Shutterstock.

NEW YORK CITY- Real estate owner and developer BEB Capital has formed a new division offering bridge loans to meet the growing demand for last-mile distribution services. The new division will make loans on small to mid-sized assets on the East Coast, where BEB Capital operates. 

"Our intent is to become an important strategic lender/partner in a sector of real estate that is suddenly experiencing very rapid growth but is not well understood by traditional capital sources," said Chief Operating Officer and President of Lending Division Keyvan Ghaytanchi in a prepared statement. "There is strong demand for special situation funding in this sector, and as long-experienced owners and operators of substantial warehouse and distribution properties ourselves, we're in a position to understand the needs of developers, to prudently underwrite the risks, and to help them effectuate their own growth."

BEB Capital's Lending Division will act as a direct lender, deploying a combination of its own capital and that of its investors, according to Ghaytanchi. "In our first year, the company will operate on a modest scale, targeting $50 million in loans," he said. "Beyond that initial period, we anticipate rapid growth in volume as the light industrial market continues to evolve. We will be making strategic hires to further grow this new division."

BEB Capital has a real estate and investment portfolio comprising more than two million square feet of property, including industrial and multifamily assets on Long Island and in New York City. The offering will add to the firm's existing ability to offer short-term loans to other experienced developers on isolated occasions, according to Bert Brodsky, founder and chairman of BEB Capital. "We want to be a helpful partner to other owners who have short-term special funding requirements that may not be easy to fill," he said. "And since we live and breathe real estate and have previous lending experience on a smaller scale, formally establishing a lending unit is a natural extension of our business and an opportunity to leverage our specialized expertise."