Lenders Are Still Writing Big Checks in South Florida. Here Is What They Are Willing to Finance

More than $800 million in financing has closed on South Florida projects since late August, and the details of each deal show what lenders reward right now: leasing, a clear exit and creative capital stacks. Traded reported each of the transactions below. Together they are a useful guide for any owner preparing to refinance or build.

Leased projects get the best terms

Pebb Capital secured a $223 million refinancing for Sundy Village, a seven-acre mixed-use campus at 22 West Atlantic Avenue in downtown Delray Beach. J.P. Morgan and Hudson Bay Capital replaced a $173 million construction loan and added money for tenant improvements, with Walker & Dunlop arranging the deal. The key fact is that Sundy Village is 97% pre-leased, including about 100,000 square feet of Class A office and 30,000 square feet of retail, with a 79,141-square-foot office building planned for DigitalBridge. In West Miami-Dade, Terra secured $245 million in permanent financing from Slate Property Group for the first phase of Upland Park, 578 apartments that were more than 60% leased within 90 days of opening.

Creative stacks fill the gaps

Related Urban Development Group assembled about $167 million for Gallery at Lummus Parc, 257 mixed-income apartments on the Miami River, combining an $80 million construction loan, $27.1 million in tax credit equity and a $60.1 million Freddie Mac forward commitment for fixed-rate permanent debt. In North Bay Village, Shoma Group closed a $172.5 million C-PACE loan from Nuveen Green Capital for Shoma Bay, a 333-unit condominium anchored by a 36,000-square-foot Publix. C-PACE financing, repaid through a property assessment and tied to energy and resiliency improvements, is increasingly showing up as a primary source of capital rather than a sliver of it.

What it means beyond these projects

Lenders are open for business in South Florida, but the money follows evidence. Signed leases, quick lease-up and a credible path to permanent financing earned the largest checks. Projects without those features are relying on structured equity, tax credits, assessments or public incentives. Industrial owners face the same filter. With tri-county industrial cap rates near 7.0% in the second quarter, according to Lee & Associates, refinancing a building depends on in-place income far more than on projected rent growth.

What this means for you

If you have a loan maturing in the next 18 months, the most valuable thing you can do now is lease up vacancy and extend your strongest tenants. If you are planning a project, pre-leasing is the difference between a conventional loan and an expensive one. If you are buying, ask what the property’s debt will look like at refinance, not just at closing.

AXCESS Commercial helps owners build the leasing story lenders want to see, and leases space, lists buildings for sale and manages properties across South Florida.

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