Commercial real estate loans in Florida come from three main sources: Florida-based community and regional banks (Seacoast Bank, The Bank of Tampa, City National Bank of Florida, BankUnited), private and bridge lenders operating from South Florida (BridgeInvest, Forman Capital, Vaster), and out-of-state banks with a documented Florida specialty — most notably Bank OZK, the dominant construction lender behind Miami's condo towers. This guide covers the loan types available in Florida, nine banks and three private lenders genuinely active in the state, and how to choose among them for a live deal.
Commercial Real Estate Loans in Florida: What's Available
Florida borrowers have access to the full menu of CRE debt. If you're new to the categories, start with our primer on the six types of commercial real estate loans; here's the short version as it applies to Florida:
- Permanent loans on stabilized, income-producing property — banks like Seacoast publish terms of roughly 5-20 years with fixed or variable rates.
- Construction and mini-perm loans — a deep market in Florida, from community banks funding local projects with progressive draws to Bank OZK's nine-figure condo construction loans in Miami.
- Bridge loans for acquisitions, repositioning, and lease-up, offered by both banks (City National Bank of Florida writes 1-3 year bridge loans) and dedicated commercial bridge lenders like BridgeInvest.
- SBA 7(a) and 504 loans for owner-occupied property — several Florida banks are SBA Preferred Lenders; see our full guide to SBA lenders in Florida.
- Mezzanine debt and preferred equity, available from private shops like Forman Capital when senior debt alone doesn't get the capital stack there.
One Florida-specific diligence item worth knowing before you underwrite condo or condo-deconversion deals: under Florida Statute 553.899, enacted after the 2021 Surfside collapse, condominium and cooperative buildings three or more habitable stories tall must undergo a "milestone" structural inspection by a licensed engineer or architect by the time the building turns 30 (25 in some jurisdictions), and every 10 years after that. Together with mandatory structural integrity reserve study (SIRS) funding, milestone inspection status is now a standard underwriting question for Florida condo lending. Expect lenders to ask.
9 Best Banks in Florida for Commercial Real Estate Loans
1. City National Bank of Florida
Headquartered in Miami with an expanding corporate headquarters in Coral Gables, City National Bank of Florida focuses on South Florida, Tampa Bay, Orlando, and the Treasure Coast. Its CRE group lends exclusively on Florida properties — non-owner-occupied commercial and multifamily — with financing that typically ranges from $5 million to $50 million. Products span term loans of 1-5 years on stabilized assets, construction/mini-perm, 1-3 year bridge loans for repositioning, and development financing for multifamily and affordable housing. It also plays at the institutional level: in May 2025 it committed $40 million as Joint Lead Arranger to expand Sunrise Realty Trust's revolving credit facility to $90 million. Source: citynational.com
2. Seacoast Bank
Founded in 1926 and headquartered in Stuart, Seacoast Bank operates branches across Florida and positions itself as a local, Florida-based commercial lending expert with same-day local decision-making. It lends on income-producing CRE (office, retail, multifamily), owner-occupied property (51%+ owner occupancy required), construction and development, acquisitions, refinances, and short-term bridge loans. Published terms: fixed and variable rate options, loan terms typically 5-20 years, and down payments typically 10%-30% of purchase price. Source: seacoastbank.com
3. BankUnited, N.A.
Miami Lakes-headquartered BankUnited had $35.1 billion in total assets as of September 30, 2025, with operations in Florida plus New York, Dallas, Atlanta, Morristown, and Charlotte — and a dedicated Florida CRE banking team. It writes term financing for acquisition or refinance of rental apartments, industrial, retail centers and free-standing buildings, office, and hotels. Its Q3 2025 earnings release discloses a conservatively underwritten book: weighted average CRE portfolio LTV of 54.6%, weighted average DSCR of 1.77, and 49% of the CRE portfolio collateralized by Florida properties. It also offers SBA lending through its small business arm. Source: bankunited.com
4. Amerant Bank
Coral Gables-headquartered Amerant Bank operates branches throughout Florida, including a Tampa office focused on commercial real estate lending — one of the bank's stated areas of expertise. It offers owner-occupied commercial mortgages to buy, refinance, or improve property, income-producing property loans for commercial or residential assets held for lease, and construction and bridge loans. Published owner-occupied terms go up to 80% LTV with repayment terms up to 30 years, and owner-occupied real estate loans start at $100,000. Source: amerantbank.com
5. The Bank of Tampa
An independent community bank headquartered in Tampa, The Bank of Tampa lends on commercial real estate and commercial construction for local and regional developers, investors, and owners in the Tampa Bay market, alongside equipment financing and lines of credit. It's also an SBA Preferred Lender serving most Florida markets, with SBA 7(a) loans from $350,000 to $5 million and the 504 program for capital purchases including owner-occupied CRE — Preferred Lender status means streamlined processing without additional SBA review on most guaranteed loans. Source: bankoftampa.com
6. Ameris Bank
Ameris is a Southeast regional bank — holding company headquartered in Atlanta, not Florida — but it earns its place here through substantial Florida operations, including Jacksonville. It finances CRE for property owners, operators, developers, and investors across Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and the Carolinas, and is an SBA Preferred Lender offering 7(a) and 504/CDC programs, with an SBA lending specialist based in Jacksonville Beach. Source: amerisbank.com
7. Capital City Bank
Tallahassee-headquartered Capital City Bank (Capital City Bank Group, NASDAQ: CCBG) concentrates its footprint in North Florida and adjacent states, with Tallahassee as its flagship market. What stands out is the published breadth of property types it will finance: multifamily, self-storage, office, car washes, hospitality, retail, RV parks, mobile home parks, and senior living communities, with both short-term and long-term structures. If your deal is in one of the specialty asset classes many banks avoid, it belongs on your call list. Source: ccbg.com
8. Bank OZK
Bank OZK is headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, but no Florida CRE lending guide is complete without it: its Real Estate Specialties Group (RESG), formed in 2003, is the dominant construction lender in South Florida — its largest market — known for low-leverage, large-balance senior construction loans on marquee projects, especially luxury condo towers. Recent documented Florida deals include roughly $324 million in construction financing for a Four Seasons-branded condo tower in Coconut Grove (January 2026) and a $239 million construction loan for Vita at Grove Isle; Bisnow reported roughly $600 million of Miami condo construction lending in a single week of April 2024. It also runs a separate SBA lending line. Source: ozk.com
9. One Florida Bank
Orlando-headquartered One Florida Bank operates five financial centers in greater Orlando and one in the Panhandle, with roughly $2.1 billion in total assets and $1.7 billion in total loans as of March 31, 2026. Its CRE lineup covers retail, office, multifamily, and industrial: new construction with progressive draws, acquisition, refinance, bridge, and land/lot development loans, plus SBA and equipment financing. One important caveat: in May 2026, Hancock Whitney announced it will acquire One Florida Bank's parent company for $377.6 million in cash, with closing expected in Q3 2026 — factor the transition into any long-dated banking relationship you start here. Source: onefloridabank.com
3 Best Private and Bridge Lenders in Florida
1. BridgeInvest
Miami-based BridgeInvest, founded in 2011, is a direct lender and asset manager that built its book in Florida and Southeast primary and secondary markets before expanding nationally. It publishes three senior-secured programs with unusual transparency: Transitional Bridge ($20-100 million, from SOFR+2.50%, up to 70% LTV / 80% LTC, for multifamily, industrial, retail, and hotel), Opportunistic Bridge ($20-100 million, from SOFR+3.50%, all major asset types including land, with 15-30 day closings), and Development ($25-150 million, from SOFR+4.50%). Source: bridgeinvest.com
2. Forman Capital
Forman Capital is a South Florida private CRE lender based in Boynton Beach, in the Palm Beach County corridor, lending nationwide from its Florida base. Founder Brett Forman ran the Trez Forman joint venture with Canada's Trez Capital from 2016 to 2022, then relaunched Forman Capital with partner Ben Jacobson in 2023 after Trez closed its Palm Beach office — institutional construction-lending experience in a founder-led shop. It provides short-term construction financing, bridge loans, mezzanine debt, and preferred equity across asset classes as a balance-sheet lender that services its investments in-house — useful when a deal needs a lender who can flex mid-project rather than answer to a servicer. Recent activity includes a reported $37 million construction financing for a Houston-area retail center in December 2025. Source: formancap.com
3. Vaster
Brickell-headquartered Vaster is a Miami-focused private lender occupying a specific niche: bridge loans on luxury properties, condos, land acquisition, predevelopment, and new construction, plus commercial bridge loans — more condo/spec/land bridge specialist than institutional CRE shop, and worth positioning accordingly. Published terms run up to 65% LTV with interest-only payments and fast closings, and the firm states over half a billion dollars in loan originations. Its own blog pegs bridge rates at roughly 10-12% for most investment properties as of early 2026 (company-published, not independently verified). Source: vaster.com
How to Choose a Florida Commercial Real Estate Lender
Start with the mismatch test: a $3 million owner-occupied warehouse purchase and a $60 million Miami condo construction loan should never be shopped to the same lenders. Match your deal size to the lender's published range — City National Bank of Florida's typical $5-50 million band, BridgeInvest's $20 million floor, The Bank of Tampa's $350,000-$5 million SBA 7(a) box — before you spend time on calls.
Then work through a few Florida-specific questions:
- Geography matters more than you'd think. Capital City Bank is strongest in North Florida; The Bank of Tampa serves Tampa Bay; City National focuses on South Florida, Tampa, Orlando, and the Treasure Coast. A lender with committee members who know your submarket will underwrite it faster and better.
- Owner-occupied vs. investment. If your business occupies 51%+ of the building, you unlock a different product set — Seacoast's owner-occupied programs, Amerant's up-to-80%-LTV owner-occupied mortgages, and SBA 504 through Preferred Lenders like The Bank of Tampa and Ameris.
- Condo deals carry extra diligence. For anything touching a condominium three stories or taller, have milestone inspection and SIRS documentation ready under Florida Statute 553.899 — lenders will ask, and incomplete answers stall closings.
- Speed vs. price. Private lenders like BridgeInvest advertise 15-30 day closings at SOFR-plus spreads; banks are cheaper and slower. Be honest about which constraint binds on your deal.
- Check the lender's own status. Florida banking is consolidating — One Florida Bank's pending acquisition by Hancock Whitney is a live example — so confirm your lender's situation before anchoring a multi-year relationship.
However you narrow the list, present the deal well: a complete commercial loan package with rent roll, operating history, and sponsor financials gets faster, tighter quotes from every lender above.
Find the Right Florida Lender for Your Deal
The lenders in this guide are a starting point, not an exhaustive map — Florida's lending market runs deeper than any list, and the right fit depends on your asset type, submarket, leverage, and timeline. Lev is an AI platform that matches commercial real estate deals to the lenders actually fitting them, so you spend your time negotiating terms instead of cold-calling loan officers who were never going to quote your deal.
Start for free and see which lenders fit your Florida deal.
