Liberty SBF CEO Alexander Cohen tells us that his commercial real estate finance company continues to excel with its special expertise in small-balance commercial lending, especially in this credit-challenged environment. Alex and his partners started Liberty in late 2011 because there was a real dislocation in the market with a lack of liquidity available for small business owners. Its average loan size: $2M to $3M. (Typical situations: a borrower who refinanced a mortgage and took cash to open a growing laundromat business or an owner of a high-end auto-repair shop refinancing to consolidate debt and expand his business.)  Liberty’s core loan products include SBA 504 loans, owner-occupied commercial real estate loans, and bridge loans (all subject to the strictest underwriting standards). A new program for residential portfolios starts at $1M, with Alex predicting this to be a huge driver for 2014. For more info on our sponsor, click here.