Commercial Loans in Hialeah: Warehouses, Storefronts and Mixed-Use Buildings

Short answer

A small-balance commercial loan in Hialeah is sized on the building's income or your business's cash flow, and on the value, not on your W-2. The first fork is whether you will occupy the building for your own business (owner-user) or lease it to tenants (investor), because the lender, the documents and sometimes the program change. Hialeah's 2026 millage is 18.6134, and from January 1, 2027 Amendment 3 caps yearly assessment increases on non-homestead commercial property at 5% for non-school taxes. Commercial loans are business-purpose loans, not for a home you live in, and are subject to underwriting.

What a small-balance commercial deal looks like in Hialeah

Hialeah has a large stock of small commercial property: industrial bays and warehouses, strip storefronts on busy corridors, small office buildings, and older two-story buildings with a business downstairs and apartments upstairs. The loans on these are usually small by commercial standards, and that changes who lends.

• Warehouses and flex space. Lenders look at clear height, loading, parking, the roof, and how easy it would be to re-lease if the tenant leaves.
• Retail storefronts. Lenders look at the leases: how long they run, who pays taxes and insurance, and whether the tenants are local businesses or national ones.
• Mixed-use. A building with commercial space and apartments may be underwritten as commercial even if most of the space is residential. Some lenders treat a small mixed-use building differently than others, so it pays to shop it.
• Five or more apartments only. That is usually a multifamily loan, not a commercial one.
• One to four rental units. That is usually a DSCR loan. Our Hialeah DSCR page covers efficiencies and duplexes.

For buying a home to live in, see the Hialeah mortgage broker page. For the City of Miami side of commercial lending (Miami 21, recertification), see commercial loans in Miami.

Owner-user or investor: two different files

Owner-user. You buy the warehouse or storefront for your own company. The lender underwrites your business: business tax returns, interim financials, and whether the business's cash flow covers the new payment. The building's value matters, but the business pays the loan. Owner-users often have access to programs investors do not, including SBA.

Investor. You buy the building to lease to others. The lender underwrites the property: the rent roll, the leases, expenses, and the net operating income against the payment. Your own income matters less; your experience, liquidity and credit still count. Expect the lender to ask for every lease, estoppel letters from tenants, and a few years of operating statements.

Some buildings are both. A business owner who occupies part of a building and leases the rest is common in Hialeah. How much you occupy can decide which programs fit, so tell us the split at the start.

Either way, the loan is a business-purpose loan. Federal Regulation Z (12 CFR 1026.3) exempts credit extended primarily for a business or commercial purpose. Consumer mortgage rules do not apply the same way, so read the term sheet closely: prepayment penalty, balloon payment, personal recourse and reserve requirements.

SBA loans, in general terms

The U.S. Small Business Administration backs loans made by banks and certified development companies. The SBA 504 program, per SBA, finances major fixed assets such as buying, building or renovating real estate, and it cannot be used for speculation or for investment in rental real estate. In plain terms, SBA real estate financing is for a business that will use the building, not for a landlord.

If you are an investor buying a Hialeah strip center to lease, SBA is generally not your loan; a conventional commercial, bridge or DSCR-style commercial loan is. If you are an owner-user, SBA may be worth comparing with a conventional commercial loan. SBA loans have their own eligibility rules, fees, occupancy tests and timelines, set by SBA and the lender, and we do not quote SBA terms on this page.

QMS works the conventional and private commercial side, and we can tell you early whether your deal looks more like an SBA file, so you do not lose weeks.

Hialeah zoning and the business tax receipt

A commercial lender lends on what the building can legally earn. In Hialeah that starts with the zoning district. Section 98-411 of the Hialeah Code divides the city into districts that include, among others:

• C-1 restricted retail commercial, C-2 liberal retail commercial, C-3 extended liberal commercial and C-4 commercial.
• B-1 highly restricted retail, CBD central business, NBD neighborhood business and OPS office and professional services.
• CR commercial-residential and CMRU commercial-residential mixed use, plus TOD transit oriented development.
• M industrial park and M-1, M-2, M-3 industrial districts, where most warehouses sit.

Section 98-413 says no land may be used in a way that does not comply with its district's rules. Before you go under contract, confirm the zoning and that your intended use is permitted. A warehouse used for a business that the district does not allow is a problem for the lender and for you.

Every business in Hialeah applies for a business tax receipt (BTR). The city's pre-application asks for the property's folio number, the type of business (manufacturer, wholesale, retail, service, warehouse and storage, or other), square footage, parking spaces exclusive to the business, whether there is a fire alarm or working sprinkler system, hazardous materials, and any renovations. The Business Tax Division is at 501 Palm Avenue, 1st Floor, 305-883-5890, as of November 2026.

For an investor, the tenants' BTRs are a quiet due-diligence item: a tenant who cannot get a receipt for its use at that address is a tenant at risk. For an owner-user, start your BTR process before closing so the move-in date is real.

Taxes: 18.6134 mills, the commercial cap reset and Amendment 3

The Miami-Dade Property Appraiser's 2026 adopted millage chart shows a total of 18.6134 mills for the City of Hialeah, as of November 2026. Commercial property has no homestead exemption, so the cap on assessed value is what limits increases.

• Today: non-homestead assessed value can rise at most 10% a year, excluding school taxes. For commercial property, the Property Appraiser says the cap resets after a change of ownership or control or a qualifying improvement, meaning a renovation that raises just value by at least 25%.
• Buying through an LLC interest: if you buy a business or entity that owns the real estate and no deed is recorded, the new owner must notify the Property Appraiser with Florida DOR Form DR-430. The cap can still reset.
• From January 1, 2027: Amendment 3, which passed on November 3, 2026 (about 62%, unofficial until certified), lowers the non-homestead cap from 10% to 5% for non-school taxes. Rentals and commercial property are both non-homestead. The first bills affected arrive in November 2027. School taxes are not capped, and a millage increase can still push the bill up.

What it means for underwriting: the lender will budget taxes on your purchase price, not the seller's capped bill. After that, a 5% cap makes the expense line steadier, which helps at refinance. If you plan a big renovation, a reset is likely, so budget for it.

The commercial rent tax is gone: what it means for your income

Florida repealed its sales tax on commercial rent (Section 212.031) with HB 7031. The state tax, which was 2% before repeal, and the county surtax no longer apply to commercial rent for periods on or after October 1, 2025, per Holland & Knight's summary of the law. Tax is still due on rent charged through September 30, 2025.

For a Hialeah landlord or buyer:

• Check older leases that pass sales tax through to the tenant. The landlord should no longer collect it, and year-end reconciliations should apply tax only to periods before the repeal.
• Lower total occupancy cost for tenants can help retention and re-leasing, which a lender watches on small retail and warehouse space.
• The repeal does not cover everything. Rent for motor vehicle, boat or aircraft storage remains taxable, and residential rentals of six months or less are still taxed under a different section.

Ask your CPA how the repeal affects your specific leases. The lender underwrites rent as written in the lease.

Example only: closing taxes on a Hialeah warehouse

Example only, using a hypothetical $1,200,000 warehouse purchase with a 75% loan of $900,000. These are illustrations, not a quote.

• Deed stamps: in Miami-Dade the documentary stamp tax on deeds is $0.60 per $100, plus a $0.45 per $100 surtax on property that is not a single-family residence, per the Florida Department of Revenue. That is $1.05 per $100, or $12,600 on $1,200,000. Your contract says who pays.
• Note stamps: $0.35 per $100 on the $900,000 note, or $3,150.
• Intangible tax: 2 mills on the mortgage, or $1,800.
• Property taxes: at 18.6134 mills, if the assessed value equals the price, about $22,336 a year, or $1,861 a month, before any non-ad valorem charges.

Add the appraisal, environmental report, survey, title, legal fees and the lender's fees. Commercial deals in Hialeah often need a Phase I environmental report on industrial property, so build time for it. Rates vary daily; call for today's pricing.

QMS Lending is an independent broker with 100+ lenders, bilingual in English and Spanish, based in Miami, FL. Send us the address, the rent roll or your business financials, and the purchase price, and we will tell you which lenders fit. Call 305-425-1990. Subject to credit approval and underwriting. See also commercial loans and bridge loans.