Company wraps up $41.5 million in loans
Lev, a commercial real estate (CRE) financing platform, has announced closing over $40 million in cannabis CRE loans as it works with federal lenders to help them navigate complicated regulations.
The firm completed $41.5 million in cannabis financing with an additional $50 million in its pipeline. Lev was able to secure the funding across five different bank sponsors – an “anomaly” in the current lending environment for legal cannabis businesses, the company said.
“We’ve worked hard to build our relationships with federal banks at Lev, and it’s paying off,” said Yaakov Zar, founder and CEO of Lev. “The cannabis CRE market is notoriously tricky - different states have different regulations, and closing a deal can be complicated. Intricate processes like this are where Lev’s technology truly shines. We’ve reached the point where we’ve acted as consultants for federal banks considering entering the market, and I can only see our role in the industry continue to grow from here.”
Read more: Legal pot lender converts loan portfolio to mortgage REIT
A portion of the deal was located in Sacramento, Calif., Denver, Colo., Tempe, Ariz., and Lakeville, Mass., including a loan of $16.8 million for the Massachusetts property. Lev also helped close a $25 million deal with properties in Missouri, Arizona, and California. The property type includes a cultivation facility, commercial dispensary, or mixed-use retail property using non-recourse loans for funding.
“By working with Lev, we were able to close quickly and secure an initial debt facility of up to $4.5 million,” said Bryan McLaren, CEO of Zoned Properties, the real estate development firm that closed a debt financing deal on its Tempe property. “Lev was able to help us secure deal terms above and beyond the vast majority of cannabis deal structures we’ve seen over the past decade. At Zoned Properties, we’re focused on expanding our pipeline of properties within complex industries like legalized cannabis, and having expert capital partners is essential. It’s been a fun challenge that’s made possible by working with other forward-looking industry leaders like Lev.”
