28 August 2024

Versatile bridging finance

By William Edwards, Bridging Business Development Manager, Market Harborough Building Society

Market Harborough Building Society’s Bridging Specialist, William Edwards, has many years’ experience in the short-term mortgage market. Here he explains how bridging loans are increasingly being used as an alternative to traditional forms of finance and outlines how Market Harborough is well-placed to help with complex scenarios.

Why bridging finance?

Clients often use bridging finance to fix a broken property chain to guarantee they secure their next dream property, it allows them to access the funds to buy their new home before completing the sale of their previous property. They can be attractive as a quicker way to access funds, providing a viable exit strategy is in place. Bridging finance is usually in place for up to 12 months and the interest can be rolled up and repaid at the end of the loan.

Often, HNW clients can benefit from even greater levels of flexibility including a longer term.

In today’s increasingly complex market, there are many other scenarios where a bridging loan can be used:

  • Buying a new home before selling
    If your clients know what they want from their next property and don’t want to lose out on their dream home, bridging finance can put them in control as it allows them to purchase their new home before their existing property has sold.
  • Raising funds for business purposes
    Bridging finance is a quick way of accessing funds. If your client requires an immediate cash injection to capitalise on a business opportunity, a bridging loan secured against their assets could be a viable solution.
  • Re-bridging
    Clients with existing bridging finance may look for a re-bridge to secure a better deal or if their original loan is reaching the end of its term and they need more time before repaying the original loan. This may be because their planned sale fell through, or a build is taking longer to complete
  • Raising funds for refurbishment and development purposes
    Homeowners and investors often turn to bridging finance if they need to refurbish a property prior to them moving in or before it can be let or sold. It’s a way of accessing short term funds for a project, with a clear repayment strategy in place.

What are the acceptable repayment strategies?

Lenders consider a variety of practical repayment options.

The exit strategy for a straightforward case could be selling an asset, security or investment. Refinancing is another option. In more complex cases, the repayment strategy could involve the sale of shares or overseas assets.

Market Harborough Building Society takes a flexible approach and is happy to consider a combination of different repayment methods.

Working in partnership – the key to success

As with traditional forms of finance, lenders and brokers must work in partnership to understand the finer details of the clients’ scenario.

To learn about how we work with you and how our bridging finance can be used take a look at our website. And don’t just take our word for it, check out some recent case examples:

 

Get in touch today!

At Market Harborough Building Society, we have an award-winning team of bridging finance experts to help you every step of the way and will work with you to ensure things process smoothly.

They will make a courtesy call to your client, provide regular broker updates and add the human touch needed to ensure cases proceed from application to offer efficiently. We’re committed to honest and open communication and often turn around simple, well-packaged cases in a matter of days. The team also regularly check in with your client throughout their term.

To get in touch, please call 01858 412345 (option 2)

For adviser use only. Please note this content has been supplied by our lender partner and as such, is their responsibility. No party shall have any right of action against Legal & General in relation to the accuracy or completeness of the information in this article.