Investors searching how to apply for a commercial real estate loan usually mean one of three lanes: bridge acquisition, value-add rehab, or permanent DSCR on 5+ units. Banks often route you through CMBS boxes and sponsor financials; Jaken Finance Group underwrites investor files on property cash flow and exit when the file qualifies.
Jaken Finance Group reviews investor applications on property cash flow and a written exit, not a W-2 worksheet. Qualified files price bridge 8.99%–13.5% interest-only and DSCR 5.75%–10.5%. Start at commercial real estate financing or commercial loan request. Call (833) 264-7776.
Step 1 — Pick the product lane
| Your situation | Product | Rate band |
|---|---|---|
| Stabilized 5+ unit or mixed-use hold | DSCR / small commercial permanent | 5.75%–10.5% |
| Acquisition + light lease-up | Bridge → DSCR exit | 8.99%–13.5% IO bridge |
| Acquisition + major CapEx | Value-add bridge with draws | 8.99%–13.5% IO |
| Outdoor hospitality (MHP, RV) | Asset-class bridge | 8.99%–13.5% IO |
Asset-class matrix: commercial property loans by asset class
Step 2 — Build the submission package
Minimum for fastest review:
- Property — address, type, photos, rent roll or pro forma
- Economics — purchase price or payoff, CapEx budget, stabilized NOI target
- Entity — LLC operating agreement, articles, EIN (LLC loans)
- Sponsor — liquidity statement (bank/investment accounts)
- Exit — DSCR refi, sale, or 1031 leg documented in writing
Full checklist: commercial loan documents for investors
Step 3 — Submit and review term sheet
Commercial loan request routes your file to commercial underwriting. A term sheet outlines rate, leverage, points, term, prepay, and conditions — not a final commitment until appraisal and title clear.
Compare structures: term sheet vs LOI vs commitment
Worked example — Tampa 12-unit submission
Sponsor uploads:
- Purchase contract at $1,050,000 on 12-unit St. Pete asset
- T-12 showing $98,000 NOI with 8% vacancy haircut
- LLC docs + $210,000 liquidity
- Exit: DSCR refi at month 12 after $120,000 unit-turn scope
Bridge term sheet issued at 70% LTC, 10.5% IO, 18-month term — close target 10 business days after appraisal payment.
Timeline expectations
See how long commercial loans take to close. Bridge acquisition: 7–14 business days on complete files. DSCR 5+: often 14 business days.
After denial elsewhere
Bank declined? Commercial loan after bank denial · Second Look
Self-employed without tax returns: commercial loan no tax returns
Call (833) 264-7776 or apply online.
Ability-to-repay rules vs a business-purpose application
Consumer closed-end mortgages must meet ability-to-repay and qualified-mortgage tests. The CFPB publishes those Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgage standards under Regulation Z. That rule set is built for owner-occupied consumer dwellings.
An investor commercial file at Jaken Finance Group is a business-purpose loan on non-owner-occupied property. Reviewers still ask whether the asset can carry the payment. They do not run a consumer ATR worksheet on your paycheck. Bring a rent roll, T-12 or defensible pro forma, liquidity, and an exit with a product name. Leave the qualified-mortgage checklist for a primary-residence refinance.
If a bank demanded two years of personal returns “because Regulation Z requires it,” ask how they classified the loan. Many investor declines start with a consumer label on a rental asset. Second Look is for files that failed a consumer box on investment collateral.
SBA loan programs are a different application
The SBA lists 7(a), 504, and other loan programs for operating companies. Those packages underwrite the business, occupancy, and use of proceeds. A 504 close on an owner-occupied warehouse is not the same upload as a DSCR loan on a 12-unit you will not live in.
Do not attach an SBA personal history form and a full tax stack to a Jaken Finance Group commercial request unless someone asked. The commercial loan request form is built for investor bridge 8.99%–13.5% IO and DSCR 5.75%–10.5%. Occupancy is the first fork. If you occupy the building for your company, talk to an SBA lender. If tenants pay the rent, stay on this path.
Name the borrower the way title will read
If the deed will say “Harbor Twelve LLC,” apply in that name on the first screen. A term sheet issued to you personally, then “fixed” at closing, wastes a week when the title company will not match parties.
Form the LLC and obtain the EIN before you pick a close date. Members who will guarantee should know that before you submit. Surprise guarantors delay more files than surprise coupons. Vesting detail: commercial real estate loan for LLC and investment property loans for LLC.
What the first two days actually decide
A complete upload usually gets a scenario review in 24–48 hours. That review is not a lock. It answers product lane, rough leverage, and whether the exit is plausible. You then receive a term sheet or a short list of missing items.
The close clock does not start when you hit submit. It starts when appraisal is paid and conditions clear. See loan process and how long a commercial real estate loan takes to close. Bridge acquisition still targets 7–14 business days on a complete file. Many DSCR 5+ files need about 14 business days.
Call (833) 264-7776 if the contract expires inside two weeks. Put the address, price, and exit product in the first sentence.
Auction bids, 1031 clocks, and seller drop-dead dates
Auction bidders should say so on day one. Proof of funds and a close window matter more than a pretty spreadsheet. In a 1031, name the qualified intermediary and the day identification or exchange funds must land. Entity mismatch between the sold property and the replacement is a common fail. Fix vesting in the application, not at the table.
Bridge loans for real estate investors exist for those clocks. Permanent DSCR is the hold product after you own and stabilize. Do not apply for permanent debt on a gutted building you have not closed.
What “complete” means on the upload
Sponsors often call a file complete because they have a contract. Underwriters need the contract plus rent roll or pro forma, full-page liquidity statements, entity documents if you vest in an LLC, and an exit with a month attached. Photos help. A Zestimate does not replace NOI.
Use the commercial loan documents checklist. One PDF per category, labeled with the street address. A zip file named “final_v7” costs a day.
For 5–10 unit buildings, read multifamily 5–10 unit DSCR loans so you do not send a residential rent schedule when the desk needs commercial income math. Specialty assets — storage, MHP, industrial — use the add-ons on commercial property loans by asset class.
How investor apply flow differs from a bank relationship package
A community bank often wants a relationship deposit, personal financial statement, two years of returns, and a committee calendar. An investor apply flow at Jaken Finance Group leads with the address, economics, entity, and exit. Credit still matters on many programs. It is not the first gate the way DTI is on a consumer file.
If you already have a bank term sheet you cannot use, attach it. The denial reason helps more than a second copy of the same thin PDF. Rebuild first, then apply — commercial loan after bank denial.
Self-employed sponsors without personal returns still apply the same way when the property qualifies: commercial loan with no tax returns.
Worked apply sequence — Jacksonville 9-unit
A sponsor had a $980,000 contract on a nine-unit with two vacancies. They uploaded the contract, a rent roll with lease end dates, a $88,000 turn budget, LLC docs, and $205,000 in brokerage statements. Exit memo: DSCR takeout in month 12 after the vacant doors lease at $1,050.
Scenario review returned the next morning: bridge lane, 69% LTC, 10.375% IO. They paid the appraisal that afternoon. Conditions cleared on business day 9. That sequence is the apply process — not a rate-shopping email without an address.
Credit pull, guarantor consent, and who must know
Someone has to consent to a credit pull. On an LLC borrower that is usually the guarantor, not “the company.” If two members will sign, both should know before you upload. A member who finds out after the term sheet often refuses, and the file restarts.
Recent bankruptcy, foreclosure, or late mortgage history belongs in a short memo on day one. Hiding it until the pull is how good addresses die. Second Look can still work when the event is explained and the exit is real.
Insurance and named insured before you hit submit
Ask your broker for a quote in the borrowing entity name on the exact address. Bind is later. Quote is now. Flood zones, coastal wind, and wildfire maps change whether DSCR still works at the leverage you modeled. Applying without a quote is fine. Applying with a quote from a neighboring parcel is not.
What not to put in the first message
Do not send a novel about your investing philosophy. Do not send twenty unlabeled photos and no rent roll. Do not ask for a rate without an address. Do not paste a confidential offering memorandum that you are not allowed to share.
Do send: address, contract or payoff, asset type, occupancy, requested product, exit month, and a phone number. That is an application. Everything else is attachment hygiene. Small-balance deals under $2 million use the same apply path — see small-balance commercial loans — not a separate “mini CMBS” form.
After you receive the term sheet
Read leverage definition, prepay, extensions, and conditions the same day. Accept or ask a precise question. Then pay the appraisal if you intend to close. Sitting on a sheet while the seller’s clock runs is how 14-day files become 30-day files. Compare document stages on term sheet vs LOI vs commitment.
Jaken Finance Group still prices qualified files in the published bands — bridge 8.99%–13.5% IO, DSCR 5.75%–10.5% — but the sheet in your hand is the one that matters for that address.
Applying from out of state on a local asset
Nationwide programs still need local facts: who holds keys, which title company the seller named, and whether the city has open permits. An Illinois sponsor buying in Florida should put the local property manager or realtor on the access list before appraisal. Remote apply is normal. Remote silence when the appraiser is at the door is not.
If the asset is 5+ units, say so on the form so the desk does not order a 1–4 unit report. Hub context stays on commercial real estate financing. The apply button does not change by state — the exhibits do.
Keep bridge loans for real estate investors bookmarked if the first review comes back as a timing or rehab lane instead of permanent DSCR. That is a successful apply, not a rejection.
Call (833) 264-7776 when the seller’s drop-dead date is inside 14 days. A term sheet beats “we have a lender.”
Rates, terms and conditions offered only to qualified borrowers and are subject to change at any time without notice. Closing times are in business days and commence upon receipt of appraisal payment and satisfaction of borrower conditions. All loans are subject to full underwriting for loan approvals. Jaken Finance Group only finances non-owner occupied investment properties.