This auction finance calculator is built for commercial property bought at auction. It works out the two numbers you need before you bid: the cash you'll wire at closing and what the bridge loan costs you each month. On a commercial auction the close date is fixed, the deposit is non-refundable and there's no financing contingency, so you want these numbers settled before the gavel, not after. Enter your own figures below. Everything updates as you type. The rate field is left for you to fill in.
Your deal
Your numbers
| Total purchase price (bid + premium) | $0 |
| Bridge loan amount | $0 |
| Equity required | $0 |
| Earnest deposit already wired | $0 |
| Origination fee | $0 |
| Estimated closing costs | $0 |
| Total interest over the term | $0 |
| Total cost of capital (fee + interest) | $0 |
Free to ask, no obligation. Best sorted out before you bid.
Bidding on a specific deal? Let's talk before the gavel drops. We run your numbers past the bridge lenders in our network of 700+ that fund on a short, non-contingent close, so you walk into the auction with real terms instead of a guess.
A worked example: $5,000,000 winning bid
Here's the auction finance calculator run on a $5M winning bid, using its own default inputs plus an illustrative 10.5% rate. The rate is a placeholder to show the math, not a quote. Check your own figures against it. Northern Ridge Capital arranges commercial auction financing from $5 million to $30 million, typically closing in 15 to 30 days on a lender-ready file.
| Winning bid | $5,000,000 |
| Buyer’s premium at 5%, so the real purchase price | $5,250,000 |
| Bridge loan at 70% leverage | $3,675,000 |
| Your equity | $1,575,000 |
| Non-refundable deposit already wired, 10% | $525,000 |
| Origination at 2 points | $73,500 |
| Closing costs at 2% | $105,000 |
| Cash due at close | $1,228,500 |
| Monthly carrying cost, interest-only at 10.5% | $32,156 |
| Interest over a 12-month term | $385,875 |
| Total cost of capital | $459,375 |
The two numbers that decide whether you can bid are the $1,228,500 cash due at close and the $32,156 a month you carry until you sell or refinance. Change the rate, the leverage or the premium above and both move. Drop leverage from 70% to 65% on the same bid and the loan falls to $3,412,500, so your equity rises by $262,500 before fees.
How to read this commercial auction financing calculator
Cash due at close is your equity plus loan fees and closing costs, minus the earnest deposit you already wired. It is the wire you send to actually take title.
Why interest-only? Commercial bridge loans are almost always interest-only, so your monthly cost is the loan balance times your rate, divided by twelve. You repay the principal when you sell or refinance into permanent debt.
What the buyer's premium does. When a listing charges a buyer's premium, it's added on top of your winning bid, so your purchase price and your loan are both based on bid plus premium. This tool builds that in. The 5% default is a placeholder. Read the premium off the listing's own terms and enter that.
Origination points. Enter what the lender quotes. If Northern Ridge Capital places the loan, our fee is a 1% origination fee, paid only when the deal closes. Add it to the points field to see the all-in number.
What this auction finance calculator leaves out
It covers purchase, loan, fees and interest. A lender can also ask for an interest reserve, a capex holdback, extension fees or exit fees, and you'll carry property taxes and insurance from the day you take title. None of those are in the totals above. Ask for them on every term sheet so you compare lenders on the same basis.
Auction finance calculator: FAQ
Is this calculator for commercial or residential auctions? Commercial. Northern Ridge Capital arranges financing on commercial real estate only, from $5 million to $30 million.
Why does my loan come out bigger than my leverage times my bid? Because the loan is sized on the total purchase price, which is your bid plus the buyer's premium.
What rate should I enter? The one on your term sheet. If you don't have one yet, run a few rates to see how much the monthly payment moves, then get a real quote before you bid. You can calibrate against the current bridge band in the commercial real estate rate report.
Is the result a loan offer? No. It's arithmetic on the numbers you enter. Terms come from third-party lenders after underwriting.
Keep going
See how the financing works on our commercial auction financing page, read what counts as proof of funds at a commercial auction, or model a straight acquisition with the commercial bridge loan calculator.
Planning to refinance after the purchase? The commercial refinance calculator sizes a permanent loan by DSCR and loan to value.
For planning only. This is an estimate based on the figures you enter, not a quote, an offer, or a commitment to lend. Actual terms are set by third-party lenders subject to underwriting. Northern Ridge Capital is a licensed commercial mortgage broker (CA DRE #02093377), not a lender, arranging financing on commercial real estate only. Full disclosures.