CRE Bridge in Columbia

Property built around the university and the hospital system, not a diversified downtown office or retail base. The four largest employers in Boone County are the University of Missouri (9,998 employees), MU Health Care (8,103), the Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans' Hospital (2,074) and Boone Health (1,400), all healthcare and education anchors rather than corporate office tenants. That mix points a bridge toward medical office, student-adjacent mixed-use, and small multifamily near campus rather than big-box retail or a large office tower. This file does not carry a Columbia office vacancy rate or cap-rate figure, so a bridge underwrite has to be built on the asset and the tenant, not on a market-wide statistic.

Because the timeline usually does not fit a bank's underwriting calendar, not because Columbia commercial real estate is scarce. A university-town commercial asset, a medical office building coming vacant, or a mixed-use property that needs repositioning before it can be refinanced typically needs capital to move faster than a bank committee meets. A bridge closes the timing gap: acquire or reposition the asset now, on an interest-only term of up to 24 to 36 months, then refinance into permanent debt once the asset is stabilized. We place both the bridge and the permanent refinance in house, so the exit is planned from day one rather than shopped for later.

At a materially higher assessment ratio, and that gap has to be in the pro forma before closing, not discovered after. Missouri assesses residential property, including rentals of any size, at 19% of market value, but commercial property sits in subclass 3 at 32%, plus a county commercial surcharge that Boone County lists at 0.6100 per $100 of assessed value. On a $2,000,000 Columbia commercial asset, that is $640,000 of assessed value at the 32% ratio versus $380,000 if the same asset were residential, a difference of $260,000 in assessed value before either rate is applied. A CRE bridge underwrite that borrows a residential tax assumption from a DSCR deal down the street will be wrong by a wide margin.

Roughly three weeks from first publication, once notice starts, because Boone County contains a city of 50,000 or more. Missouri forecloses by non-judicial trustee's sale under RSMo 443.410, and because Columbia's population clears that threshold, RSMo 443.320 requires publication for twenty insertions in a daily newspaper, continued to the day of sale, plus RSMo 443.310's twenty-day minimum notice period. There is no statewide pre-sale mediation requirement. That speed is a genuine advantage for a lender managing a stalled workout, but it also means a bridge borrower who cannot execute inside a compressed notice window does not get more runway by default.

It can, and it is the one condition every lender disposing of Boone County commercial REO has to check. RSMo 443.410 gives the grantor a one-year right to redeem after a trustee's sale, but only where the holder of the debt buys at the sale on a credit bid, and only if the grantor gave written notice of intent to redeem before the sale and posted a court-approved bond within twenty days after. That right is not limited to owner-occupied property or to natural-person borrowers, so an LLC-owned commercial asset is not automatically outside it. A third-party sale at auction is outside this section entirely. It is a real constraint on how a lender plans to dispose of a foreclosed commercial asset, not a reason to avoid a credit bid, and it should be reviewed with counsel before a sale strategy is set.

Up to 75% LTV, to $10,000,000, on terms up to 24 to 36 months, interest-only. On a $3,000,000 Columbia commercial asset that is up to $2,250,000 from us and $750,000 from you (3,000,000 x 75% = 2,250,000), before the 32% commercial assessment ratio, the county surcharge, and any repositioning costs, none of which are financed. Cash-out is available where the deal supports it. Subject to underwriting.

Bridge capital is for repositioning or stabilizing a commercial property before permanent financing: value-add, lease-up, a partner buyout, or pulling equity out through a cash-out. We lend across property types on terms up to 24 to 36 months, with loans up to $10M.

Our commercial bridge pricing starts around 9%, interest-only, up to roughly 75% loan-to-value, on terms up to 24 to 36 months. Published bridge pricing generally runs 8% to 12% with 1 to 3 points. Final terms depend on the asset, the business plan, and sponsor strength.

Commercial deals usually close in 2 to 4 weeks. They take a little longer than residential because of the appraisal, the rent roll and operating-statement review, and any third-party reports. We move as fast as the diligence allows and keep one point of contact on your file.

Not necessarily at closing. Bridge loans are often underwritten interest-only to the as-stabilized business plan rather than a minimum in-place DSCR, since the property is being repositioned. We do want to see a credible path to stabilization and enough in-place income or reserves to carry the loan.

Typically the purchase contract or current debt, a rent roll and trailing-12-month operating statement, your business plan and renovation budget, and sponsor financials. Larger assets may also need a property condition report and an environmental review. We will give you a clear checklist up front.

Most bridge loans are recourse with a personal guarantee, while lower-leverage non-recourse can be possible on stronger assets. Cash-out is available when there is equity to support it. We structure recourse and leverage around the specific deal.