CRE Permanent in Santa Barbara

Stabilized, income-producing property with signed leases, and the county has two very different property stories depending on which half you're in. The South Coast, Santa Barbara, Goleta, Carpinteria and Montecito, runs hospitality and mixed-use around the waterfront and Funk Zone corridor at a high basis. North County, Santa Maria and Lompoc, is a working ag-industrial economy at roughly a third of the South Coast basis. No county-wide CRE vacancy, rent or cap-rate figure has been sourced for either half, so a permanent quote is built from your executed leases and tenant credit rather than a published market survey.

Yes, two, and they anchor opposite ends of the county. UC Santa Barbara is the institutional tenant behind the South Coast's Isla Vista rental market, and Vandenberg Space Force Base is the North County's federal anchor, giving Lompoc a non-cyclical tenant base. Neither anchor's headcount, launch cadence or payroll table has been sourced, so we name them as characteristics of the local economy, not as numbers we can quote in a proforma.

Model the entitlement path before the debt, not after. Converting a property to hospitality use in the city runs into the Growth Management Program's ceiling on nonresidential floor area (1,000 square feet on most lots, an extra 2,000 inside the Downtown Development Area), a possible Hotel Conversion Permit, and Tenant Displacement Assistance obligations that have to clear before permit issuance. None of that changes once the asset stabilizes and moves to permanent debt, but it decides whether the asset gets there. We can carry a repositioning South Coast property on a bridge loan through that entitlement work and then place the permanent structure once leases are signed.

By your contract price, not the seller's bill. Every California purchase reassesses to price under Prop 13, so the tax line in a permanent loan's coverage math starts from what you pay. The county's FY 2025-26 rate book puts the total ad valorem rate between 1.02988% in Montecito and 1.18136% in Guadalupe, with the City of Santa Barbara's median at 1.05404%. A $1,848,325 purchase in the city bills about $19,482 a year at that median (1,848,325 x 1.05404%), and the same money in Santa Maria at 1.11278% bills about $7,443 on a $668,983 basis. The rate book does not show direct or 1915 Act special assessments, so read the actual tax bill before close rather than assuming a parcel carries none.

Get it leased up first, then refinance into permanent debt once the rent roll is signed. We place both sides in-house: a bridge loan carries a South Coast hospitality or mixed-use property through repositioning, or a North County ag-industrial asset through lease-up, and once it performs we shop the file across agency multifamily programs, insurance companies and wholesale lenders for the long-term structure that fits your hold. Because we have not sourced a county-wide CRE vacancy or cap-rate figure, the refinance is priced off your actual leases and tenant credit at the time you're ready, not a published market rate.

Permanent (or perm) financing is long-term debt on a stabilized commercial property, the loan you move into once a building is leased up and performing. It replaces short-term bridge or construction debt with a longer fixed term and a lower rate.

We place permanent debt through agency multifamily programs (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac), insurance companies, and other wholesale lenders. Because we shop multiple sources, we can match your asset to the program with the best long-term terms.

Stabilized multifamily of five units and up, plus mixed-use and other commercial assets with a solid operating history. Agency multifamily in particular looks for occupancy and cash flow that support long-term debt.

The bridge program is short-term capital to acquire or reposition a property; permanent financing is the long-term exit once it is stabilized. Many investors use both in sequence, bridging to stabilize and then refinancing into permanent debt. We can line up both.

Permanent commercial rates run well below bridge pricing and move with the agency and wholesale market, on long fixed terms. The exact rate depends on the asset, the program, and current conditions, and we will walk you through the options.

Plan on several weeks, since agency and wholesale permanent loans require full underwriting, third-party reports, and lender approval. We manage the placement and keep one point of contact on your file from quote to close.