Pointer to Tarrant County Banks Willing to lend to LLCs

[Ken R.]

My wife and I have begun purchasing properties in Tarrant County (mostly Mansfield and Grand Prairie). We are looking for pointers to local banks (Tarrant County area) that are willing to develop a relationship with higher net worth investors. We are specifically interested in banks that will loan to LLCs at competitive rates for 30-year terms.

As I am sure many of you know, it is a hassle to get a loan in your own name, then general warranty deed the property over to an LLC. Not only does this risk the bank invoking the Due on Sale clause and calling the loan, the title insurance that was issued in the name of the individual does not transfer and cover the LLC. So, you would either have to get a new title insurance policy for the LLC or move forward knowing that the title policy you got at the purchase of the property didn't transfer coverage to the LLC.

Oh, and there is also the issue of the 1031 exchange. If the owner of the relinquished property is an LLC, and the purchaser of the replacement property is an individual, the IRS might decide to disallow the exchange if you can't demonstrate they are the same entity (we have worked with our CPA and 1031 exchange company to feel comfortable here). So, having the same LLC (with the same EIN) on both sides of the exchange would avoid this risk.

Overall, it would just be simpler to get the loan in the name of the LLC to begin with — which we would happily do if the rates were competitive and the term was 30 years. Hence the desire to establish a relationship with a local bank to whom we would then give all of our business. So, anyone have a bank to recommend?