Commercial Real Estate Loans
AAPL Member · Direct Lender Since 2016 · NMLS #1979189
Commercial real estate runs on the income of the asset, and so does the financing. Where a residential loan looks at a borrower, a commercial real estate loan looks at a building — its net operating income, its occupancy, its lease structure, and what those produce against the debt. That shift in perspective is liberating for investors: a strong-performing or well-conceived commercial asset can be financed on its own merits, regardless of your personal tax returns. Tidal Loans has financed commercial and multifamily investors as a direct lender since 2016, underwriting the property’s cash flow rather than your paycheck.
We focus on the kinds of commercial deals where speed, flexibility, and asset-based underwriting matter most — multifamily, mixed-use, and value-add commercial property — and where a direct lender can move while a bank is still scheduling its committee.
Multifamily: the Core of Commercial Lending
The most common commercial asset we finance is multifamily — apartment buildings of five units and up, which cross from residential into commercial underwriting at that five-unit line. Our multifamily loan program underwrites the building’s net operating income and debt service coverage ratio, the same cash-flow logic as a single-family DSCR loan scaled to a whole building. We finance both stabilized acquisitions (long-term, DSCR-style holds) and value-add repositions (short-term, proforma-based deals), which makes multifamily the natural entry point for investors stepping up from single-family rentals.
Bridge and Value-Add Commercial
A great deal of commercial opportunity is in property that doesn’t perform yet — high vacancy, below-market rents, deferred maintenance. For those, a commercial bridge loan carries the asset through the improvement: we underwrite to the proforma income (what the building will produce once stabilized), the debt yield, and an overall profitability test, rather than the property’s weak current numbers. Once you’ve improved occupancy and rents, you refinance into long-term financing or sell. This bridge-to-stabilization path is how most value-add commercial deals actually get done.
Acquisition, Construction, and Cash-Out
Beyond the hold and the reposition, the full commercial toolkit applies. Acquisition financing funds the purchase of a performing asset. A ground-up construction loan funds commercial and mixed-use development — relevant to the property developers building from scratch. And a cash-out refinance pulls equity out of a performing commercial asset to fund the next acquisition. Each runs on the asset’s income, so a growing commercial portfolio compounds without your personal DTI ever becoming the ceiling.
How Commercial Underwriting Differs
Commercial deals ask more of the asset and the operator than residential ones. Expect a larger equity contribution — often 25–30% on an acquisition — meaningful reserves, and weight given to your experience operating similar assets, though newer operators can still get financed on smaller, stabilized buildings. Credit is reviewed but there’s no minimum score; the building’s income and the strength of the plan carry the most weight. As always, the decision rides on the asset, not your personal income tax returns.
Commercial Lending at a Glance
Commercial Lending at a Glance
Frequently Asked Questions
It’s financing for income-producing commercial property — multifamily (5+ units), mixed-use, and commercial buildings — underwritten on the asset’s net operating income and debt service coverage rather than the borrower’s personal income. The building’s cash flow drives the deal.
We focus on multifamily apartment buildings, mixed-use, and value-add commercial property, financing stabilized acquisitions, value-add repositions through bridge loans, ground-up commercial construction, and cash-out refinances of performing assets.
Usually larger than a residential deal — often in the range of 25% to 30% of the purchase price on an acquisition, which sets your loan-to-value. The exact figure depends on the asset’s income, your experience, and whether it’s a stabilized or value-add deal.
Yes. A commercial bridge loan underwrites to the proforma income — what the building will produce once stabilized — plus debt yield and overall profitability, rather than its weak current numbers. You improve the asset, then refinance into long-term financing or sell.
No. Commercial real estate loans are underwritten on the asset’s income, not your personal tax returns. Credit is reviewed with no minimum score, and experience and reserves matter, but the building’s cash flow carries the underwriting.
Ready to finance a commercial deal?
Tell us the asset and its income. We read a rent roll and an operating statement in-house and give a real answer fast.