Bridging Loans

Your situation

Which of these is you?

Nobody rings up wanting a bridging loan. They ring up because a buyer pulled out, or an auction is on Thursday. Every question is on the page whichever card you open.

• 01

  Chain break

  Your buyer pulled out and you still want the house.

  A bridge funds the completion on your purchase and is repaid when your own property sells — keeping the new home rather than losing it along with the deposit and costs already spent. Bridging onto a home that you or a close family member will live in is regulated bridging.

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  Can a bridging loan fix a broken chain?

  Often yes — it lets you complete on the purchase while your own sale catches up.

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  If your buyer pulls out after you have committed to a purchase, a bridge can fund the completion and be repaid when your own property eventually sells. That keeps the new home rather than losing it along with the deposit and the costs already spent. The thing to be realistic about is the sale: the bridge is repaid by it, so the exit is only as solid as the price and the timescale you can actually achieve, and a sale price with no buffer in it is a thin exit. Bridging onto a home that you or a close family member will live in is regulated bridging.

  Regulated vs unregulated bridging: what's the difference?

  Whether the loan is secured on the home you live in, or on property you hold as an investment.

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  If the loan is secured on a property that you or a close family member live in, or will live in, it's usually regulated bridging. If it's secured on an investment or business property, it's unregulated. Unregulated bridging loans (for investment or business purposes) are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. That difference matters: regulated bridging carries the FCA protections that apply to mortgages on your own home, and unregulated bridging does not — there is no automatic right to complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service about an unregulated loan, for instance. It is not a reason to avoid unregulated bridging, which is the normal form for investment and business property. It is a reason to know which one you are taking, and we will tell you which applies to your case before anything is applied for.

• 02

  Auction

  The hammer has fallen, or is about to.

  Many auctions require completion within about 28 days, and a typical bridge takes 4–6 weeks. Speak to us before you bid. It can be done, but it depends on the property, the lender and how much is already in motion before the sale — which is why the conversation belongs before the bid rather than after it.

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  Can I use a bridging loan for an auction purchase?

  Yes, it's a common use — but speak to us before you bid, not after.

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  Many auctions require completion within about 28 days of the hammer falling, and the average bridging completion was 46 days in Q2 2026 (Bridging Trends, as reported by IFA Magazine, checked October 2026). Those two numbers do not comfortably overlap, which is the thing to understand before you raise your hand. It can be done, and it is done — but it depends on the property, the lender, how fast the valuation and legal work move, and how much of it is already underway before the auction. Starting the conversation before the sale means the lender is lined up, the solicitor is instructed and the valuation can be booked the moment you win. Starting it after means racing a deadline that has already begun.

  How long does a bridging loan take?

  Typically four to six weeks from application to funds.

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  The steps are the lender's decision, a valuation, and the legal work, and any of them can move the date. A straightforward case on clean security with a clear exit sits at the fast end; anything needing an internal inspection, a complex title or extra documents sits at the slow end. Bridging has a reputation for being instant, and that reputation does more harm than good — it is faster than a mortgage, not immediate. Timescales vary by lender and by case, so we give you a realistic view for the route you are actually taking.

• 03

  Refurbishment

  A property a standard lender won't touch yet.

  Buy, refurbish, then refinance onto a standard mortgage at the improved value, or sell. Light and heavy refurbishment are treated differently, and the exit mortgage is worth arranging alongside the bridge rather than after it.

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  Can I use bridging for a refurbishment?

  Yes, including properties that may not qualify for a standard mortgage until the work is done.

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  A property without a working kitchen or bathroom, or one needing structural work, often falls outside standard mortgage criteria — which is precisely the gap a bridge fills. The usual shape is buy, refurbish, then refinance onto a standard buy-to-let or residential mortgage at the improved value, or sell. Light refurbishment and heavy refurbishment are treated differently by lenders, and anything structural or involving planning is a different conversation again. The exit mortgage is worth arranging alongside the bridge rather than after it, because the bridge's term is the clock you are working to.

  For the exit onto a rental, see buy-to-let mortgages.

  How much can I borrow on a bridging loan?

  Typically £100,000 to £2 million and above, up to around 70–75% of the property's value.

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  The ceiling is set by the property rather than by your income, because that is what the lender is lending against. Around 70–75% of value is the usual range, and a property in poor condition sits at the lower end of it. Larger loans exist for the right security. What the lender will actually advance also depends on the exit — a strong, evidenced exit supports more than a vague one, and a loan the exit cannot repay is one no sensible lender writes.

• 04

  Development exit

  The build is finished; the units haven't sold.

  Refinancing completed development off construction-priced finance onto short-term lending priced for a finished asset, buying time for sales to happen at sensible prices rather than at whatever a deadline forces.

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  What is development exit finance?

  A bridge that replaces development finance once the building work is done but the units haven't sold.

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  Development finance is priced for the risk of construction. Once the building is finished and that risk has gone, continuing to sit on it while units sell or let is usually an expensive way to hold a completed scheme. A development exit bridge refinances it onto short-term lending priced for a completed asset, which buys time for the sales to happen at sensible prices rather than at whatever a deadline forces. It also tends to release some of the equity the completed value has created. The exit is the sale of the units or a longer-term refinance, and lenders will want to see the sales evidence.

  What is an exit strategy and why does it matter?

  It's how the loan gets repaid, and it's the thing lenders decide on.

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  There are three usual exits: selling the property, refinancing onto a longer-term mortgage, or completing sales on a development. A lender will want it defined and evidenced rather than described — a refinance exit backed by a lender's agreement in principle is a different proposition from one backed by an intention. A bridge with no confirmed exit is a common reason applications are declined, and a common reason one goes wrong after completion. If the exit is late, the loan does not simply continue on the same terms: extending costs money, and going past the term without an agreed extension puts you in default, which carries higher charges and — because the loan is secured on property — can ultimately lead to repossession. Build in more time than you think you need, and a buffer on any price you are relying on.

  Work through cost, timing and exit together with the bridging loan calculator.

• 05

  Other situations

  Below-market-value purchases, planning gain, and more.

  Time-sensitive acquisitions where a standard mortgage timeline does not fit, and purchases made with the intention of applying for planning permission and refinancing at the enhanced value once granted. Both are established bridging uses, and both are assessed on the property, the exit and the lender's appetite.

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  What is a bridging loan?

  Short-term lending secured on property, designed to be repaid in months rather than years.

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  It exists to cover a gap: you need money now against a property, and the thing that will repay it — a sale, a refinance, a completed development — is weeks or months away. Terms typically run from 1 to 18 months, and the loan is secured on property in the same way a mortgage is. Because it is short-term and priced for speed, it is more expensive than a mortgage, and it is designed to be replaced by something cheaper rather than kept. The whole question with a bridge is not whether you can afford it, but how you get out of it.

  How is interest charged on a bridging loan?

  Three ways — retained, rolled up, or serviced — and they change what you hand over on day one.

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  With RETAINED interest, the lender holds back the interest for the whole term out of the loan at the outset, so the amount that actually reaches you is less than the gross loan — which is why the gross and net figures differ and why the net is the one that matters for your budget. With ROLLED-UP interest, nothing is paid during the term and the interest is added to the balance each month, so the debt grows and the redemption figure is larger than the amount borrowed. With SERVICED interest, you pay it monthly like a mortgage, so the balance does not grow, but you need the income to cover it and the lender will want to see that you do. Which is available depends on the lender and the case. Alongside interest there is usually an arrangement fee, a valuation fee, legal costs, and sometimes an exit fee — the total cost over the term is the number to compare, not any single one of them.

  What does a bridging loan cost?

  Our standard fee is £495, payable when your application is submitted.

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  In some more complex cases, an additional broker fee of up to 1% of the loan may apply. The first conversation is always free, and we always confirm your total fee in writing before any work starts. We also receive a procuration fee from the lender, always disclosed in full in your Mortgage Illustration before you make any commitment. Separately from our fee, a bridge carries the lender's interest, an arrangement fee, a valuation, legal costs and sometimes an exit fee. Because the term is short, the fees are a larger share of the total than they would be on a mortgage, which is why we compare the total cost over the term rather than any headline figure.

  Model the total with our bridging cost calculator.

  What are the common bridging mistakes?

  Seven, and the first is a common reason bridging applications are declined.

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  No confirmed exit strategy — an intention is not an exit, and lenders can tell the difference. Underestimating the total cost, by counting the interest and forgetting the arrangement fee, the valuation, the legal costs and any exit fee. Leaving it too late for an auction deadline, which is the one mistake that cannot be fixed afterwards. Valuation delays, which are a common reason a case that was on time stops being on time. Not understanding that rolled-up interest grows the balance, so the redemption figure is larger than the amount borrowed. Relying on a sale price with no buffer, so a slightly slower or slightly cheaper sale breaks the exit. And missing the term end, which turns a manageable loan into a defaulted one.