Commercial property refinance in 2026: why the wave is building
Three forces are pushing commercial borrowers toward refinance at once: growing business credit, stress in private lending, and a cash rate stuck at 4.35% with the next move uncertain. Brokers positioned in front of this flow are writing the year's best deals.
- Business credit is the growth engine. Business credit grew 10.8% over the year to June 2026 while housing lending cooled (RBA Financial Aggregates, July 2026). Business property-purchase finance is up nearly 19% year on year. The volume is in commercial.
- Private credit is under pressure. The RBA has flagged rising default expectations in private credit through 2026, concentrated in real estate and construction; ASIC has raised its own concerns; and in August 2026 fund managers began gating redemptions on property credit funds. Borrowers sitting on non-bank and private facilities are actively looking for a way to cheaper, more stable funding.
- Rates are high and holding. The cash rate has sat at 4.35% since May 2026 after three hikes this year, with the RBA explicitly keeping further increases on the table. Nobody is waiting for cuts to fix an expensive facility.
The refinance conversation opens itself
A borrower paying non-bank rates on a facility written in tighter times does not need convincing that a review is worth an hour.
Majors accreditation is an edge
Moving a seasoned borrower from a private facility to sharper funding is exactly the deal banks want, and exactly what borrowers cannot arrange alone.
Speed matters on gated credit
When a lender tightens or a fund gates, its borrowers all move at once. The broker already in the conversation writes the deal.
Deal sizes justify the work
Refinances in the $1m to $10m+ range carry commissions that make each qualified conversation valuable.
Our commercial property refinance channel delivers exactly these borrowers: $1M to $10M+ facilities, mostly coming off non-bank lenders, verified and exclusive to one broker. It is one of the strongest niches we run in 2026.