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Bridging Loan

Bridging loan – Short-term finance solutions, whatever the situation!

Whatever your needs, we have access to a wide range of bridging loan products from an extensive panel of lenders. Clever Lending should be your first port of call if your looking for bridging finance.

Bridging loans can help:

Speak to us 0800 316 2224

Types of development loans

Bridging loans

This a loan you can use to buy a new property that you need to renovate before re-selling or renting on the market. You can use bridging to release equity you have in an existing property for up to 24 months.

Commercial mortgages

You'll need a commercial mortgage if you're going to use the property for business purposes, e.g. as a shop.

Development finance

This is finance to extend or make structural changes to an existing property, maybe converting a house into flats, or maybe you are looking to build from the ground up on land with planning permission.

Auction Finance

Auction finance is a type of short-term loan that is used to finance the purchase of a property at auction. Auction finance is typically used by property investors and developers

What is a bridging loan?

When is best for a bridging loan

Bridging loans have many purposes, some of which are useful when a traditional mortgage lender won’t lend.

Light, medium or heavy refurbishment, when renovating a property and you need to make it fit for purpose or mortgageable with a traditional lender, or even to develop the property to increase its potential value of yield, think buy to let or a house of multiple occupancy.

Auction purchase, when a property is purchased at auction, and you need a quick solution so that you don’t miss the opportunity and will need to complete, normally within 28 days.

When the sale and subsequent purchase are not continuous and may fall through. Known as chain breaking, you may purchase the next property prior to the completion of the sale of the first property

How can we help with a bridge loan

We are experts in bridging finance. Whether it’s complex development transaction or a simple auction purchase, we have the answers you need.  You don’t need to be the expert because we can be the expert for you.

Bridging Loan FAQ

The difference between a bridging loan and a mortgage is that the loan can be secured against a property that may not be suitable for a normal mortgage loan.

  • For example an uninhabitable property that is to be refurbished
  • A property whose title will be changed
  • If the use of the property is to be changed throughout the course of the loan.

In fact there are many different uses for a bridging loan.

Funds are available much more quickly than a mortgage; typically 3-4 weeks and can be much faster in certain instances. The bridge loan is often based on the Open Market Value of the property, rather than the purchase price.

This is especially useful when buying from a receiver/auction house.

As an example, you may have found your dream home, but need to sell your current one before purchasing it. There could be lots of interest in the home that you want to buy. A bridging loan could allow you to buy the new property, before selling your current one. You would market your current property as normal and once it sold repaid the bridging loan. (note this normally needs to be within 12 months)

As a further example, bridging loans could be used when you are:

  • looking to buy a property for investment purposes
  • such as a buy to let property
  • commercial property purchase
  • or even a refurb and sell project.

This can provide the turn-around speed and flexibility to work within your requirements and timeframes.

The bridge loan term can be anywhere from 1 month up to (usually) a maximum of 12 months. There is not usually a maximum loan amount, as they are assessed based on the proposed usage, exit method and criteria on a case by case basis.

You can pay off a bridge loan at any time during the loan term.

The interest payments for the bridging loan facility can be rolled up throughout the term, which means there would be no monthly interest payments to worry about. Interest rates on bridging loans are monthly rates, not annual. A bridging loan charging 1% interest per month will cost 12% over a year.

Interest rates will differ depending on your personal circumstances and the property type, use, location etc.

The nature of a bridging loan means you need speed and efficiency in any application made.

Once you have submitted an enquiry, we will get an initial decision to you within 24 hours and contact you at your earliest convenience to progress your application.

A bridge loan can be arranged quickly which is why it is used when finance needs to be attained in a short time scale. The lender of the bridge loan will carry out their own checks to ensure the applicant meets the lending criteria.

Due to the nature of bridge loan lenders typically being smaller and more flexible, the time scales could be substantially shorter than a typical mortgage or loan product.

Speak to us today

Bridging loans can be regulated or unregulated depending on the use of the property, unregulated bridging means it’s not governed by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).  It’s always important that you are made aware of the full terms, all fees, charges and conditions of the loan, whether its regulated or not.

We have access to both regulated and unregulated bridging loans.

We have access to Bridging loans starting at £50,000 up to £10m.

Some of the standard fees you would expect to pay as a part of any bridge loan deal would be;

A Lender’s arrangement fee

A fee is commonly charged by a lender for providing the loan facility and is typically two percent (2%) of the loan amount. In some instances, it can be rolled within the loan depending on client or lender requirements.

An Exit fee

This fee may be charged by the lender when the loan is repaid. When charged, it is usually around one month’s worth of interest regardless of whether the loan has run to its full term or was completed early.

A Surveyor’s fee

A fee will usually be payable to the firm hired to survey the property which is usually required as a part of the finance proposition process.

Legal fees

As with a standard mortgage, bridge finance must be processed with all the usual legal requirements stipulated by regulations. In some cases, lenders have in-house legal professionals which may apply these costs into the lender’s arrangement fees.

A Broker Fee

Clever Lending charge a broker fee for their expertise in finding and arranging your required finance, looking across a panel of lenders with multiple products and options.

Case Study

Bridge for property renovation

Clever Lending helped a customer to achieve the following:

Balance Rate LTV Term
New Finance
£159,702
0.79%
75%
12 months

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What next?

Use our callback form

Use our callback form below to speak to one of our experienced brokers and find the best lender for your auction finance.

Chat to us

Use our live chat facility or speak to us on the phone, our expert team are here to help find you the perfect loan for your situation. 0800 316 2224

Auction finance arranged

We are a broker, giving you access to the market for short-term finance. We deal direct with the lender and handle the application process for you.

6 Great Reasons to Choose Clever Lending for a bridge loan

Complete our quick form

Complete our quick enquiry form and we will call you back to discuss further

Market-leading rates

Competitive rates on bridging loans with 100% LTV available with added security

Hundreds of products

First, second and third charge bridging loans available from £50,000 with terms from 1 month to 24 months

Not every case is the same

As each customer’s situation is unique, we’ll take the time to understand your situation, and we carefully assess your property finance requirements.

No exit or legal fees

We can offer bridging loans with no exit fees for flexibility of the investment plan

Staged release on development

Borrowers can secure renovation funds for various stages of their property renovations

Contact the Clever Lending team on

0800 316 2224

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