Time-sensitive Freddie Mac Optigo SBL closes April 15, 2026
Shieldstone Shieldstone
Co-originating with a Top 10 Freddie Mac Lender
A note from Evan Shields

Freddie Mac is killing its best small multifamily loan on April 15. Here's how I can help you get under the wire.

If you own 4 to 100 units with bridge debt or a balloon payment coming due in the next two years, you have days to lock in non-recourse agency financing before this product disappears. I'm helping as many owners as I can before the window closes. Read this, then talk to me.

Evan Shields
Evan Shields
Founder & CEO, Shieldstone
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The application window closed April 15. If you're reading this late, call me anyway. We might still be able to do something.
Book a 10-Min Call → Free. No pitch. You'll know in ten minutes if this works for you.
01. What's actually happening

The best loan product for small apartment buildings is about to disappear.

Here's the thing. Since 2009, Freddie Mac's Optigo Small Balance Loan program (or "SBL") has been the single best permanent financing option for apartment buildings under 100 units. It's non-recourse, meaning the lender can only come after the property, not you personally. It's assumable, so when you sell, the next owner can step into your loan. Long-term fixed rate. No balloon risk. Locked-in pricing at current rates. For a 4 to 100 unit property, nothing else comes close on borrower terms. Period.

The program is being shut down. My contacts inside a top 10 Freddie Mac lender confirmed the details this week. As of April 15, this loan product no longer exists.

I've been in institutional real estate finance for ten years. Freddie Mac SBL is the best small-balance multifamily loan I've ever seen. When it's gone, the replacements will be more expensive, shorter-term, or require personal recourse. Probably all three.

Here's what that actually costs you. On a $5MM refinance, losing SBL and moving to bank debt typically means you're paying 100 to 200 basis points more in rate, signing a personal guarantee, and accepting a 5-year term instead of 10. Over the life of the loan, that's $250,000 to $500,000 out of your pocket. Plus your balance sheet exposure. Plus the stress of re-refinancing in 5 years at whatever rates exist then.

If you own a multifamily property in this size range with bridge debt or a balloon coming due in the next two years, this is your last window. I'm not saying that to sell you anything. I'm saying it because I've watched this happen with other agency programs and the math doesn't lie. You want to be in before the door closes.

02. Who I am & why I can help

I'm not a broker trying to catch a wave. I work in this market every day.

My name is Evan Shields. I've personally closed $4.5B in institutional commercial real estate transactions at firms like Prudential, R4 Capital, and BridgeInvest. I've housed 22,000 families through workforce housing and multifamily deals. I spent ten years on Wall Street before starting Shieldstone.

I'm co-originating these loans directly with a top 10 Freddie Mac lender. I already have an SBL transaction in process right now. This isn't theoretical. I can walk you through every step because I'm doing it myself this week, for other owners just like you.

When you work with me, you get an institutional finance veteran as your broker, a top 10 Freddie Mac lender doing the underwriting, and someone who can actually explain what's happening in plain English. No jargon. No handoffs to a junior analyst. No wondering what's going on with your loan. If you've ever worked with a broker who disappeared after signing the engagement letter, this is the opposite of that.

03. What you get when we work together

I built this offer to make your decision easy. Four things, one deadline.

The program is ending on April 15 either way. I can't change that. What I can do is stack the deal so that working with me is the obvious choice. Here's exactly what you get.

01
Freddie Mac SBL financing, locked in before the sunset
Non-recourse, assumable, long-term fixed rate agency financing. I handle the full origination with a top 10 Freddie Mac lender, from term sheet to close. You qualify in ten minutes. I run the rest.
The Product Saves $250K+
02
20% off my origination fee
On a $5MM loan, that's $10,000 back to you at closing. I'm absorbing part of my commission because I want to help as many owners as I can before the deadline. This only applies to deals that apply before April 15.
Save $10K–$15K At closing
03
Free AI workflow audit for your property operations
A one-time deliverable. My team will map your current operations (leasing, rent roll, delinquency, maintenance tickets, vendor management) and show you exactly where AI can save you time and money. Owners who've run this audit typically find five to ten hours per week in recoverable capacity. Normally $2,500. Included.
$2,500 Value Yours free
04
30-day trial of fractional CFO services
Budget reviews, investor reporting, cash flow modeling, underwriting support. Thirty days. No charge. If it's valuable, we continue at a discounted rate. If not, no obligation and no hard feelings. No contract, no minimum.
$3,500 Value Trial included
04. Does this fit you?

Here's who I can help. And who I can't.

I'm decisive on this because the window is tight and I'd rather tell you "no" in ten minutes than waste your time. If most of the below is true, we should talk today.

Not sure if you qualify? Book the call. If it's not a fit I'll tell you in ten minutes and point you in a better direction.

05. The track record behind this offer

Ten years on Wall Street. 22,000 families housed. A live SBL deal in motion this week.

I'm not a mortgage broker who bought a list and started dialing. I've spent my career in institutional commercial real estate finance. Prudential. R4 Capital. BridgeInvest. $4.5 billion in personal transactions closed. Workforce housing, multifamily acquisitions, development financing, bond structures. The full menu.

I learned how this system works. And where it breaks. Right now there's a break. I know how to get you through it.

Shieldstone is co-originating these transactions with a top 10 Freddie Mac lender — the kind of institutional bank that closes hundreds of SBL transactions every year. I have a live SBL deal in process right now. References available on request. If you want to hear it directly from the bank before you engage with me, I'll make the introduction myself.

$4.5B
In personal CRE transactions closed across my career
22,000
Families housed through deals I've originated and structured
10 yrs
On Wall Street before launching Shieldstone
06. The ask

I'm helping as many owners as I can before the window closes. Get on my list.

Ten minutes on the phone. I'll tell you straight whether your property qualifies, what the financing looks like, and how fast we can move. No pitch. No pressure. Just the facts from someone who does this every day. If you qualify, we start paperwork the same day. If you don't, I'll tell you in ten minutes and point you in a better direction.

The only people who lose here are the ones who didn't know the window was closing.

Book a 10-Minute Call

Pick a time that works — no pitch, just straight answers.

Free. No pitch. You'll know in ten minutes.
Or email me directly: evan@shieldstone.co