Uncategorized

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated August 2026. A maturing CMBS loan is not a normal refinance, and the owners who find that out late are the ones who end up taking whatever is left on the table. Your loan was sold into a trust years ago. There is no loan officer […]

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated August 2026. Commercial auction due diligence happens before you bid, not after, and that single reversal is what catches most first-time auction buyers. On a negotiated deal you sign a contract and then spend 30 to 60 days inspecting the asset with an escape hatch. At

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated August 2026. The short version of commercial bridge loan vs hard money: both are short-term, asset-based financing, but a commercial bridge loan comes from more institutional capital, prices lower, and is built for transitional commercial real estate, while hard money comes from private lenders, prices higher,

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated August 2026. Commercial foreclosure auction financing is not one loan. It is a two-step play, because the sale itself does not accept a loan. Trustee and courthouse sales require certified funds at the bang of the gavel, so the buyer shows up with cash or a

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated August 2026. The choice between a commercial mortgage broker vs direct lender comes down to your deal, not a rule of thumb. For a clean deal that fits one lender’s box, going direct can be faster and cheaper. For a complex, time-sensitive, or middle-market deal in

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated July 2026. CREXi vs Ten-X financing looks almost identical at the loan level. Both platforms run non-contingent auctions with roughly a 30-day close, so the debt you need is the same tool: a fast-close commercial bridge loan lined up before you bid, sized to your maximum

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated July 2026. Before you can bid on most commercial real estate auction platforms, you have to prove you can actually pay. That’s proof of funds for a commercial auction, and on platforms like CREXi and Ten-X it’s not a formality you handle after you win. It’s

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital. Last updated July 2026. Win a commercial property at auction and the clock is already running. The purchase agreement is signed within hours, the deposit is non-refundable, and the contract has no financing contingency. That is the whole problem this page solves. Commercial auction financing is the debt

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital (CA DRE #02093377), with $600M+ in commercial real estate deal experience. Last updated July 2026. Short answer: a balloon coming due is a planning event, not a fire drill. Start 9 to 18 months out and you get to run the market and choose. Your main paths are

By Justin Ashcraft, Principal, Northern Ridge Capital (CA DRE #02093377), with $600M+ in commercial real estate deal experience. Last updated July 2026. The best value-add deals share a problem: on paper, the day you buy them, they don’t qualify for the loan you eventually want. The rents are below market, occupancy is soft, maybe a