2024 Ones to Watch - Innovators in CRE: Laura Rapaport, North Bridge

Laura Rapaport founded North Bridge in 2021, where she and her growing team of 10 provide credit solutions for institutional real estate developers nationwide through C-PACE financing. With deep, hands-on experience in development, financing, acquisitions, asset management and leasing, they bring a unique understanding of the challenges and opportunities created by the most ambitious projects. The firm’s approach is rooted in ingenuity, flexibility, and concierge-level service for its clients.

Innovative Outlook:
Where do you see the biggest opportunities for innovation in the commercial real estate sector? I think we’ll continue to see owners and investors utilizing alternative financing solutions to improve projects across their portfolio to meet evolving market needs. The challenges outlined above have heightened the need for flexible, alternative financing options. At North Bridge, we view C-PACE as a pivotal solution, providing fixed-rate, accretive financing that fits in well with existing capital solutions. Partnering with Carlyle enables us to expand our reach and increase our deal size. This kind of private credit innovation is essential for unlocking new growth and resilience across the sector.

Innovative Solution:
High interest rates, shifting work patterns and other forces have led to a distressed market where owners, developers and investors are having a difficult time accessing capital. At North Bridge, we aim to bridge that gap with tailored C-PACE solutions, providing financing to institutional borrowers in major markets nationwide. C-PACE is a fixed-rate form of financing secured by local property assessments. As a private credit solution with flexible terms, C-PACE is increasingly sought after for its accretive benefits to commercial real estate capital stacks. We’re excited to leverage Carlyle’s significant expertise in asset backed finance and real estate credit to help commercial real estate owners address their financing needs.

“Laura Rapaport and her team at North Bridge successfully negotiated a strategic investment from The Carlyle Group into the firm and a commitment to provide up to $1 billion to facilitate the origination of commercial property assessed clean energy (C-PACE) loans by North Bridge, the largest in the industry to date. This partnership leverages Carlyle’s strategic growth, real estate, and asset-backed finance expertise and enables North Bridge to address evolving market needs on a larger scale.” - Alex Stevenson, Berman Group.