Why Is Jacksonville Emerging as a Top Market for Mixed-Use Development?
Jacksonville is experiencing a historic transformation into one of the Southeast's most active mixed-use development corridors. With over $4 billion in active construction and an $8.8 billion pipeline of planned projects, the city's urban core is being reimagined through large-scale, mixed-use developments that combine residential, retail, office, and hospitality components into walkable, live-work-play neighborhoods.
The numbers behind this growth are equally compelling. Jacksonville crossed the 1 million population threshold in 2024, reaching 1,009,833 residents and becoming only the tenth U.S. city to hit that milestone. The metro area population reached 1,360,000 in 2025, reflecting a 1.12% annual increase. This growth, combined with a diversified economy spanning logistics, healthcare, financial services, military installations, and an expanding tech sector, creates the deep demand base that mixed-use developments require to succeed.
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What makes Jacksonville particularly attractive for mixed-use investors is the convergence of several favorable conditions: a simplified downtown zoning code (the CCBD designation consolidates 14 former zoning categories into one), aggressive city incentives for residential density, elimination of minimum parking requirements downtown, and a strong pipeline of anchor tenants like Whole Foods and Publix that validate retail components within mixed-use projects. For investors and developers seeking mixed-use financing in Jacksonville, these structural advantages reduce both entitlement risk and lease-up risk.
Florida's lack of a state income tax further enhances after-tax returns for investors, while the city's relatively affordable land costs compared to South Florida markets like Miami and Fort Lauderdale allow developers to achieve favorable cost-per-unit economics even in premium locations along the St. Johns River.
What Mixed-Use Loan Programs Are Available for Jacksonville Properties?
Mixed-use properties in Jacksonville can be financed through several loan programs, each suited to different project stages, property profiles, and borrower strategies. The key is matching the right program to your specific property type, whether it is a stabilized retail-residential building in San Marco or a ground-up riverfront development downtown.
Conventional and Portfolio Loans
Local and regional banks active in Northeast Florida offer portfolio loans for stabilized mixed-use properties. These loans typically feature 5 to 10-year terms with 25-year amortization, fixed or adjustable rates, and loan-to-value ratios of 65% to 75%. Banks generally prefer properties where the residential component represents at least 50% of the total square footage, and they may require personal recourse guarantees.
CMBS Loans
Commercial mortgage-backed securities loans provide non-recourse financing for larger mixed-use properties, typically $2 million and above. CMBS lenders evaluate each component (residential, retail, office) separately and blend the underwriting. These loans work well for Jacksonville properties with established tenancy and predictable cash flows, particularly in corridors like Riverside, San Marco, and the Southside.
Bridge Loans
For investors acquiring mixed-use properties that need repositioning, lease-up, or renovation, bridge loans provide short-term financing with 12 to 36 month terms and interest-only payments. Bridge lending has been particularly active in Jacksonville's Brooklyn and LaVilla neighborhoods, where older commercial buildings are being converted into mixed-use properties with ground-floor retail and upper-floor apartments.
SBA 504 Loans
Small Business Administration 504 loans are an excellent option for owner-occupied mixed-use properties where the business owner occupies at least 51% of the space. These loans offer below-market fixed rates, 25-year terms, and up to 90% financing. Jacksonville's growing small business ecosystem and entrepreneurial community make SBA 504 loans a popular choice for owner-operators combining storefront retail with upstairs living or office space.
Construction Loans
Ground-up mixed-use construction in Jacksonville can be financed through bank construction loans (12 to 24 months, recourse), HUD 221(d)(4) loans (40-year terms, non-recourse, longer approval timeline), or construction bridge loans that offer faster execution. The choice depends on project scale, developer experience, and timeline requirements.
What Are Current Mixed-Use Loan Rates in Jacksonville?
Mixed-use loan rates in Jacksonville reflect both the broader commercial real estate lending environment and the specific risk profile of properties with multiple revenue streams. As of early 2026, borrowers can expect the following rate ranges depending on the loan program and property characteristics.
Jacksonville's mixed-use properties are commanding cap rates in the 4.5% to 5.5% range, with Class A assets in premium locations trading at the lower end. For value-add mixed-use properties, cap rates range from 5.38% to 6.0%, creating opportunities for investors who can secure financing below prevailing cap rates and generate positive leverage.
The interest rate outlook for 2026 suggests that the 10-year Treasury yield will remain above 4%, keeping commercial mortgage rates elevated compared to the 2020-2021 cycle. However, incremental Federal Reserve rate adjustments could provide modest relief for floating-rate borrowers. Fixed-rate borrowers who lock in now may benefit if rates remain elevated through 2027, especially for stabilized mixed-use assets with long-term retail leases that provide cash flow predictability.
Use our commercial mortgage calculator to estimate monthly payments and debt service coverage for your Jacksonville mixed-use property.
Which Jacksonville Neighborhoods Are Leading the Mixed-Use Development Boom?
Jacksonville's mixed-use development activity is concentrated in several distinct neighborhoods, each offering different investment profiles, tenant demographics, and financing considerations.
Downtown Northbank and the Pearl Square District
The Northbank is the epicenter of Jacksonville's mixed-use transformation. Gateway Jax's Pearl Square development represents a $750 million, multi-block project that, if fully built out, could reach $2 billion across 32 acres. The development will deliver more than 1,250 residential units, approximately 200,000 square feet of retail (anchored by a 31,000-square-foot Publix), a 100-room boutique hotel, widened sidewalks, new public parks, and a signature curbless festival street.
Key projects under construction include 425 Beaver Street (a $45 million, seven-story building with 205 apartments and 24,086 square feet of retail) and the conversion of 721 N. Pearl Street from a parking garage into 16,000 square feet of ground-floor retail and restaurant space. The city approved $98.58 million in incentives for Gateway Jax's first phase, underscoring the public commitment to mixed-use density downtown.
Brooklyn and One Riverside
The Brooklyn neighborhood has been transformed by the One Riverside development, a $250 million mixed-use community featuring apartments, retail, and a Whole Foods Market along the riverfront. The first phase, which includes 225 apartments and the Whole Foods anchor, has begun leasing. One Riverside demonstrates the viability of grocery-anchored mixed-use in Jacksonville's urban core and has set a benchmark for future projects seeking similar tenant profiles.
Southbank and RiversEdge
The $693 million RiversEdge development is reshaping the Southbank with up to 1,170 residential units, 200 hotel rooms, 200,000 square feet of office space, 121,400 square feet of retail, a 125-slip marina, and more than 4 acres of public parkland. Toll Brothers is constructing luxury townhomes within the development. The project's scale and diversity of uses make it a case study in how large mixed-use developments can secure favorable financing by demonstrating multiple revenue streams and strong public infrastructure investment.
San Marco
San Marco commands premium rents and benefits from its established walkable character, independent retail scene, and proximity to downtown employment centers. The Lofts at Southbank, a 10-story mixed-use development at 1004 Hendricks Avenue, will combine 100 housing units with office, retail, and restaurant space at ground level. Mixed-use investors targeting San Marco should expect lower cap rates but greater rent stability and tenant retention.
Riverside and Avondale
Riverside and Avondale offer a mature mixed-use environment with existing ground-floor retail, restaurants, and upper-floor residential. The neighborhoods attract young professionals and remote workers, supporting steady occupancy for mixed-use properties. Value-add opportunities exist in older commercial buildings that can be renovated to modern mixed-use standards, making value-add financing particularly relevant in this corridor.
Jacksonville Beach and the Beaches
The Beaches corridor benefits from lifestyle-driven demand, tourism traffic, and limited buildable land that constrains new supply. Jacksonville Beach's Downtown Redevelopment District has attracted mixed-use infill projects combining retail, dining, and residential uses. The Jax Beach Town Center, a two-story mixed-use building of approximately 25,000 square feet, exemplifies the smaller-scale mixed-use format that performs well in beach markets.
St. Johns Town Center
The Town Center submarket continues to attract mixed-use development activity, with projects like Courtney Meadows at Town Center, The Point at Town Center, and other residential-retail combinations clustering around the region's premier retail destination. The area benefits from strong suburban demographics, high household incomes, and excellent highway access.
What Zoning Incentives and Programs Support Mixed-Use Development in Jacksonville?
Jacksonville has implemented several zoning and incentive programs specifically designed to encourage mixed-use development, particularly in the urban core. Understanding these programs is essential for both developers structuring projects and lenders underwriting mixed-use loans.
CCBD Zoning Simplification
In 2019, the city consolidated 14 downtown zoning categories into a single Commercial Central Business District (CCBD) zone that permits residential, office, retail, entertainment, mixed-use, educational, medical, and parking uses by right. This simplification dramatically reduces entitlement risk and timeline for mixed-use developers, which in turn makes projects more attractive to lenders.
Downtown Investment Authority Incentives
The Downtown Investment Authority (DIA) approved a residential incentive program focused on activating the urban core with a goal of adding 1,500 residential units in mixed-use developments within three years. The program combines a completion grant (paid at the issuance of a temporary certificate of occupancy) with a Recapture Enhanced Value (REV) grant paid over a maximum of 20 years. The Multi-Family Housing REV grant, first adopted in 2014, establishes the financial gap on a neighborhood or district basis relative to development costs and capital requirements.
Waterfront Dining Requirements
New riverfront developments are required to include waterfront dining to qualify for city incentives, a policy that reinforces the mixed-use character of projects along the St. Johns River and ensures ground-floor activation that benefits the broader public realm.
Opportunity Zones
Several census tracts in Downtown Jacksonville, the Northside, and other designated areas qualify as federal Opportunity Zones, allowing investors to defer and reduce capital gains taxes through qualified investments in mixed-use developments. These tax benefits can meaningfully improve project returns and make certain mixed-use deals pencil that might not work on a pure cash-flow basis.
How Should Investors Underwrite Mixed-Use Properties in Jacksonville?
Underwriting mixed-use properties requires a component-by-component approach that accounts for the distinct risk and return characteristics of each use type within the property. Jacksonville's market conditions in 2026 present both opportunities and considerations that investors should factor into their analysis.
Residential Component
Average rents across Jacksonville's urban core range from approximately $1,432 per month for one-bedroom units downtown to $1,954 in premium San Marco locations. Vacancy rates have declined 20 basis points year over year to approximately 12.2%, with stronger performance in mixed-use buildings that offer walkable access to retail and dining. Conservative underwriting should assume 90% to 93% stabilized occupancy for residential components in mixed-use buildings.
Retail Component
Retail underwriting in Jacksonville's mixed-use buildings should focus on tenant credit quality, lease structure, and location-specific foot traffic. Grocery-anchored mixed-use (like One Riverside with Whole Foods or Pearl Square with Publix) commands the lowest risk premiums. Ground-floor restaurant and service retail in walkable urban neighborhoods like San Marco and Riverside also performs well. Investors should underwrite retail vacancy reserves of 5% to 10% and tenant improvement allowances appropriate to the tenant mix.
Office Component
Jacksonville's office market is adapting to hybrid work patterns, and mixed-use buildings that offer flexible, amenity-rich office space in walkable locations are outperforming suburban office parks. The Union Terminal Warehouse, a $73 million historic redevelopment that reopened as a mixed-use project with offices, retail, and mixed-income housing, demonstrates the market appetite for creative office within mixed-use settings.
Blended NOI and Valuation
Lenders typically evaluate mixed-use properties using a blended cap rate that weights each component based on its share of total net operating income. In Jacksonville, this blended approach generally produces cap rates of 5.0% to 6.0% for stabilized mixed-use assets. For properties with significant retail exposure, lenders may apply a higher cap rate to the retail component (6.0% to 7.0%) while using a lower rate for the residential portion (4.5% to 5.5%).
Operating expenses for mixed-use properties in Jacksonville typically run $5,000 to $7,500 per residential unit equivalent annually, depending on the property's age, amenity package, common area maintenance obligations, and insurance costs. Florida property insurance has risen substantially in recent years, and investors should budget accordingly.
What Are the Key Steps to Securing a Mixed-Use Loan in Jacksonville?
The mixed-use loan process in Jacksonville follows a structured path from initial application through closing. While timelines vary by loan program and property complexity, here is a general overview of what borrowers should expect.
Borrowers should begin by assembling a comprehensive financial package that includes trailing 12-month operating statements for existing properties, current rent rolls (with separate schedules for each use type), property condition reports, and a detailed business plan that addresses each component of the mixed-use project. For ground-up construction, lenders will require architectural plans, construction budgets, contractor qualifications, and pre-leasing or pre-sale data.
Third-party reports required for most mixed-use loans include a commercial appraisal (with separate valuations for each component), a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment, a property condition assessment for existing buildings, and a zoning compliance report. Given Jacksonville's riverfront location for many mixed-use sites, flood zone determinations and any required flood insurance should be addressed early in the process.
Timelines range from 2 to 4 weeks for bridge loans to 45 to 60 days for conventional and CMBS financing to 6 to 12 months for HUD construction loans. Working with a commercial mortgage team experienced in Jacksonville's mixed-use market can help borrowers navigate the unique underwriting requirements of multi-component properties.
What Opportunities Exist for Mixed-Use Conversion and Adaptive Reuse?
Jacksonville has several compelling opportunities for converting existing buildings into mixed-use properties, a strategy that can offer favorable financing terms and reduced construction timelines compared to ground-up development.
The Union Terminal Warehouse conversion (a $73 million project by Atlanta-based Columbia Ventures that spent more than six years transforming a 361,169-square-foot historic warehouse into mixed-income housing, offices, and retail) demonstrates the scale of adaptive reuse possible in Jacksonville. The LaVilla neighborhood, where the University of Florida announced its proposed graduate center campus in December 2024, is attracting additional conversion activity, including the renovation of the Pratt Funeral Home into an Airbnb and restaurant.
For investors pursuing mixed-use conversions, bridge loans and value-add financing provide the flexible capital needed to fund renovations, manage lease-up risk, and refinance into permanent debt upon stabilization. Historic tax credits may also be available for qualifying properties, adding another layer of financial benefit to adaptive reuse projects in Jacksonville's older neighborhoods.
The elimination of minimum parking requirements downtown has further opened the door for conversion projects that might have been infeasible under prior zoning rules. Buildings that previously dedicated ground-floor space to parking can now convert those areas to retail, restaurant, or other revenue-generating uses.
What Is the Long-Term Outlook for Mixed-Use Investment in Jacksonville?
Jacksonville's long-term fundamentals strongly favor continued mixed-use development and investment. Several macro trends support this outlook.
Population growth is projected to continue, with the metro area adding approximately 14,000 new residents annually. The city's affordability advantage relative to other major Florida markets (Miami, Tampa, Orlando) continues to attract both domestic migration and employer relocations. The Intercontinental Exchange mortgage-technology headquarters relocation will bring high-paying jobs that create demand for premium urban housing and walkable retail, exactly the combination that mixed-use developments provide.
The port of Jacksonville (JAXPORT), Baptist Health, Mayo Clinic, UF Health, and the military installations at NAS Jacksonville and Naval Station Mayport provide economic diversification that insulates the market from sector-specific downturns. This employment diversity gives lenders confidence when underwriting mixed-use loans in the metro.
Construction starts have fallen 61% year over year, and the under-construction pipeline has shrunk by more than 50%. Projects that secure financing and break ground now will deliver into a tightening market where new supply is limited and demand is growing. This supply-demand rebalancing is particularly favorable for mixed-use developments, which typically take 24 to 36 months from groundbreaking to stabilization.
How Can You Get Started With Mixed-Use Financing in Jacksonville?
Whether you are acquiring a stabilized mixed-use property in San Marco, converting a historic building in LaVilla, developing a new mixed-use project near the riverfront, or refinancing an existing mixed-use portfolio across Northeast Florida, the right financing structure is critical to maximizing your investment returns.
Clear House Lending specializes in mixed-use and commercial real estate financing throughout Jacksonville and Northeast Florida. Our team can help you evaluate loan programs across the full spectrum, from bridge and construction loans for new developments to permanent financing for stabilized assets. Contact us today to discuss your Jacksonville mixed-use investment and receive a customized financing proposal.
Frequently Asked Questions About Mixed-Use Loans in Jacksonville
What qualifies as a mixed-use property for commercial lending purposes?
A mixed-use property combines two or more distinct use types within a single building or development, typically blending residential units with retail, office, restaurant, or hospitality components. For commercial lending purposes, the classification of the property (and the loan programs available) often depends on the ratio of residential to commercial space. Properties with 80% or more residential space may qualify for multifamily loan programs, while properties with a significant commercial component are underwritten as mixed-use with blended valuations.
What is the minimum down payment for a mixed-use loan in Jacksonville?
Minimum down payments for mixed-use loans in Jacksonville typically range from 20% to 35%, depending on the loan program and property profile. SBA 504 loans for owner-occupied mixed-use properties may require as little as 10% down. Conventional and CMBS loans generally require 25% to 35% equity. Bridge loans may accept 20% to 25% equity for strong sponsors with proven mixed-use experience.
How do lenders evaluate the retail component of a mixed-use property?
Lenders assess the retail component based on tenant credit quality, lease terms (length, escalations, renewal options), tenant improvement obligations, and location-specific market rents. Grocery-anchored retail (such as Whole Foods or Publix in Jacksonville's major projects) receives the most favorable underwriting treatment. Lenders also evaluate the synergy between uses; for example, residential tenants who generate foot traffic for ground-floor retail reduce vacancy risk for both components.
Can I use an SBA loan for a mixed-use property in Jacksonville?
Yes, SBA 504 loans are well suited for owner-occupied mixed-use properties in Jacksonville. The business owner must occupy at least 51% of the property. SBA 504 loans offer below-market fixed interest rates, 25-year terms, and up to 90% financing. These loans are popular with entrepreneurs who want to combine their business space (restaurant, professional office, retail shop) with rental apartments or additional commercial units in the same building.
What are the biggest risks of investing in mixed-use properties?
The primary risks include management complexity (coordinating residential and commercial tenants with different needs), retail vacancy if anchor tenants depart, higher insurance and operating costs than single-use properties, and potential zoning or permitting challenges for certain use combinations. In Jacksonville specifically, rising property insurance costs across Florida and the ongoing absorption of new supply in the urban core are factors that investors should incorporate into their underwriting. Working with experienced property managers and securing long-term retail leases can mitigate many of these risks.
How long does it take to close a mixed-use loan in Jacksonville?
Closing timelines depend on the loan program and property complexity. Bridge loans for existing mixed-use properties can close in 2 to 4 weeks. Conventional bank loans and CMBS financing typically take 45 to 75 days. SBA 504 loans require 60 to 90 days. HUD construction loans for ground-up mixed-use developments take 6 to 12 months. Properties with multiple use types may require additional time for component-level appraisals and environmental assessments. Contact our team to discuss timelines for your specific project.