Not long ago, Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing was considered a creative solution for sponsors who needed capital that conventional sources couldn't fill. No longer. Today, C-PACE is closing nine-figure deals with some of the most sophisticated developers in the country.
"C-PACE is increasingly a staple in the capital stack," says Cory Jubran, senior director of originations at Nuveen Green Capital, covering the West Coast. "For many sponsors, it's moving from an alternative to a first-choice financing tool."
The numbers tell the story. Nuveen Green Capital reports that the average C-PACE deal size has grown from roughly $800,000 in 2017 to $40 million in 2026, reflecting both the maturation of the product and institutional players embracing it, both as sponsors and investors.
"Institutional acceptance has been the primary factor driving up deal size," says Mike Doty, senior director of originations for the Northeast. "Market knowledge of the product and alleviating skepticism that C-PACE providers could execute on complex transactions of scale took time to prove." He notes that the proof-of-concept benefited from the COVID-19 recovery and subsequent interest rate volatility. "C-PACE financing costs stayed stable during this period and provided a dramatic increase in liquidity."
"Now that people have begun to understand how to best utilize C-PACE financing, it has become a flexible and low-cost part of the capital stack that can be utilized in both capital-constrained and in highly liquid market cycles," says Ryan Doyle, senior director of originations in the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and Florida.
A place in the capital stack
C-PACE financing first emerged in 2009 as a public-private partnership to help spur sustainable building projects, from energy-efficiency upgrades to new construction. By classifying these projects as a public benefit—similar to sewers and roads—property owners can access low-cost, long-term financing repaid through assessments on the tax bill over 20 to 30 years. The financing is tied to the property rather than the sponsor, can be transferred at sale and can't be accelerated or called in default.
The program now operates in nearly 40 states and the District of Columbia.
Because C-PACE sits alongside senior debt and mezzanine financing, it results in a lower overall blended cost of capital. It can also be deployed post-construction to recapitalize projects needing additional time to stabilize, replacing higher-cost bridge or mezzanine loans.
"We can support projects across the full lifecycle, from pre-construction to mid-construction to post-construction recapitalizations," Jubran says. "That flexibility allows C-PACE to fit a wide range of business plans and capital stacks."
The age of mega-deals
As deal sizes have climbed, the number of capital providers able to participate has narrowed considerably. Nuveen, which now manages more than $6 billion in C-PACE strategies since inception, is among a small group of lenders with the balance sheet to participate at that scale.
"At nine-figure scale, sponsors care as much about certainty of execution as pricing," Jubran says. "The ability to underwrite complex capital stacks and close reliably is a big part of why institutional adoption has accelerated."
Recently, Doty led the transaction for the largest-ever C-PACE financing in the country – $465 million in C-PACE capital for The Geneva, a landmark office-to-residential conversion in Washington, DC.
"The Geneva is a transformational transaction, showcasing the opportunity that exists for large scale office to residential conversions, including the ability to deliver an uncompromising product within an existing building," says Doty.
Doyle led a $290 million transaction for Pendry Hotel & Residences, a mixed-use condominium and hotel development in Tampa, FL, which closed in September 2025, and was the largest C-PACE transaction at the time.
On the West Coast, Jubran led C-PACE financing for 200 Park in 2024 with Jay Paul Company to recapitalize a construction loan, providing additional runway as the building leased up.
"200 Park is a good example of how C-PACE can function as patient, fixed-rate capital that gives quality projects time to reach their leasing or operating potential without forcing a near-term refinance," Jubran says.
Jubran adds that C-PACE's long-term structure and principal not subject to acceleration gives sponsors the time to execute their business plan while keeping the cost of capital competitive.
"For large transactions, C-PACE is more commonly becoming the anchor of the capital stack. Particularly on transformative projects, the C-PACE product allows C-PACE lenders to come to a different risk conclusion on many deals than more traditional market players, providing both strong risk-adjusted returns for investors and competitive pricing and structure for deal sponsors," says Doty.
A robust pipeline
Looking ahead, commercial recapitalizations are likely to be a dominant theme in 2026, Jubran, Doty and Doyle agree. A wave of construction activity in the last few years has left a significant number of assets needing to transition out of construction loans across asset classes and geographies. For a financing tool that was barely on the institutional radar a decade ago, C-PACE growth shows no signs of slowing.
"With the C-PACE industry growing 30% year-over-year the past several years, we expect growth within the C-PACE market to continue as new markets continue to open and existing markets continue to innovate and find new ways to utilize C-PACE financing across various product types and capital stacks," says Doyle.
For more insights and thought leadership from Nuveen Green Capital, click here.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.