Commercial Real Estate Lending

If you are interested in starting a small commercial real estate business then you should be aware of the commercial real estate lending options that are available to you. There are many different commercial lenders that offer a variety of different commercial real estate loans. Which commercial lender you visit will depend partially on the type of investment property you are considering acquiring.

For instance, if you are relatively new to the commercial real estate loan market and are just beginning to get your feet wet then you will probably want to start by investing in a smaller investment property. For our purposes let’s suppose a smaller investment property is valued in the $500,000 to $2,000,0000 range. To secure a commercial real estate loan for this amount you will have to look around. Not all commercial real estate lending centers are interested in making loans in these amounts.

In fact, as you shop around you will notice that the larger banks are more interested in the high value commercial real estate loan. Larger commercial real estate lending centers are interested in going after these high value investment property loans because they offer higher returns. That is to say the higher value commercial real estate loans are often more profitable to the commercial real estate lending center than lower value loans.

The smaller banks tend to fill in the market need by serving the niche of customers who are interested in these lower value commercial real estate loans. Because there are a number of small commercial real estate lending centers competing for your business you will be offered competitive rates. As you shop for the ideal commercial real estate loan to fund your investment property deal be sure to compare and contrast the rates and terms proposed by the commercial real estate lending centers. When you first start out in the commercial real estate business you may not have much room to negotiate on rates and fees. However, as you gain experience and your commercial lender gains confidence in you they will be more likely to cut you a deal to retain your business.

Another thing to keep in mind as you search for the perfect investment property opportunity and the ideal commercial real estate lending center is the type of property you are interested in. There are a variety of different property types to be considered when you invest in real estate. For example, some of your options will include owner occupied and investor owned single tenant and multi-tenant office and retails spaces or industrial buildings and warehouses.

The commercial lender you decide to do business with will also partially depend on the property type. Every commercial real estate lending center adheres to a risk profile and can only extend loans for property types that fit that risk profile. Knowing the type of the property you are interested in is just one more thing to keep in mind as you search for your investment property and as you narrow down your list of possible commercial lenders.

Church Loan and Business Finance Solutions

Church loans often suffer from several problems, and as a result specialized business finance strategies are required. Typical church financing will involve multiple difficulties.

Church financing is possibly the most difficult commercial mortgage to arrange. Since churches represent an integral part of most communities, it is clearly desirable to improve church loan options if at all possible. In almost all cases financing will require a very specialized commercial real estate loan that is typically not widely available.

Churches are certainly not typical business organizations, but churches nevertheless have very real and substantial business loan needs. This article will provide an overview of four primary church financing difficulties followed by a discussion of six practical church loan solutions.

Four Major Church Financing and Business Finance Difficulties -

Before addressing possible solutions for the most common church loan needs, it is important to discuss the typical barriers to obtaining appropriate financing. Historically church financing has been difficult to arrange for several reasons:

(1) Church Loan Obstacle Number One: Church properties are unique. Lenders are therefore concerned that if commercial loan payments are not made in a timely manner and the lender is required to assume ownership of the property, it will be very difficult to find a new owner because of the unique property features.

(2) Church Financing Difficulty Number Two: Lenders frequently want personal guarantors for church loans, and this requirement is not appropriate for church financing. The financial structure of churches simply does not lend itself to a traditional lender/guarantor approach. But most lenders are uncomfortable with the potential lack of guarantors (especially because of the previous observation about the difficulty of reselling the church property should it become necessary).

As a result, it is common to find that church financing has been obtained only after one or more church members have provided a personal guarantee. The requirement for personal guarantors acts as a severe obstacle because church members might be unwilling to act in this capacity and because there simply might not be individuals who have sufficient net worth to provide a personal guarantee for a large church loan.

(3) Church Financing Difficulty Number Three: When church financing is obtained, there are frequently unacceptable business finance terms such as very small loans, low loan-to-value (LTV) of 50% to 60%, short-term loans and high interest rates. These onerous terms are tantamount to the church loan being declined, and if the terms are accepted, the church is likely to experience continuing financial difficulties due to unrealistic commercial mortgage requirements.

(4) Church Financing Difficulty Number Four: Construction, renovation and land acquisition are even more difficult for churches to finance than purchases or refinancing. As a result, needed repairs are often postponed indefinitely and new churches frequently take many years to become a reality.

Six Practical Church Loan and Commercial Mortgage Solutions -

There are common-sense financing solutions for the church loan issues described above. Here is an overview of church financing that is now available from some non-traditional lenders:

(1) Church Loan Financing Approach Number One: Non-Recourse Loans (instead of guarantors). The willingness to eliminate individual guarantors is likely to require a non-traditional church lender. This particular church financing solution means that lender decisions will not be based on personal guarantors in any way.

(2) Church Loan Solution Number Two: Long-term business loans. Church financing will be much more successful when it is long-term instead of short-term (payments will be reduced dramatically).

(3) Church Loan Solution Number Three: Low interest rates (usually a maximum of prime plus 1%). In reality many churches have been taken advantage of and charged excessive interest rates because lenders perceived that they did not have any other realistic options.

With payments based upon a rate in the range of prime plus 1%, church financing payments will be reduced dramatically. In combination with longer-term loans, the overall payment reduction will make a significant contribution to church cash flow improvements.

(4) Church Loan Solution Number Four: Minimum church financing of $500,000. This allows churches to complete most financing in one step rather than piecemeal over a period of years.

(5) Church Loan Solution Number Five: Higher LTV (75%-90% is possible). This results in a more workable amount of 10% to 25% (rather than 40% to 50% with traditional church financing) for the down payment or non-financed portion in refinancing.

(6) Church Loan Solution Number Six: Church financing can now include new construction, renovation, land acquisition, purchase and refinancing. Due to flexible church loan financing, it is not necessary for any of these important church loan activities to be postponed.

Collectively the six church financing solutions described above should benefit a large number of churches by allowing refinancing with much better financial terms and by facilitating the construction of new churches on an accelerated timetable. The six church loan financing approaches should result in financial covenants that will contribute to the long-term financial profile of prudent churches which adhere to the church financing approaches suggested.

Business Finance and Business Loans

More residential real estate investors are exploring commercial real estate and business loan alternatives as a result of the increasingly chaotic investment environment for residential financing. In these circumstances prospective commercial property owners, business investors and business owners should educate themselves about choices for the business opportunity financing and commercial loan climate that currently prevails throughout the United States.

Environmental requirements for business finance will be a complex issue for numerous business investments. Environmental issues involved in a business loan will primarily depend upon the commercial lender as well as the type of business. More extensive requirements can impact both the cost and timing for a commercial mortgage loan.

Tax returns and financial statements for a business loan are likely to be a concern for all commercial borrowers. Whereas residential mortgage financing is likely to involve only personal tax returns, most business financing will include a review of business tax returns as well. Business financial statements and personal financial statements will be required for certain kinds of business opportunity financing and commercial real estate financing.

Secondary financing will often be a means of acquiring desired commercial loans. The use of seller financing or secondary financing is a prudent business financing strategy to reduce capital requirements for the borrower. Secondary financing will not be accepted by all commercial lenders.

An unexpected requirement for many commercial loans involves sourcing and seasoning of funds. When purchasing a business, some lenders will require that borrowers document where the down payment is coming from (sourcing) and how long the funds have been in that location (seasoning). If a borrower cannot adequately provide this documentation, the choice of commercial lenders will be more restricted.

Collateral and cross-collateralization for business loans will be an insurmountable obstacle for some commercial borrowers. Collateral requirements for business financing will depend on many factors such as down payment, type of business, credit scores and the type of financing needed. Cross-collateralization refers to lender requirements involving personal collateral such as a home used as collateral for a business loan.

Any requirement for a business plan when obtaining commercial mortgages is likely to be expensive and time-consuming. A business plan is not always required for a business loan, but when one is required this will add significantly to the cost and length of the loan process.

An increasing problem for commercial borrowers seeking refinancing is an unreasonable limitation for getting cash out of the new loan. Commercial lenders differ significantly regarding restrictions imposed on the amount of cash out to the borrower when refinancing. Some lenders will not permit any cash out whatsoever while others will limit cash received by the borrower to a particular amount. The preferred approach is to use a lender that will allow cash to be paid out up to an agreed loan-to-value (frequently 75%).

It is important to to thoroughly analyze business financing lockout penalties. A lockout penalty is much more severe than a prepayment penalty in that such penalties can effectively prevent a commercial borrower from selling or refinancing during a prescribed period (often two to five years).

In addition to the issues noted above, numerous other key business finance and real estate mortgage issues will also be important to evaluate. Commercial mortgage requirements are very different from residential financing requirements in the United States. We have prepared several other business finance overviews addressing additional factors that will be significant for most commercial borrowers. Separate report topics include SBA loan refinancing, business opportunity financing, stated income business loans and commercial appraisals..