Bernard Financial Group

What Bernard Financial Group does

Bernard Financial Group ("BFG") is a privately-held commercial mortgage banking firm founded in 1991 by Dennis Bernard and headquartered in Southfield, Michigan, with additional presence in the broader Detroit metropolitan area. The firm operates as a borrower-focused intermediary, placing commercial real estate loans ranging from $1 million to over $500 million on income-producing properties (office, industrial, retail, multifamily, manufactured housing, senior housing, hospitality, and self-storage) by accessing a network of 80+ capital sources that includes life insurance companies, CMBS issuers, regional and national banks, Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac/HUD agency lenders, and public and private debt funds. BFG is a member of Strategic Alliance Mortgage ("SAM"), a national network of 22 commercial mortgage firms with 35 offices that has arranged over $135 billion in CRE mortgages since 2001, providing distribution reach across Michigan, the broader Midwest, and national markets.

The firm operates four integrated product lines: Loan Production (transaction-based debt placement), Loan Servicing (delivered through wholly-owned subsidiary Bernard Financial Servicing Group ("BFSG"), founded in 1993, providing CREFC-compliant primary full-cashiering servicing of Life Company, CMBS, and debt fund loans using FICS Servicing Software and currently administering approximately $4.4 billion in loans), Raising Equity (institutional, preferred, and structured equity placement, with more than $1 billion placed over the past 10 years and 100+ CRE M&A, JV, portfolio sale, and recapitalization advisory mandates), and Loan Modifications (advisory work alongside special servicers including Berkadia, C-III, CWCapital, KeyCorp, LNR, Midland, Orix, Prudential Mortgage Capital, and Rialto). BFSG administers primary CMBS servicing alongside Master Servicers Midland Loan Services, KeyBank, and Wells Fargo, and directly for institutional capital providers including Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs Commercial Mortgage Capital, JP Morgan Mortgage Capital, Ladder Capital, Morgan Stanley Mortgage Capital Holdings, Starwood Mortgage Capital, and UBS, among others.

BFG's business model combines transaction fees on debt and equity placement with recurring managed-services revenue from its servicing portfolio. The firm is majority-controlled by the Bernard family, with founder Dennis Bernard continuing to serve as the largest loan producer and Joshua Bernard (ex-TPG Capital and Wells Fargo) on senior management. The organization comprises approximately 18 named employees across origination, underwriting, closing, asset management, compliance, and accounting functions, with no disclosed external institutional investors, holding companies, M&A activity, or funding rounds.

Name

Bernard Financial Group

Legal name

Bernard Financial Group

Website

https://bernardfinancial.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Bernard Financial Group is a privately-held Southfield, Michigan-based commercial mortgage banking firm arranging $1M–$500M+ CRE loans and providing in-house primary loan servicing through subsidiary BFSG (~$4.4B serviced), serving CRE borrowers, life companies, and CMBS lenders across Michigan and broader U.S. markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Mortgage Banking

NAICS

Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (52231), Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (522310)

SIC

Mortgage Bankers & Loan Correspondents (6162), Loan Brokers (6163)

akta.pro primary industry

Debt & Structured Finance / Mortgage Brokerage (BPAJABAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Commercial Mortgage Brokerage (FSAEAEAB), Real Estate Capital Markets Brokerage (Debt & Equity Placement) (FSAEAJAK)

Keywords

• Commercial mortgage banking
• Debt placement services
• Commercial loan servicing
• Institutional equity placement
• Loan modification advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Southfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Loan Production/Origination: Fees earned from placing commercial real estate loans ranging from $1M to $500M+ with various capital sources including life insurance companies, CMBS lenders, banks, agency lenders, and debt funds. BFG acts as intermediary between borrowers and lenders.
2. Loan Servicing: Primary servicing fees from managing approximately $4.4 billion in commercial mortgage loans for life companies, CMBS lenders, and debt funds. Performs full cashier servicing for Life Company and CMBS loans.
3. Institutional Equity Placement: Fees from raising institutional equity for commercial real estate transactions including equity, preferred equity, and structured institutional equity placements. Over $1 billion in equity placed over 10 years.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Bernard Financial Group is a commercial mortgage banking firm that places commercial real estate loans ranging from $1 million to $500+ million for income-producing properties by intermediating between borrowers/developers and capital sources including life insurance companies, CMBS lenders, banks, agency lenders (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD), and debt funds. The firm also provides in-house primary full-cashiering commercial mortgage loan servicing and institutional equity placement through its wholly-owned subsidiary Bernard Financial Servicing Group (BFSG), which services approximately $4.4 billion in loans.

Product overview

Bernard Financial Group is Michigan's largest commercial mortgage banking firm offering a unified suite of commercial real estate financing services. The core offering consists of four integrated product lines: Loan Production (debt placement from $1M to $500M+ across multiple capital sources including Life Insurance Companies, CMBS, Banks, and Agency lenders), Loan Servicing (in-house primary full cashiering servicing via Bernard Financial Servicing Group/BFSG managing approximately $4.4 billion in loans), Raising Equity (institutional equity placement exceeding $1 billion in transactions), and Loan Modifications (advisory services for loan modifications and work-outs with special servicers). BFSG serves as the servicing platform enabling seamless post-closing operations for originated loans.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Loan Production Places commercial real estate loans ranging from $1 million to $500+ million for income-producing properties including office, industrial, retail, multi-family, manufactured housing, senior housing, hospitality, and self-storage. Sources capital from life insurance companies, CMBS issuers, banks, agency lenders (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD), debt funds, and private finance companies for commercial real estate borrowers and developers.
• Loan Servicing In-house primary full-cashiering commercial mortgage loan asset management and servicing for life insurance company, CMBS, and debt fund loans, delivered via Bernard Financial Servicing Group (BFSG). Services approximately $4.4 billion in loans with CREFC-compliant CMBS primary servicing and direct access to named servicing personnel for borrowers and lenders.
• Raising Equity Specializes in raising institutional equity for commercial real estate transactions and capital stacks through relationships with insurance funds, asset managers, investment banks, private specialized partnerships, LPs, and mezzanine fund investors. Has placed equity, preferred equity, and structured institutional equity in transactions valued at more than $1 billion over the past 10 years, including advising on 100+ M&A, joint venture, portfolio sale, and recapitalization deals.
• Loan Modifications Advisory services for borrowers needing assistance negotiating loan modifications or work-outs, leveraging BFSG's position as a long-time primary full-cashing CMBS servicer working alongside special servicers including Berkadia, C-III Asset Management, CWCapital, Helios AMC, KeyCorp Real Estate Capital Markets, LNR Partners, Midland Loan Services, Orix, Prudential Mortgage Capital Company, and Rialto Capital.

Quantifiable outcome

• $27.5B+ total financing arranged for clients since 1991
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Strategic Alliance Mortgage (SAM)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBFG is a member of SAM, a national network of 22 commercial mortgage firms with 35 offices throughout the United States. SAM members have arranged over $135 billion of commercial mortgage loans since 2001 and currently service $40 billion.
• Midland Loan ServicescoreTechnology or IntegrationBFSG administers primary CMBS servicing alongside Midland Loan Services as Master Servicer
• KeyBankcoreTechnology or IntegrationBFSG administers primary CMBS servicing alongside KeyBank as Master Servicer
• Wells FargocoreTechnology or IntegrationBFSG administers primary CMBS servicing alongside Wells Fargo as Master Servicer

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Meridian Capital Group: Privately held commercial mortgage banking firm specializing in debt placement across multiple capital sources. Comparable as a competing debt broker focused on multi-family and commercial properties nationally.
• Northmarq: Privately held commercial mortgage banking firm with deep regional production across the Midwest and broader US; very comparable in business model (debt and equity placement plus loan servicing) and is a fellow SAM network member with similar borrower/lender relationship dynamics.
• Walker & Dunlop: Large publicly traded commercial mortgage banking firm focused on debt placement, GSE lending, and CRE servicing. Highly comparable to BFG's loan production + servicing + equity placement model but at substantially greater scale.

Broad incumbents

• Cushman & Wakefield (Debt & Structured Finance): Global CRE services firm with debt and structured finance advisory and capital markets origination. Comparable in borrower-side debt placement services but as part of a much broader advisory portfolio.
• Eastdil Secured: Large investment bank-owned CRE capital markets advisor offering debt placement and investment sales. Comparable in large-loan debt intermediation but typically focused on larger institutional transactions than BFG's regional $1M–$500M sweet spot.
• CBRE Capital Markets: Global CRE services leader with debt and structured finance, equity placement, and loan servicing. Comparable in CRE debt/equity intermediation and CMBS primary servicing, with significantly larger origination volume and geographic reach.
• Newmark Group: Public CRE services firm offering debt and equity placement, investment sales, and loan servicing. Comparable to BFG's loan production and equity raising services, with a much larger national platform and similar lender-network driven model.
• JLL Capital Markets (Debt Advisory): Global commercial real estate services firm offering debt and equity placement, investment sales, and capital markets advisory. Directly comparable in loan placement services but operates at much larger scale with broader service portfolio.

Emerging players

• Arbor Realty Trust: Public CRE lender and servicer focused on multifamily and commercial real estate. Comparable in the servicing and agency/multifamily lending intersection, though primarily a balance-sheet lender rather than a pure mortgage broker.

Others

• SitusAMC (Loan Servicing): Large CRE and residential loan servicer and technology provider; comparable as a competitor in the primary CMBS servicing space where BFSG also operates alongside master servicers like Midland, KeyBank, and Wells Fargo.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bernard Financial Group