What Lenders Actually Want in Your Package
Why fundable deals get declined — and the package that gets a yes.
I've sat on both sides of the table — structuring deals and presenting them to the lenders and brokers who fund them. The deals that get funded aren't always the best deals. They're the best-presented ones.
A lender is pricing risk and effort. A clean package lowers both. A messy one raises both — and busy capital passes on effort, even when the underlying deal is strong.
Lead with the ask and the structure: how much, what type, what term, secured by what. Don't make them dig for it.
Show the downside before they ask. Volunteering the risks and how you've mitigated them builds more credibility than any projection.
Bring a real sponsor story. Capital backs operators. A two-paragraph track record with specific, verifiable closes does more than a 40-page deck.
Package the documents like a closing, not a pitch. Rent rolls, P&Ls, comps, and a sources-and-uses that ties out to the dollar. When the diligence is already done, the yes comes faster.