Investment Property Loans for Real Estate
Our Experienced Lending Team
At Sunwest Bank, our experienced investment property lenders can provide the financing you need to grow your investment portfolio successfully. For over 50 years, we have worked with real estate investors and business owners to fund acquisitions across many investment property types with investment property loan programs tailored to your business strategy. Keep reading to learn how we can optimize your leverage, cash flow, and returns as your financing partner.
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Diverse Lending Programs for All Commercial Property Types
We recognize that investment properties encompass far more than office and retail properties. Our diverse investment property lending platform offers acquisition and refinance solutions for many types of income-producing real estate assets, including:
Multifamily
As one of the top multifamily lenders in our markets, we have funded apartment complexes ranging from 5 units to 500 units in size. We understand how to maximize leverage and debt service coverage based on the property attributes of each potential rental property.
Industrial
From small shop flex properties to million square foot distribution centers, our industrial lending programs cater to all facets of investment property mortgages in this niche sector. When structuring investment property loans, we analyze factors like parking ratios, clear heights, and freight access.
Hospitality
With deep expertise in hospitality finance, we can provide attractive investment property loan programs for hotels and motels of varying sizes, luxury or budget positioning, and geographic locations.
Retail
Our retail lending team can assess tenant mix viability, foot traffic patterns, visibility, trade area demographics, sales per square foot, and other factors to right-size retail property loans.
Land
We offer construction loans for approved development projects. As experienced construction lenders, we understand proper loan draw structures and monitoring.
Specialty
We have funded them all, whether medical offices, self-storage, senior living, gas stations, mobile home parks, or other specialty assets.
Our diverse commercial lending experience makes us an ideal financing partner as you acquire different investment properties across real-estate asset classes over time.
Customized Financing Structures Aligned to Your Business Goals
In addition to broad investment property type expertise, our team takes the time to understand the unique strategic vision and risk tolerance of all of the real estate investors we work with. We can then develop tailored financing structures and investment property loan options that help our clients maximize their real estate business plans.
Some of the many ways we customize investment property loans to match investing strategies include:
- Loan Term – We offer maximum terms of up to 10 years but can structure shorter or longer lengths depending on your intended hold period.
- Fixed vs Variable Interest Rates – We weigh the pros and cons of each interest rate type for your specific goals, such as cash flow, portfolio diversification, and targeted returns.
- High Leverage – For commercial properties, our balance sheet lender platform can provide up to 75% LTV financing for experienced sponsors with quality assets.
- Interest Only – To enhance equity returns and cash flow, we may incorporate 1-3+ year interest-only periods where prudent.
- Flexible Prepayment – Our programs often include no prepayment penalties for variable rates, allowing you maximum flexibility to refinance or sell.
- Construction Funding – We offer specialized draw schedules, monitoring, and inspection processes tailored to each project for ground-up development.
- Assumability – Investment property loans may be assumable under specific parameters, potentially allowing you to transfer assets without repayment.
By aligning customized lending structures with your business plan from day one, we can help you execute your strategic vision and investment goals most efficiently.
Local Knowledge and Relationships Drive Speed and Certainty
Our team understands that time is critical when financing and closing time-sensitive transactions. By leveraging our deep knowledge of the markets we lend in and the relationships we’ve built locally over 50+ years, we can accelerate the lending process and eliminate unwarranted delays.
As your experienced local lending partner, we provide:
- Rapid Underwriting – Our on-the-ground insight allows us to assess deals and reach credit decisions faster than out-of-area lenders.
- Streamlined Approval – With in-house authority and no investment committees, we make decisions and close loans efficiently.
- Prompt Closings – Our team works diligently to close transactions on schedule with minimal surprises.
- Market Research – We stay on top of metro-level supply/demand trends impacting values and fundamentals.
- Responsive Communication – Our clients have direct access to their bankers throughout the financing process.
By leveraging our established local presence and connections, we can help you source and close on attractive opportunities before competitors even have a chance.
Guidance for First-Time Investors
If you are starting to invest, take comfort in knowing that we have worked with hundreds of first-time investors to help prudently finance their initial deals. While the first purchase is the most difficult, it gets progressively more manageable as you build experience and a track record.
Here are some tips specifically for those embarking on their first investment:
- Start Small – Target smaller assets until you get a few projects.
- Get Pre-qualified – Speak to a lender upfront to understand your borrowing capacity before making offers.
- Focus on Cash Flow – Seek stable, income-producing assets with tenants on longer leases.
- Create a Business Plan – We will review your qualifications, debt-to-income ratio, cash reserves, financial profile, management abilities, etc.
- Bring Equity – At least 20% minimum for a down payment, closing costs, and reserves.
- Assemble Your Team – A good broker, attorney, accountant, and property manager provide invaluable expertise.
- Be Conservative – It’s better to under-promise and over-deliver as you build your track record.
The most important thing is to start investing in rental properties now. The first time you buy an investment property, you will get the confidence you need to continue growing. Our team is here to help guide first-time rental property investors through prudent financing.
Our Investment Property Financing Experts
CHAD NEUBECKER
Executive Vice President
Director of Real Estate Lending
ARIZONA
Investment Property Loan FAQs
If you are new to investment property loans, you likely have many questions about the process. Here we answer some of the questions we commonly receive from investors:
What are the main investment property loan types?
The most common sources are conventional loans from banks like us, CMBS/agency financing, life company loans, and a hard money loan or private loan from hard money lenders.
What credit score do you need for the best interest rates and terms?
We recommend a 720+ credit score if you’re looking for the most competitive loan program. The minimum can be around 680 in some cases.
How much down payment is typically required?
Most lenders will look for at least a 20-25% down payment as a prudent starting point. More equity lowers LTV ratios and risk.
Should you choose fixed or adjustable interest rates?
This depends on your investment timeline, cash flow needs, interest rate outlook, and risk appetite. Both options have advantages.
How long does the approval and closing process take?
With a complete application, we can often underwrite and approve investment property loans within 2-3 weeks. Closings can take 30-60 days from final approval.
Who makes the final lending decision?
As your local lender, we can approve loans for investment properties without waiting on out-of-area committees or management.
What documents must I provide when applying for an investment property loan?
Typical requirements include financial statements, rent rolls, leases, purchase contracts, tax returns, construction costs, plans, etc.
Should I use a mortgage broker?
Brokers can help source competitive financing options by working with multiple mortgage lenders and charging fees. We suggest speaking to both brokers and direct lenders.
Please reach out if you need any other investment property loan questions answered by our team!
Our Team’s 50+ Years of Lending Expertise
Our decades of lending experience give you confidence that our team can expertly guide you through the investment property loan process. Since the 1990s, we have provided over $5 billion in loans, helping real estate investors purchase or refinance thousands of properties across our geographic markets.
Here is an overview of our team’s expertise:
- Property Types – Our lenders have funded every major asset class: multifamily, industrial, retail, office, hospitality, specialty, land, and more. This diverse experience enables us to finance various property types in your portfolio.
- Loan Structuring – Our bankers have structured billions of dollars in loans of all types: permanent financing, bridge/temporary loans, investment loans, construction loans, agency loans, mezzanine debt, and participation loans. This advanced structuring expertise ensures we can customize optimal financing for your needs.
- Market Cycles – With 50+ years of cycles, our veterans have experienced everything from booms to recessions. This enables us to make intelligent underwriting decisions in any economic environment.
- Loan Sizes – We have provided loans ranging from a minimum loan of a few hundred thousand to over $100 million. So, our scale offers flexibility, whether you are a real estate investor wanting smaller monthly mortgage payments or an investment firm searching for a complex structured finance solution.
- Closing Complexity – Our team has closed highly complex transactions with multiple layers of debt and equity sources. We can smoothly navigate even the most sophisticated deal structures and requirements.
If you seek a lender with proven expertise across every phase of the process, our three decades of experience should provide added confidence.
Your Local Lending Partners
Sunwest Bank is a leading community bank with a vested interest in the health of local economies and the success of businesses and real estate investors operating in our regions.
We take pride in leveraging our local underwriting experience and decision-making authority to fulfill our mission of providing financial solutions to help our clients and our communities prosper.
By working with us for your bank loan and financing needs, you benefit from community bank responsiveness and our lending team’s specialized expertise. This powerful combination leads to timely answers and solutions.
Some key advantages of partnering with a local lender like Sunwest Bank include:
- Market Knowledge – Our intimate market experience informs underwriting and enables quicker decisions.
- Relationships – Our connections facilitate access to some of the most attractive off-market deal opportunities.
- Customization – We craft flexible investment loan structures tailored to your personal goals and the specific asset.
- Responsiveness – Direct contact with your banker provides personalized services and expedited solutions.
- Reliability – Our 50+ year track record provides dependability through changing market cycles.
So, if you want to enjoy the benefits of localized lending and financing expertise, contact our team today to learn more!
We Look Forward to Serving as Your Lending Partner
We hope this content has helped educate you on how our banking group can help optimize your capital needs. Our experienced team truly enjoys working with investors and business owners to finance profit-generating acquisition and development of investment properties.
From customized loan structuring to in-house approvals to personalized services, we aim to simplify the investment property lending process so you can focus on executing your real estate investing plan.
To learn more about our competitive loan programs or to discuss an upcoming financing need, please reach out any time. We look forward to serving as your banking partner now and well into the future!