The Ingenuity Behind the Compass Real Estate Deal Assessment Tool and Why it’s Different
Behind the Build: Jeffrey Bardos on Why Speritas Capital Built The Compass
By Jeff Bardos, CEO, Speritas Capital
September 16, 2026 – Greenwich, Connecticut
Call or text Jeff at 203-247-4358
Schedule a Call
Email Jeff
A conversation with Jeffrey Bardos, CEO of Speritas Capital Partners, on why the firm built The Speritas Compass, its free financing feasibility tool for commercial real estate.
Try the tool now. It takes about two minutes, and there is no cost or sign-up required.
What is The Speritas Compass?
It's a free tool on our site. You can run your own deal parameters through it, whether that’s a rental purchase, a flip, an owner-occupied purchase, or a ground up construction project. The tool calculates the same metrics a lender would apply based on purchase price, NOI, downpayment and assumed financing terms.
The Speritas Compass assesses if the deal is likely financeable, marginal, or at risk.
What Makes The Speritas Compass Different?
A key feature of the Compass is the use of current cap rates, interest rates and credit spreads. Cap rates are based on publicly available data and are segmented by market, giving the tool a more of real-world capability versus other mortgage calculators.
What does the Compass actually calculate?
The tool runs the same numbers a lender calculates in underwriting: DSCR, debt yield, LTV and LTC. For ground-up construction the tool separates the construction loan-to-cost from the permanent loan-to-value, sizes the maximum loan amount off stabilized income and off stabilized value, and sizes the take-out loan based on those values. The results tell the investor which limit is actually binding, not just a single pass or fail.
The Compass uses cap rates segmented across 24 metro markets to calculate market values. This level of market sensitivity makes the results much more relevant vs. conventional mortgage calculators.
What property types does it cover?
The Compass covers most asset classes - single family, multifamily properties, industrial, office, retail and mixed use. On the owner-occupied side, the tool runs through SBA 7a and 504 options, where eligibility depends on how the business uses the space more than on the property type itself. For multi-family, the Compass indicates whether a deal might qualify for either CMBS or agency financing.
Why build it?
Many CRE investors don't have a clear idea of how lenders - banks and nonbanks - actually underwrite commercial real estate. There’s often a gap between what investors need for a full capital stack and what the property will support. The Compass walks investors through the key data points and allows investors to assess and reassess their deal in real time, so they can see how changing a parameter affects whether the deal can be financed.
Timing matters too. Rates have stayed higher for longer than a lot of investors expected, and lenders are underwriting to these higher rates. And cap rates are expanding in some sectors now. A calculator running on rates from a year or two ago will not catch these trends. The Compass pulls current data so investors see where their deal actually stands today, not where it would have stood in a friendlier market.
Using current market rates - cap rates, interest rates and credit spreads - gives a higher quality assessment than other mortgage calculators, which tend to use static numbers or require user input for these key variables.
The Compass manages investor expectations and promotes transparency in the financing process. We strive to be transparent to both the client and the lenders we work with and the tool helps.
How is it different from a generic mortgage calculator?
Letting investors pick a specific scenario - acquisition only, rental, fix and flip, owner-occupied CRE - lets them drill down into the issues that actually apply to their situation instead of a generic version of the math.
For example, the Compass can assess the feasibility of an owner-occupied acquisition using an SBA 7a or 504 vs. non-owner- occupied acquisitions. The rates, terms and leverage are different between SBA and non-SBA.
Tell me about the construction financing piece.
A lot of investors have unrealistic expectations about the loan-to-cost and loan-to-stabilized-value limits on construction financing. Some investors expect 100% financing of construction costs. That's available on some smaller residential fix and flips, but it's not available for larger multifamily or other asset classes.
There are always real questions of how much equity you need to bring, and what the permanent loan will support once the project is built and stabilized. The Compass helps investors understand the available terms on the construction loan and on the longer-term take-out financing.
The Compass sizes the permanent takeout loan the way a lender would, off stabilized income and off stabilized value. The results tell the investor if there's a potential gap between the long-term financing amount and the amount owed on the construction loan.
Who are the target users?
I'd say this isn't built for the casual investor or someone with few deal details.
The Compass is for the informed investor who can understand the parameters being asked for and interpret the results. And Speritas Capital is ready to assist beyond the tool, helping investors determine if the deal can be changed to make financing more likely. After all, the Compass is just the first step in assessing financing.
If you’re an informed investor, run a real scenario now and see where you stand in a couple of minutes.
What's next for the Speritas Compass?
We'll keep modifying the tool through the beta period as more investors run real deals through it. We’re building out an ABL tool to help businesses assess how much liquidity they can generate from their balance sheet. The Speritas Compass ABL tool will be a great complement to the CRE tool.
Questions? Schedule a call with the author, Jeff Bardos, send an email, or call/text 203-247-4358.
Sample Risk Assessment Results After Running a CRE Deal Through the Compass
Questions? Schedule a call now.
Assessing the viability of Real Estate transactions just got a lot easier with the creation of the Speritas Compass. Combined with expertise from Speritas Capital, you can now quickly ascertain your likelihood of obtaining financing. Speritas Capital is here to help you think through your funding source options for all your commercial real estate needs.
Schedule a call with the author, Jeff Bardos, or call/text him at 203-247-4358.
About the Author
Jeff Bardos, CEO, Speritas Capital Partners
Jeff has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry. After graduating from the Columbia Business School, he joined the New York Federal Reserve Bank as a senior staff member in Bank Supervision, leading the Bank Analysis department. From the nation’s central bank, Jeff moved into the private sector, working at senior levels in commercial banking, retail banking and risk management. He has also played senior founding roles in several start-ups. Learn more about Jeff.
CONTACT INFO
Jeffrey Bardos
CEO Speritas Capital Partners
Call/text Jeff at 203-247-4358
Email Jeff with your equity sources questions
Schedule a call with Jeff using our online scheduling tool.
Speritas Capital Partners specializes in complex credit, collateral and cash flow situations and we never take upfront fees.
RELATED ARTICLES
