“In the bridging finance sector flexibility, fast decisions and reliability on the part of the lender, are crucial to borrowers, who are often under major pressure to complete deals within a very tight deadline. If the financial rug of support is pulled away from under borrowers’ feet at the eleventh hour, there needs to be a short-term finance lender, which both brokers and borrowers can rely on.
“At Bridgebank Capital, we have quickly established a reputation with our brokers and introducers whereby they are confident that they can depend on us to deliver even under the most challenging of circumstances. We are often approached by property entrepreneurs who have been let down at the last minute and are looking for fast, effective, financing solutions.
“We recently received a call from a broker late on a Wednesday afternoon, who needed a fast completion on a loan advance for a client acquiring a development site. The prospective borrower was already in contract default on the completion of the purchase, as they had been let down by another lender who simply was showing no sense of urgency or commitment to the lending process. We received a fully completed application form on the Wednesday evening, issued a full offer letter the following morning, and collated together all of the relevant ID and anti-money laundering information plus the borrower’s acceptance to the terms of the offer, all on the same day.
“However, our underwriters identified that the property valuers being used by the borrower did not appear to be on our pre-approved panel, and this created an immediate obstacle, which potentially could have slowed down the whole lending process. After further enquiry, we ascertained that the valuer, whilst a newly formed business, was actually a breakaway from a well-established panel approved practice. Through our own persistence and endeavours, we were able to secure special dispensation to accept a valuation report from this firm on this occasion.
“Additionally, it was also identified that the borrower actually needed to borrow more than the maximum Loan to Value percentage we ordinarily offer, based on the initial assessment of value provided by the valuers. Our in-house property surveyor fully reviewed the draft valuation report and carried out his own due diligence and assessment of the value of the property. He concluded that the valuer’s initial assessment of the property was rather pessimistic and they had probably inadvertently downvalued the property. We promptly discussed the key aspects of the project with the panel valuers, together with our own views on the valuation, and as a consequence the valuers provided a higher valuation, thus allowing us to advance a higher level of loan than first expected, providing the borrower with sufficient funds to complete the transaction.
“Once we had squared off all of these issues, our lawyers were instructed on the Friday morning, and we completed the draw-down of the loan advance on the Monday, being the third working day following the original enquiry. That’s service!
“Bridgebank’s experience, innovative approach, speed and flexibility meant that this borrower was able to secure the funds needed to complete the purchase – even at the eleventh hour.”
