Commercial Loans.
Properly Structured.
Successfully Placed.
Built by Former Bankers Who Know How Deals Get Approved
Deep credit expertise. A national lender network applied to every deal.
By the Numbers
120+ years of combined credit leadership behind every deal we review.
Know Where to Take Your Financing Next.
Crux Midwest helps turn uncertainty into a clear next step.
Financing Questions
Where Do I Start with Commercial Financing?
Financing moves your business forward—but your job is to grow it.
Our job is to handle the financing.
These are the questions most business owners ask right before they call us.
Commercial loans typically come from banks, credit unions, private lenders, and specialized capital providers.
The right fit depends on what you're purchasing, how quickly you need to close, available collateral, and the overall structure of the deal.
Your local bank may be a fit—but it shouldn't be your only option.
Business acquisitions are often financed through SBA loans, conventional lending, seller financing, or a combination of funding sources.
The right structure depends on purchase price, historical cash flow, available liquidity, and how the transaction is being negotiated.
Strong preparation creates stronger financing options.
Commercial real estate financing depends heavily on property type.
Owner-occupied buildings, multifamily properties, construction projects, investment real estate, and special-use properties are evaluated differently.
Lenders typically review cash flow, borrower experience, liquidity, and equity contribution before making a decision.
The best SBA lender is one that regularly closes deals similar to yours.
Some institutions move faster. Others are better suited for larger transactions, startup financing, or industry-specific opportunities.
Preparation matters just as much as lender selection.
The right lender depends on what you're buying, how quickly you need to close, your available liquidity, collateral, and how the transaction is structured.
A local bank may be the right fit. In other situations, an SBA lender, private lender, credit union, or specialty financing group may make more sense.
Crux Midwest helps borrowers sort through those options upfront—before valuable time is spent applying in the wrong place or trying to force a deal into the wrong structure.
This is where the right conversation makes all the difference.
Here's the team that will walk through it with you.
Experienced Former Bankers, Underwriters, Auditors, Business and Commercial Real Estate Owners
Finance Team
The Crux Midwest team brings deep, cross-industry expertise across all deal types.
The value is experience-driven insight: what lenders look for, what slows a file down, and what makes a deal financeable.
Rickey Shneyder
- Business Development Officer at two national banks
- Opened Crux Midwest's operations
- Deal-maker's instinct with a banker's discipline
Mike Eberle
- Former middle market credit manager
- Knows what lenders look for before they ask
- Credit-first reviews so deals move without surprises
Brittany Valenty-Koss
- Deep experience navigating SBA lending end to end
- From eligibility and structure to lender selection
- Knows which programs fit and how to close cleanly
Brian Harlo
- Background spans auditor, underwriter, and loan reviewer
- Sees files from every angle: credit, docs, and flags
- Third-party review experience across institutions
Mario Vazquez
- Managed a $100M+ commercial loan portfolio in Chicagoland
- Hands-on underwriting in construction and investment RE
- Deep knowledge of commercial banking processes
Andrew Millis
- Underwriting across community banking and non-bank lending
- Understands how different platforms evaluate the same deal
- Specializes in assisted living and senior housing
Find the Right Financing for Your Scenario
Loan Options
Crux reviews your scenario, gathers the right data, underwrites the request, prepares a lender-ready prospectus, and places it with the best-fit lender.
No Mystery Steps
Financing Process
We get the basics, tighten the structure, and package the request so a lender can make a clean decision.
Discovery
We learn the deal, the borrower, and the timeline.
Credit Review
We underwrite internally — identify strengths, flag gaps, and determine what lenders need.
Structure & Package
We tighten the structure and build a submission package ready for a lender decision.
Placement
We match the package to the right capital source for the deal type and borrower profile.
Close
We manage closing conditions, coordinate third parties, and keep everything on track to fund.
Recent Activity
Recent Deals Closed
Every deal here started with a question and ended with capital in place so the business could move on to what's next.
- •SOFR + 2.23%
- •$4.2M unrestricted cash out
- •No prepayment penalty
- •100% speculative
- •Tertiary market
- •24 months of I/O
- •Consolidated floor plans, seller note & operating notes
- •Underwritten to conventional, SBA & bridge
- •Conventional lender loaded CRE, bridged airball via 1st UCC
- •Conventional financing for 100% on a 5/5
- •Used cash flow scoop as the mitigant to the collateral shortfall, avoided the Government guarantee
- •Working capital via an LOC with no borrowing base
- •18 months I/O followed by a 3.5 year term
- •6.41%
- •Syndicated purchase for repeat clients
- •Conventional 10/30
- •Cash out to retire personal debts
Start Here
45 Seconds to Get Started
Tell us what you are working on and we will tell you what is financeable, which lenders fit, and what we need next. No commitment. No long applications. Just the basics.