Few intermediaries, even those who routinely deal with bridging loans, will be aware of the extent to which bridging finance has become a truly flexible funding solution. And although it’s true that they remain suitable for selected customers only, they now offer a far greater reach of use and purpose than many might appreciate.
There’s no doubt that when you mention bridging loans the first thing that rightly comes to mind is what has often been called ‘the Classic Bridge’. By this, we generally mean customers who are buying and selling and need to bridge the gap between the two whether it’s to rescue a collapsed chain, to help a usually older customer to downsize or just to help a buyer complete a purchase when they already have a residential mortgage.
However, the classic bridge, even in its different forms is just the tip of the iceberg of the many potential uses of short term bridging loans. What lenders such as United Trust Bank are fundamentally offering is access to credit, secured against property, for a relatively short period, for any lawful purpose. Although that might seem to be stating the obvious, when you think beyond the context of the “classic bridge” it opens up a myriad of potential applications for the loans we provide.
From raising capital for business purposes to overcoming temporary cash flow problems or settling a substantial VAT or tax bill, bridging finance providers have developed a high degree of flexibility and creativity giving brokers and their clients the opportunities to complete transactions that would almost certainly be denied to them if bridging loans didn’t exist.