Investors searching multifamily bridge loans, 5+ unit apartment financing, and investment residential commercial bridge need product that underwrites rent rolls and NOI per door — not single-family ARV math.
Jaken Finance Group finances multifamily 5+ and investment residential bridge nationwide — all 50 states. Rates: 8.99%–13.5% interest-only, terms 12–24 months.
See the full commercial property type matrix · multi-family calculator · residential bridge overview
Why 5+ units underwrite as commercial
| Factor | 1–4 units (residential) | 5+ units (commercial multifamily) |
|---|---|---|
| Income proof | Often DSCR / rent survey | Full rent roll + T-12 |
| Valuation | Sales comps + ARV | Income approach / cap rate |
| Permanent exit | DSCR, bank portfolio | Agency (Fannie/Freddie), CMBS, bank |
| Bridge focus | Flip or BRRRR | Lease-up, unit turns, reposition |
Small residential portfolios use DSCR loans. Once the asset is five doors or more, lenders treat it as commercial multifamily with agency-aware exits — including FHA multifamily paths on larger licensed files.
Purchase vs. value-add
| Scenario | Underwriting basis | Typical leverage | Draw structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stabilized purchase | In-place NOI, occupancy ≥90% | 70%–75% LTV | Single close |
| Light value-add | Unit turns + rent bumps | 65%–72% LTC | CapEx holdback |
| Heavy lease-up | Vacancy + CapEx stack | 65%–70% LTC | Milestone draws |
| Distressed / REO | Business plan + as-is value | 60%–65% LTC | Tight reserves |
CapEx draw mechanics match commercial rehab loans — holdbacks release on inspection, not on pro forma alone.
What lenders review on multifamily bridge
| Input | Why it matters | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| Unit mix & rent roll | NOI per door vs market | Asking rents with no lease evidence |
| Trailing 12 NOI | Carry coverage | One peak month annualized |
| CapEx scope | Turn cost vs rent lift | GC bid missing contingency |
| Property tax / insurance | Expense load | Understated tax reassessment |
| Exit lender path | Agency / bank floor | Cap rate above permanent market |
Worked example — Columbus OH 24-unit lease-up
Class C garden apartments — deferred maintenance, 71% occupied:
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Purchase | $1,920,000 |
| CapEx (12 unit turns, roof, HVAC) | $360,000 |
| Total project cost | $2,280,000 |
| Bridge at 70% LTC | $1,596,000 |
| Sponsor equity | $684,000 |
| Rate | 10.5% IO · 18-month term |
| Pre-rehab avg rent | $825/unit |
| Stabilized avg rent | $1,050/unit at 93% occ |
| Stabilized NOI | ~$198,000/yr |
| Exit | Agency or bank at 65% LTV on ~$2.85M value |
Lease-up succeeds when signed leases replace pro forma rents monthly — bridge lenders want renovation progress and rent rolls, not optimism.
Permanent exits for 5+ multifamily
| Exit | Best fit | Typical timing |
|---|---|---|
| Agency (Fannie / Freddie) | Stabilized 5+ with clean ops | After 90-day seasoning |
| CMBS | Larger pools / conduit | Stabilized T-12 |
| Community / regional bank | Smaller MSAs, relationship | Flexible |
| Bridge extension | CapEx overrun | Last resort — model carry |
If permanent debt cannot clear your stabilized cap rate, the bridge term sheet tightens at application — review commercial loans by property type for exit benchmarks by asset class.
Multifamily bridge terms (Jaken Finance Group)
| Parameter | Range |
|---|---|
| Rates | 8.99%–13.5% IO |
| Leverage | Up to 90% of purchase on qualified files; many 5+ unit files clear at 65%–75% |
| Term | 12–24 months |
| Close | 7–10 business days |
| Coverage | All 50 states |
Unit-turn CapEx — what belongs in the holdback
| Scope item | Typical band | Lender note |
|---|---|---|
| Cosmetic unit turn | $8K–$18K / unit | Flooring, paint, appliances |
| Full gut unit | $25K–$45K / unit | Kitchen, bath, electrical |
| Common area / roof | Project-level | Must be in LTC day one |
| Contingency | 10%–15% of CapEx | Older mechanicals |
Holdbacks release on inspection — same milestone logic as commercial rehab loans. Soft costs (permits, interest reserve) belong in the cost stack, not as a surprise draw.
Stabilization timeline — typical 18-month bridge
| Month | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 0 | Close bridge · 8.99%–13.5% IO |
| 1–3 | First unit turns · lease renewals |
| 4–9 | Mid-project occupancy ramp |
| 10–14 | 90-day stabilized T-12 build |
| 15–18 | Agency / bank refi application |
Plan the permanent application 90 days before maturity. Carry on a 24-unit file at 10.5% IO adds up fast if lease-up slips a quarter.
Who this product is for
- Sponsors acquiring 5–100+ unit garden or mid-rise assets
- Value-add operators with GC bids and rent comps in-hand
- Investors bridging to agency or bank takeout after lease-up
- Not a substitute for 1–4 unit DSCR on small residential
Underwriting mistakes sponsors make
- Importing single-family flip comps to set multifamily value
- Ignoring tax reassessment after acquisition
- Refi application before 90 days of stabilized occupancy
- CapEx budget without 10%–15% contingency on older HVAC/roof stock
- Treating section 8 / HAP income without contract review
- Modeling 100% occupancy at market rents on day-one refi
Depreciation is a tax question, not a loan covenant
IRS Publication 527 (2025) covers residential rental property. Under the general depreciation system, a residential rental building is depreciated over 27.5 years. Structural components such as furnaces, water pipes, and venting sit in that same 27.5-year recovery period. An addition or improvement, including a new roof, uses the same recovery period as the building it is added to, measured as if the building were placed in service when the improvement was.
That rule does not set your bridge payment. It does stop a sponsor from treating a $180,000 roof as a one-year expense in the same conversation where the lender is capitalizing it in the loan. Ask a tax advisor how to book the work. Jaken Finance Group underwrites rent, cost, and the exit. We do not prepare the return.
A 504 loan is also the wrong permanent home for a rental apartment building held as an investment. The SBA 504 page says a 504 loan cannot be used for speculation or investment in rental real estate. The agency, CMBS, or bank takeout on a 5+ unit asset is a different door. Do not list 504 as the exit on a non-owner apartment file.
National price context while you wait on the local cap rate
The FHFA purchase-only house price index, seasonally adjusted, was 443.52 in July 2026. It was 432.40 in July 2025. That is a 2.6% rise. January 1991 equals 100. The series is FRED HPIPONM226S. It is a national house-purchase index, not an apartment cap rate. It tells you the collateral tide. It does not price your 24-unit.
The next monthly FHFA house price release listed for 2026 falls on Tuesday, October 27, and includes data through August 2026. That calendar is on the FHFA HPI page. Until that release, July 2026 is the latest monthly observation cited here.
Owners’ equivalent rent was 443.713 in August 2026, up 3.1% from 430.5 a year earlier, on FRED CUSR0000SEHC. Again, national. If your pro forma shows a 15% rent jump and this index is near 3%, bring leases, not a speech.
Construction materials were 10.1% higher in August 2026 than in August 2025 (375.908 versus 341.458) on FRED WPUSI012011. Unit-turn bids written last summer are light. Rebuild the holdback before you accept a loan amount.
Illustration: interest if the loan is fully drawn on day one
This is an example, not a closed loan. Bridge amount is $2,000,000 at 10.5% interest-only. That rate sits inside 8.99%–13.5%. Monthly interest is $17,500. Eighteen months, if the full balance is out the entire time, is $315,000.
Most value-add files draw rehab over time, so actual interest is lower. The $315,000 figure is the stress case. Put it in the sources and uses as a reserve line. Sponsors who spend that reserve on extra finishes arrive at month 15 with a pretty building and no way to pay the note while the agency package is still in underwriting.
Program shape for this product: term 12–24 months, close in 7–10 business days, leverage up to 90% of purchase on a qualified file. Many 5+ unit files clear lower, often in the 65%–75% area, because the permanent lender’s debt yield or coverage will not support more. The ceiling is not a promise that every garden apartment gets 90%.
A 1–4 unit hold is not this note. Those files belong on DSCR loans, which close in about 14 business days at 5.75%–10.5%.
Lease file the bridge lender will actually read
- Current rent roll with start date, end date, deposit, and concession
- Trailing twelve-month operating statement, not one good month times twelve
- Insurance and the tax bill you expect after the sale, not the seller’s homestead exemption
- GC bid with a contingency, plus the materials date on that bid
- Exit lender’s checklist, including how many days of stabilized occupancy they want
- A one-page draw schedule that matches inspections, not a single “rehab” lump
Call (833) 264-7776 with unit count, in-place occupancy, and the month you believe a permanent lender will engage. Jaken Finance Group finances 5+ unit bridge files in all 50 states.
Per-door carry on the stress case
Using the illustration above, $17,500 a month on a $2,000,000 loan is $437.50 per door if the building has 40 units. A $1,100 rent would put interest alone at about 40% of collected rent on a full building, before taxes, insurance, and payroll. Vacancy makes that share worse. This is arithmetic on the example, not a market rent survey.
That is why the exit rate matters more than the bridge coupon slogan. The average 30-year house mortgage was 7.28% for the week of October 1, 2026, on FRED MORTGAGE30US. Apartment permanent debt is not that series. The series still shows the cost of money your tenants compare with a house payment. If a house payment near that weekly print fits their income, your renewal risk is higher. Underwrite rollover. Do not freeze the rent roll on day-one leases.
Forty units at $437.50 is also a draw-timing problem. If only half the loan is out in month one, interest is about $8,750, or about $219 a door. The sources and uses should show both the half-drawn month and the fully drawn month. Sponsors who model only the pretty month run out of reserve when the roof crew hits the site.
Jaken Finance Group will size the reserve with the GC schedule. Phone (833) 264-7776 with the unit count and the month the heavy draw starts.
Related financing guides
- Mixed-use property bridge loans
- Office building bridge loans
- Assisted living facility financing
- Commercial property loans by asset class
Get approved · Commercial real estate financing · Submit scenario · Multi-family calculator · (833) 264-7776
Rates, terms and conditions offered only to qualified borrowers and are subject to change at any time without notice. All loans are subject to full underwriting for loan approvals. Jaken Finance Group only finances non-owner occupied investment properties.