As traditional lenders remain cautious, commercial real estate (CRE) investors and developers need to explore non-traditional financing providers to keep building their portfolios.
This is especially true if you are seeking how to buy commercial property with no money down. Doing this requires creative financing solutions that are often available only with non-traditional lenders.
In what follows, we will consider five of the top CRE financing providers in the US that can help you navigate current market conditions.
1.Duckfund
Duckfund is a CRE financing company that provides senior debt financing, preferred equity financing, LP/co-GP financing, and earnest money financing for commercial properties across major US states and the Sun Belt.
Best known for
Duckfund is best known for its accessible financing solutions. They do not depend on credit reports in making financing decisions.
Key advantages
- Quick disbursal: Duckfund ensures that funds are quickly released after approval.
- Wide range of financing solutions: They provide earnest money financing at the beginning, as well as the equity and debt financing needed to pay for the property.
- Transparent fees: Duckfund does not charge hidden fees on any of its financing products.
- Educational resources: Investors and developers will find resources that will help them make better decisions.
Ideal for
Duckfund is ideal for investors and developers who want an all-in-one financing solution.
2.PACE Equity
PACE Equity is a financing company that provides fixed-rate, non-recourse private capital with up to a 30-year amortization. They support energy-efficient retrofits, adaptive reuse projects, new developments, and recapitalization.
Best known for
PACE Equity is best known for its focus on green and energy-efficient projects.
Key advantages
- Non-recourse private capital: PACE Equity only has recourse to the property itself and not the personal assets of the borrower.
- Lower cost: Its funding solutions are cheaper than alternatives like mezzanine debt and preferred equity.
- Multiple usage: PACE Equity will fund pre-construction, mid-construction, and post-construction projects.
Ideal for
PACE Equity is ideal for investors and developers interested in green projects.
3.Smart Capital Center
Smart Capital Center is the only end-to-end, AI-powered platform for CRE investment and financial management. Purpose-built to power real-time underwriting, portfolio insight, asset and debt management, the platform combines live AI data intelligence and agentic workflow automation to accelerate decision-making, reduce risk, and spot opportunity others miss.
4.Montegra Capital Resources
Montegra Capital Resources is a private hard money lender that provides a wide range of lending options (bridge loans, acquisition loans, non-recourse loans, and cash-out loans, among others ) to CRE investors and developers in Colorado.
Best known for
Monetegra Capital Resources is best known for its focus on building long-term relationships with borrowers.
Key advantages
- Rapid closings: They can close deals in as few as seven days.
- Local expertise: Their focus on the Colorado real estate market gives them strong regional knowledge that investors and developers can benefit from.
- Flexibility: They offer a wide range of hard money loan types, appealing to investors and developers in different circumstances.
- Accessibility: Montegra Capital Resources will underwrite loans that traditional lenders won’t.
Ideal for
Montegra Capital Resources is ideal for investors and developers focusing on Colorado’s commercial real estate market.
5.Private Capital Investors
Private Capital Investors (PCI) is a financing company that provides various types of CRE loans: bridge loans, hard money loans, and stated income loans, among others.
Best known for
PCI is best known for supporting large-scale projects and acquisitions.
Key advantages
- Fast approval and disbursal: They approve loans within 24/48 hours and disburse funds within 14 days.
- Competitive rates: PCI offers rates as low as 5.99%.
- Accessibility: They are willing to work with investors and developers with imperfect credit profiles.
- Diverse options: PCI offers a wide range of CRE loans.
Ideal for
PCI is ideal for investors with imperfect credit reports.
6.EMDDC
EMDDC provides short-term funding solutions to CRE investors and developers. Their offerings include earnest money financing, double closings, seller carrybacks, and transactional funding.
Best known for
EMDDC is best known for focusing on borrowers’ experience in the market rather than credit reports when approving loans.
Key advantages
- Fast disbursal: They can disburse funds within 72 hours of a successful application.
- Competitive fees: Seller carryback rates are 2.5%, while double closing rates range between 1.5% and 3%. For EMD, the upfront fee is $500 or 1% of the deposit amount; there is also a 40% return for 30 days.
- Large funding amounts: Borrowers can get up to $1 million for seller carrybacks and $100 million for double closings.
Ideal for
EMDDC is ideal for wholesalers who want short-term funding.