Question 1

Does Miami-Dade's deed surtax make a commercial purchase more expensive to close?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and it runs the opposite direction from a single-family deal. Miami-Dade is the only Florida county with a deed surtax, and the county's own rule exempts single-family dwellings from it. A single-family deed here is 60 cents per $100 of consideration, actually cheaper than the statewide 70 cents. But a deed for anything other than a single-family residence, including a duplex, small apartment building, or commercial parcel, carries that 60 cents plus a 45-cent surtax, for $1.05 per $100. On a $600,000 leg that is $6,300 here against $4,200 anywhere else in Florida, a 50 percent premium on the transfer tax line alone. Model that into your closing costs before you size a bridge on a CRE bridge or a transactional funding double close, since the surtax rides both deeds on an A-to-B-to-C.

Question 2

I'm looking at a condo unit whose association just failed its milestone inspection or passed a big special assessment. Can that deal still get financed?

Accepted Answer

Not by a conventional lender, which is exactly the situation a bridge loan is built for. Florida's milestone inspection law requires condo and co-op buildings of three habitable stories or more to be inspected by the year they turn 30 (or 25, where a local agency sets that trigger), and Miami-Dade runs its own, separate recertification programme under section 8-11(f) of the county code on top of that, at 25 years coastal or 30 inland. Associations can no longer waive reserves for structural integrity reserve study items in any budget adopted on or after December 31, 2024, which is the mechanism pushing special assessments through right now. Under Fannie Mae's Selling Guide, a project is ineligible for financing where it has failed a mandatory jurisdictional inspection, carries an unremediated critical repair, or has unfunded repairs over $10,000 per unit due within the next 12 months. An investor buying into or out of that situation, or an owner who needs to close before the assessment clears, needs capital that doesn't depend on the building's warrantability. See CRE bridge for structure, or talk to us about a specific building.

Question 3

Does the county recertification programme apply to a commercial or multifamily building, not just condos?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and it's broader than the state's condo-only milestone law. Miami-Dade's section 8-11(f) recertification programme exempts only single-family homes, duplexes, and buildings with 10 occupant load or less and 2,000 square feet or less. A commercial or apartment building past its 25 or 30-year trigger is squarely inside it. Once the county issues a Notice of Required Recertification, the owner has 90 days to submit a signed and sealed structural and electrical report, pays a $403.12 fee, and faces a maximum $10,510 fine plus referral to the Unsafe Structures Unit for missing the deadline. Budget for that timeline and cost before you underwrite a value-add hold on an older Miami-Dade commercial asset.

Question 4

How does Florida's foreclosure process and Miami's litigation environment factor into how a Miami CRE bridge is priced?

Accepted Answer

Both push toward a longer, costlier worst case than a lender in most other states has to plan for. Florida is a judicial foreclosure state statewide, commercial included, meaning every default runs through the circuit court rather than a faster non-judicial process. On top of that, Florida's insurance regulator reports that the Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade region litigated 27.27 percent of closed property claims as of mid-2026, against 8.16 percent in the rest of the state, more than triple the rate. That combination, a slower court-run remedy and a market that fights claims harder than most, is priced into how a Miami-Dade bridge gets underwritten and structured.

Question 5

What's actually driving Miami-Dade CRE demand if I can't get a market cap rate or vacancy number for it?

Accepted Answer

We don't have a sourced Miami office, industrial, retail or multifamily vacancy or cap rate figure to hand you, and we're not going to invent one. What is documented: trade, transportation and utilities is the county's single largest employment sector at 24.3 percent of nonfarm jobs (327,700 positions in June 2026), well ahead of leisure and hospitality, which makes Miami-Dade a trade and logistics metro first. PortMiami and Miami International Airport are the anchors behind that, and the county is also the leading U.S. destination for foreign residential buyers, with Miami-Dade accounting for an estimated 73 percent of South Florida's $4.4 billion in 2025 foreign purchases, and 51 percent of South Florida foreign purchases paid all cash, per the MIAMI REALTORS 2026 International Report. That international-capital character shapes who you're competing against and who's on the other side of a deal here. We underwrite the specific asset and rent roll in front of us, not a market average. Talk to us about the property.

Question 6

What can a commercial bridge loan be used for?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 7

What rates, leverage, and terms should I expect?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 8

How fast can a commercial bridge loan close?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 9

Do I need positive cash flow (DSCR) to qualify?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 10

What documents do you need for a commercial bridge request?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 11

Is the loan recourse, and is cash-out available?

Accepted Answer

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.

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