TYPICAL FINANCING STRUCTURES

These are some of the most common forms of real estate finance used across development, acquisition, and portfolio management. Each plays a distinct role depending on project risk, asset maturity, capital needs, and execution speed—and in practice, many projects combine multiple financing types to optimize cost of capital, flexibility, and risk allocation.

Private Credit & Infrastructure Funds

Flexible non-bank capital providers offering structured debt, mezzanine finance, and infrastructure capital for complex or higher-leverage projects. Examples include Brookfield, Blackstone, Macquarie Asset Management, KKR, and Apollo. Brookfield and Macquarie both describe global infrastructure, real assets, real estate, and credit investment capabilities.

  • Senior and mezzanine capital

  • Structured real estate debt

Used for:

Complex projects, faster execution, higher leverage tolerance core part of the process.

Strategic & Institutional Equity

Long-term equity partners supporting development, joint ventures, platform growth, and expansion into new markets. Examples include GIC, Temasek, CPP Investments, ADIA, PGIM Real Estate, and Allianz Real Estate.

  • Development equity

  • Joint ventures

  • Platform investments

Used for:

New markets, portfolio growth, risk-sharing

Sale-Leaseback & Asset Monetization

Capital solutions that unlock value from existing real estate while allowing owners or operators to continue using the asset under a long-term lease. Examples include W. P. Carey, Realty Income, Global Net Lease, Brookfield, and Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust.

  • Operating assets with strong tenants

Used for:

Capital recycling, Balance sheet optimization, Development equity

Commercial Banks

Traditional senior lenders providing loans, refinancing, and portfolio facilities for bankable real estate and infrastructure projects. Examples include JPMorgan Chase, HSBC, Citi, BNP Paribas, and Santander. JPMorgan Chase describes commercial real estate financing as covering property purchase, renovation, and refinancing, while HSBC operates as a large global banking and financial services group.

  • Term loans & refinancing

  • Portfolio-level facilities

Used for:
Ground-up development, major renovations, stabilized assets

What about commercial lenders? Do they offer green, social or other preferential financing?

Commercial banks may offer access to incentivized and program-based financing, but it is rarely a core part of their business model. As a result, many of the loan originators/underwriters are unaware of the program. The responsibility for researching, identifying, and asking for the specific program, mostly sits with the borrower.