Development finance

Experts at finding the right type of development finance for your client.

The majority of development finance will be used on new house and apartment projects, but it can also include commercial units, mixed-use transactions (e.g. a retail unit on the ground floor of a building with apartments being developed above) and larger scale conversions, (e.g. an office building being converted to apartments).

The current market in development finance is growing strongly and the scope of our lender panel is such that we can consider first-time developers, development locations throughout the country, high-end single units or large multi-unit schemes.

Typical client scenarios:

• Experienced developers looking for new or alternative funding arrangements.
• First-time or one-off developers looking to secure the best possible finance.
• Property investors looking to add value to their portfolio by developing properties.

Types of finance covered within this division.

The development finance sector has moved on a great deal and funding is now available from mainstream banks, merchant and investment banks, private lenders and specialist investment funds. Each of the lenders will have their own credit assessment criteria and we use our knowledge and market experience to match the client’s requirement to the best loan product available.

This could be by way of a single stand-alone facility, a traditional senior loan in conjunction with a subordinated/mezzanine facility or a stretched senior loan offering a higher loan to cost ratio.

Criteria overview.

First and second charge loans are available on residential, commercial and mixed-use development projects:

• Market-leading rates.*
• Loans from £250k with no upper limit.
• Up to 90% loan to cost (100% funding in certain circumstances).
• Development locations throughout the country.
• High-end single units or large multi-unit schemes.
• Products for first-time developers.

* Each transaction will be unique, but the client profile, previous project experience, cash input, development location etc. will all have an effect on the maximum loan parameters and pricing. Interest rate margins can be as low as 3%, but typically development loans are charged at a premium due to a higher risk profile and shorter loan terms.