use storage campuses in markets across the Southeast and South, where self-storage demand has grown significantly alongside population migration.
Mixed-Use Property Loans
Mixed-use properties — typically retail or commercial on the ground floor with residential apartments above — are financed as commercial real estate when they include five or more residential units. These are among the most common commercial loans we fund in the New York metro area, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Florida. We finance mixed-use acquisitions, cash-out refinances, bridge loans for repositioning, and value-add plays where ground floor commercial is being released or improved.
Asset-Based Underwriting — How We Evaluate Your Deal
Our underwriting is property-first, not borrower-first. We evaluate: (1) the current market value of the property based on comparable sales and a USPAP-compliant appraisal; (2) the in-place or achievable rent roll; (3) the property's location and market fundamentals; (4) the borrower's experience and exit strategy; and (5) the overall deal structure including LTV and loan amount.
We do not require personal tax returns, W-2s, business profit-and-loss statements, or bank statements to underwrite your deal. Self-employed borrowers, international investors, and borrowers with non-traditional income are eligible as long as the deal is solid.
Common Commercial Loan Use Cases
- Acquiring a commercial property at auction or through a short-sale requiring a 14-to-30 day close
- Pulling cash-out equity from a stabilized CRE asset while arranging permanent bank or CMBS debt
- Stabilizing a partially vacant commercial property before qualifying for agency or SBA permanent financing
- Completing a 1031 exchange under a 45-day identification or 180-day close deadline
- Paying off a maturing commercial balloon note while refinancing into permanent debt
- Refinancing a commercial property after completion of renovations or re-tenanting
- Purchasing the building your business occupies to stop paying rent and build equity
Commercial Real Estate Markets We Know Best
Our most active commercial lending markets are the New York City metropolitan area (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, Long Island), New Jersey (Newark, Jersey City, Edison, Cherry Hill, Parsippany), Connecticut (Hartford, Stamford, Bridgeport, New Haven), South Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Tampa, Orlando), Texas (Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio), Georgia (Atlanta, Savannah, Augusta), North Carolina (Charlotte, Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro), South Carolina (Charleston, Columbia, Myrtle Beach), and Alabama (Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery).
If you are looking for a commercial real estate loan in any city, county, or market within these nine states, contact us today for a same-day term sheet. We respond to every commercial loan inquiry the same business day.