Bridger Fund Case Study: Financing Positions San Rafael Industrial Property for Long-Term Value

Overview

Bridger Fund provided a $3,477,500 bridge acquisition loan to a longtime Bay Area investor purchasing a 22,000-square-foot, multi-unit small-bay industrial building in San Rafael, California. The transaction required a lender willing to underwrite to a clear value-add thesis and stay committed through an extended closing timeline.

The Challenge

The Sponsor, an experienced real estate investor and operator with more than 25 years across multiple property types, identified the property as a value-add opportunity in one of the most supply-constrained industrial submarkets in the Bay Area. The building had strong occupancy at acquisition, but nearly every tenant was paying below-market rent under aging, month-to-month leases.  The sponsor also needed a lender to close quickly once a title issue was resolved.

That profile created two problems for conventional financing. First, the in-place income did not support the loan the Sponsor needed, even though the gap between current rents and submarket asking rates represented the core of the investment thesis. Second, the transaction required a lender that could close quickly once a complicated title issue was resolved, a timeline that would have caused many lenders to retrade terms or walk away.

The Sponsor needed a capital partner who could underwrite the property’s upside rather than its current rent roll and hold its commitment through a long, uncertain path to closing.

The Solution

Bridger Fund structured the loan as a first deed of trust secured by the property, underwriting to the Sponsor’s business plan rather than to in-place cash flow. The Sponsor’s deep track record of repositioning small-bay industrial assets and strong personal relationship with Doug Watson gave Bridger Fund confidence to hold its loan commitment throughout the extended application period; Bridger Fund remained engaged with the Sponsor and funded the loan on the terms originally agreed to.

The Outcome

The Sponsor acquired a well-located industrial asset with meaningful embedded upside and the flexibility to execute its acquisition on its own timeline. Bridger Fund delivered what the Sponsor needed most: reliable execution, a lender that underwrote the full picture, and a commitment that held firm over ten months.