Speed and Risk Controls Become Key Differentiators in Construction Lending

Written by:

Steve Marcinuk

Date:

29 Jan 2026

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Private lending for real estate development has rapidly expanded as traditional banks reduce their exposure to construction financing. Into this opening has moved Ascent Developer Solutions, which closed its first major equity round with Elliott Management in June 2024 and has since grown from 15 to 110 employees in less than eight months.

What distinguishes Ascent in the private lending sector is its leadership’s background as equity operators who have transitioned into lending. David Hada, Chief Financial Officer at Ascent, explains that the company was “built by developers, for developers.” The team’s equity experience enables them to design lending solutions tailored to the realities developers face.

This operator-first perspective comes from the founding team’s deep development background. CEO Robert Wasmund has bought, rehabbed, and flipped about 3,000 homes since the financial crisis. At the same time, Hada spent a decade at Shea Homes, the largest privately held home builder in the U.S., and later scaled Genesis Capital after its acquisition by Goldman Sachs in 2018.

Strategic Focus on Leading Sponsors

Ascent’s strategy centers on partnering with experienced sponsors across four main asset classes: single-family infill, home builder projects (including townhomes, condos, and tract homes), multifamily developments, and manufactured housing communities.

The company evaluates sponsors based on their track record, liquidity, and equity position—much like a bank would underwrite a borrower. This process leads Ascent to developers who operate in markets with strong fundamentals, as these sponsors typically focus on locations where they can reliably execute profitable projects.

This approach has enabled Ascent to secure deals with major players, such as Thomas James Homes, the largest single-family infill builder in the country. Many of these relationships originate from the team’s previous ventures, highlighting the importance of established connections in their business model.

Construction Management: A Key Advantage

A major differentiator for Ascent is its construction management services platform, led by Matt Ediger and a team of former equity-side operators. The platform uses an algorithmic approach to assess construction capabilities, evaluating sponsors on budget control, schedule adherence, and quality standards before entering lending relationships.

Ascent reviews budgets at the line-item level, using draw requests to monitor project risk. When sponsors request draws, the company verifies that work has been completed before releasing funds, ensuring that projects stay on track.

This operational discipline translates to faster execution. While regional banks may process construction draws every two to four weeks, Ascent typically turns them around in one to three days, sometimes within hours. This speed helps sponsors maintain project momentum and sets Ascent apart from traditional lenders. Technology platforms like TrustPoint support these rapid, controlled processes.

Even if regional banks returned to full capacity, Hada believes Ascent’s ability to process draws quickly and manage construction risk at a granular level would remain a clear advantage.

In-House Valuations Strengthen Risk Controls

Ascent has invested in an internal valuations team that, according to Hada, may be “the best in the country.” This team provides independent valuations that complement third-party appraisals, with underwriting decisions based on the more conservative estimate.

The team’s accuracy has been measured using backward-looking analytics, with a variance of less than 2% relative to actual market values after adjusting for home price appreciation. This level of precision supports both risk management and sponsor relationships by enabling the team to identify issues that might otherwise go unnoticed.

The valuations team covers all asset classes Ascent lends on, including single-family homes, multifamily projects, and manufactured housing. This comprehensive capability enables the company to maintain consistent underwriting standards across project types.

Growth in Manufactured Housing

Ascent’s newest area of focus is manufactured housing, a growing opportunity amid the affordable housing shortage. Gene Kim, Executive Vice President of CRE Strategies who brings decades of experience in this sector, notes that the industry has evolved significantly: “The quality of the homes has gotten so much better. The industry now refers to them as factory-built homes.”

Manufactured homes use similar materials and technology as site-built homes, but cost about one-third as much. This cost advantage makes them a practical solution for expanding affordable housing.

The sector has also shifted from predominantly small-scale ownership to institutional investment, creating opportunities for more sophisticated financing structures. Ascent is targeting this market with specialized lending products to meet the needs of institutional owners and developers.

Current Market Position

The current lending environment favors well-capitalized private lenders. Regional banks are constrained by regulatory and balance sheet pressures, creating opportunities for alternative financing sources. At the same time, institutional capital continues to seek yield in real estate debt.

Ascent’s backing from Elliott Management, which manages $75 billion in assets, enables it to compete for high-quality sponsors. “There’s a lot of capital chasing yield right now, and so that creates a lot of tailwinds for us,” says Hada.

However, Ascent is cautious in specific sectors. In multifamily, the company is shifting from relying on rent growth projections to focusing on current cash flow, requiring more conservative underwriting. This discipline is essential as the sector faces increased supply and slower rent growth.

Looking ahead to 2026, Ascent sees significant opportunity in the home builder segment, particularly among local and regional builders who lost access to traditional financing when interest rates doubled in 2022. The platform has developed tailored lending products for these builders, especially those pursuing build-for-rent strategies.

Execution as the Main Differentiator

As private lending becomes more competitive, Ascent’s leadership believes that execution quality will set successful platforms apart. Hada emphasizes that Ascent is “in the people and relationship business” as much as in the lending business.

This focus on execution has yielded strong feedback from sponsors in the manufactured housing program, which launched just three months ago. Kim reports that sponsors praise Ascent’s process and speed, and many choose to work with the company through referrals and prior relationships.

The combination of deep operator experience, substantial institutional capital, and technology-driven processes positions Ascent Developer Solutions to benefit from ongoing changes in real estate development financing. As traditional lenders remain constrained in capacity and demand for housing persists across all price points, platforms that offer both capital and operational expertise are well-positioned to capture market share.

For developers seeking construction financing in 2026, Ascent’s message is straightforward: the most productive partnerships will come from lenders who understand development from the inside, combining hands-on experience with rigorous risk management and rapid execution. As the private lending landscape continues to evolve, those who deliver both capital and operational value are likely to lead the market.