Cold storage loans.

Cold storage is one of the few property types where the machinery matters as much as the real estate. Strip the refrigeration plant, the insulated panels, the specialized floor system, and the power infrastructure out of a freezer facility and what remains is a warehouse that cost a great deal more to build than it is now worth. Lenders understand that, and they underwrite accordingly.

The economics behind the asset class are strong. Food distribution, grocery fulfillment, pharmaceutical storage, and processing all need temperature-controlled space, and there is not enough modern inventory to go around. Much of the existing stock is decades old. Building new is expensive and slow. That imbalance is why the capital markets pay attention to this category.

What makes the underwriting different is that the value sits in components with finite lives. A roof is a roof. A refrigeration plant is a system with service history, an efficiency curve, a refrigerant type that may or may not still be favored, and a replacement cost that can be a significant fraction of the building’s value.

What lenders ask that they do not ask elsewhere

Expect questions about the plant, not just the property. What refrigerant. What age. Who services it and how often. Whether the compressors have been rebuilt. Whether the insulated panels are intact and the vapor barrier is sound. Whether there is subfloor heat under the freezer to keep the slab from heaving.

Then expect questions about power. A refrigerated building that loses electricity loses product, and a claim of that size is not a maintenance issue. Utility service capacity, generator backup, and redundancy inside the plant all get looked at. So does compliance, because USDA and FDA registration and food safety certification decide which operators can legally use the space.

None of this is meant to discourage a good facility. It is simply the diligence, and knowing it in advance means you can assemble the file properly rather than answering piecemeal for six weeks.

The stickiness argument works in your favor

Here is the part that helps. Cold storage tenants do not move.

Relocating a refrigerated operation means moving inventory that must stay cold in transit, re-racking, re-certifying with regulators and customers, and often rebuilding automation. The cost and risk of that is high enough that operators renew even when the rent moves against them. Where a tenant has been in place through multiple lease cycles, that history is real evidence of durable income and we lead with it.

Conversions and expansions

A meaningful share of what we see is not a straight purchase. It is an operator adding freezer capacity to an existing plant, or converting dry warehouse to refrigerated space to serve demand they already have.

Those are two-stage financings. Construction or bank capital funds the work, and permanent debt takes it out once the space is operating. The critical piece is confirming the takeout is realistic on the income the completed facility will produce, before you commit to the first loan. Bring us the scope and the budget and we will work both ends of it with you. No obligation.