Breached Covenant on Commercial Loan

Breached Covenant on Commercial Loan

Investor · Denver, CO · Member since 2016 · 13 posts · 2 votes

Hello, 

I have a 12 plex in Colorado Springs and First Bank is handling the loan.  They recently said I breached the covenant of the mortgage by not meeting their Debt Coverage Ratio of 1.3 in 2022.  Due to this, they have given me several really expensive options including paying roughly a third of the loan off to make it right with them.

They are correct that in 2022, for this property, things have not been great but for 2023 to date we have done fine and would qualify for their Debt Coverage Ratio without issue.  I've also made every mortgage payment without issue.  I'm not really sure why they are doing this except that maybe it is a cash grab as my current rate is pretty good by todays standards. 

I've spoken to some other lenders and they say I may have a legal case saying they are causing unnecessary financial hardship on me as the issue has been rectified. 

I know that if this was a residential loan I'd be in a better position as lenders can't really call the loan due if payments are made but commercial lending doesn't seem very friendly to the borrow. 

Is there an argument that I could push back on with them?   I feel that if I can push back some they would drop it as they don't have much to gain by pushing on this. 

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Investor · Denver, CO · Member since 2012 · 4 posts · 1 vote
3y

I'm a former commercial real estate banker. You have to read your Loan Agreement and find out what your cure provisions are after breaking the DSCR covenant. As long as you cured the technical default under the terms of the LA, then the Bank has no further recourse. Your loan agreement will define what your options are.

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  • Scott WolfPro Member
    Lender · Boca Raton, FL · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 957 votes
    3y
    Quote from @Nick Donato:

    Hello, 

    I have a 12 plex in Colorado Springs and First Bank is handling the loan.  They recently said I breached the covenant of the mortgage by not meeting their Debt Coverage Ratio of 1.3 in 2022.  Due to this, they have given me several really expensive options including paying roughly a third of the loan off to make it right with them.

    They are correct that in 2022, for this property, things have not been great but for 2023 to date we have done fine and would qualify for their Debt Coverage Ratio without issue.  I've also made every mortgage payment without issue.  I'm not really sure why they are doing this except that maybe it is a cash grab as my current rate is pretty good by todays standards. 

    I've spoken to some other lenders and they say I may have a legal case saying they are causing unnecessary financial hardship on me as the issue has been rectified. 

    I know that if this was a residential loan I'd be in a better position as lenders can't really call the loan due if payments are made but commercial lending doesn't seem very friendly to the borrow. 

    Is there an argument that I could push back on with them?   I feel that if I can push back some they would drop it as they don't have much to gain by pushing on this. 


     Find a commercial real estate attorney. Preferably someone familiar with the banking side of things.

  • Investor · Denver, CO · Member since 2012 · 4 posts · 1 vote
    3y

    I'm a former commercial real estate banker. You have to read your Loan Agreement and find out what your cure provisions are after breaking the DSCR covenant. As long as you cured the technical default under the terms of the LA, then the Bank has no further recourse. Your loan agreement will define what your options are.

  • Ronald RohdePro Member
    Attorney · Dallas, TX · Member since 2016 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    3y

    As noted, it really depends on your documents. What is the property doing now?

  • Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    3y

    I wonder what the odds of prevailing are in this?

    Are they taking a long shot, or would you be taking a long shot.

    I wonder if they have done this with others recently, who folded, but with push back, they would have modified their stance (internal documentation your lawyer might be able to get).

    Or is their strategy to fight fire with fire and burn the ship to the ground financially...on a 12 unit loan--that's kind of peanuts, are they doing this with larger loans too, or just trying to clear the deck of small players?

    Is  your loan issue a board decision, or is it some new hotshot VP of X they just hired trying to make his bonus by hitting numbers on the backs of customers for technicalities.

    Will you use this bank again, or are they poisoning the well.

    Let us know how this turns out,,,(once you can)...

    You say you were out of compliance for a year, but that was 9 months ago and are now in compliance. Did they start the ball rolling on this right after discovering your non-compliance, or did they drag their feet, and dig up old things to increase their cash flow?

    Good Luck!

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