Month: August 2017

Capital Access Group (www.capitalaccess.com), a commercial real estate lender specializing in U.S. Small Business Administration 504 loans for growing businesses, recently provided Maggie Clancy, the owner of Strides Riding Academy, LLC, (http://www.stridesridingacademy.com), with $2,540,000 in financing to purchase a 20-acre, full-service equestrian facility located at 100 Lynch Road, Petaluma, California. The SBA 504 loan enabled Clancy to purchase the property and to add a boarding facility to generate additional revenue for the business, and to serve the needs of the local horse riding community.

Strides Riding Academy was founded by Maggie Clancy, whose approach to horse training is based on helping students build and enjoy relationships with their horses through trust and mutual respect. The business provides full-service riding and training programs for beginner students riding lesson-horses through advanced students competing on the national competition circuit. Strides’ services include year-round lessons, camps, clinics, and boarding services.

Prior to moving to the new facility, Clancy operated her business out of a leased space in Penngrove, California. Initially, she wasn’t ready to purchase the property at 100 Lynch Road, so she leased the property with the intent purchase.

“Cara (Rudy) from Capital Access was awesome,” said Maggie Clancy, Owner, Strides Riding Academy. “Initially, I reached out to her to find out what I needed to do to buy the property. Cara would check in regularly. She really stuck with it. I think most lenders would drop you if you didn’t have the numbers right away, but Cara was just amazing.”

Owning the property has made a big difference for Clancy and her business.

“For the business itself, ownership allows us to make the structural changes needed to improve the property,” said Clancy. “It also gives clients confidence bringing their horses here for boarding services, because they know we own the property and that we’re going to be here for the long-term.”

Since purchasing the property, Clancy and her team have made significant improvements, including putting in new footing in the four riding arenas, building new turnouts, knocking down old fencing, redoing the entry, and “painting everything,” according to Clancy.

Clancy says that she couldn’t have made the leap to ownership without the SBA 504 program and the service she received from Capital Access Group.

“The biggest advantage to the 504 loan was definitely the low down payment,” said Clancy. “The other advantage was being able to show that my business would support the purchase. Capital Access Group looked at my business plan, and their analysis went way beyond the numbers. This purchase would not have been possible with a conventional real estate loan.”

“We were so pleased to help Maggie purchase this property to grow her business,” said Cara Rudy, Vice President, Capital Access Group. “Maggie has an amazing record of success for someone so young — I believe she’s the youngest borrower I’ve ever worked. We look forward to hearing more great things about Maggie and Strides Riding Academy.”

Capital Access Group, a San Francisco-based commercial real estate lender specializing in U.S. Small Business Administration 504 loans for growing businesses, recently helped Prime Mechanical Service, Inc., purchase an 8,401 sq. ft. warehouse space located at 296 Wright Brothers Avenue in Livermore, CA. Owned by John and Sandra Eshelman, Prime Mechanical Service is a premier provider of leading edge HVAC systems and maintenance services. This is the second facility purchased by Prime Mechanical with support from Capital Access Group and the SBA 504 loan program.

In 2013, Capital Access helped Prime Mechanical purchase its first building, a warehouse space at 264 Wright Brothers Avenue, just down the street from the new location. As the business grew, the owners recognized that they would need a larger space, so they reached out to Capital Access again.

“Capital Access helped me determine what I could afford, and from there, I was able to figure out which properties I could make an offer on. That way I wasn’t spinning my wheels,” said John Eshelman, Owner, Prime Mechanical Service, Inc.

The new warehouse is larger, and it includes second-floor office space and a “full-blown sheet metal shop,” according to Eshelman. Prime Mechanical purchased the facility and absorbed the existing sheet metal business, including 10 workers. The company now employs 30 people and expects to hire an additional 10 in the next two years.

“The sheet metal shop adds to our services, and it enables us to manufacture our own duct work and accessories, bypassing the middleman and enabling us to bid on bigger jobs and take on more work with shorter downtimes,” said Eshelman.

Prime Mechanical took advantage of the IRS 1031 “like-kind” exchange, which allows tax-free swaps of one asset for another.

“Capital Access helped with 1031 exchange, too,” said Eshelman. “They were able to work with that and allow me to take the gain from the sale and transfer it over tax-free to purchase the new building.”

“We were so pleased when John reached out to us and impressed with how much the business has grown,” said Cara Rudy, Vice President, Capital Access Group. “John and his team clearly recognize the value of the SBA 504’s low down payment and low, long-term, fixed interest rate. We enjoyed helping them through the entire purchase process, including pre-approval, financing, and the 1031 exchange.”

“I just can’t express how grateful and impressed I am with Cara and her team at Capital Access,” said Eshelman. “Obviously, the 10% down payment was very appealing to me. The low down payment allowed me to free up cash flow to put toward the development of the business. The whole process was seamless and flawless. It went very smoothly, and I couldn’t be happier.”