Most articles about unregulated bridging finance focus on its different uses or the importance of great service. Sometimes both. What isn’t talked about so much, but is also vital, is pricing. At the end of the day, businesses make more profit when they get the most suitable goods for the lowest cost. In the bridging sector, outside of ultra-high LTV deals or highly illiquid properties, your clients should no longer have to compromise on cost. There are many bridging lenders to choose from now. There are also useful comparison tools which are designed to give an idea of the most appropriate lenders to approach with each enquiry. However, despite this, comparing unregulated bridging lenders’ true costs is not always simple. Here are a few things to be aware of when assessing their terms. Question the fees The standard fees in bridging are arrangement fees (from which the broker commission is paid), legal fees and valuation fees. Additional fees that are not standard include admin fees, title insurance fees, capital repayment fees, fees for the lender to send a letter or make a call and so on. These extra costs can amount to several thousand pounds per facility. At Funding 365 we don’t charge any of these additional fees on our core bridging products. What's more, our fees are clearly outlined upfront in our straightforward two page Heads of Terms document. Check whether your terms are indicative or credit-backed Indicative terms are at risk of being amended further down the line when assessed by those who make the final credit decisions, with interest rates increased or LTVs reduced. At Funding 365 our Heads of Terms are credit-backed as they are issued by our mandated underwriters and hands-on directors rather than BDMs (we don’t actually have any BDMs) and our funding is principal-led so we don’t have to consult any external credit committees. Don’t assume that higher cost equals better service It is widely understood that some of the specialist banks who tend to sit at the sharp end of pricing (because their funding is inexpensive) have slow and impersonal processes. However, some specialist lenders - like Funding 365 - offer low cost bridging finance in the ballpark of the banks without compromising on their service levels. Our market-leading Stepped Rate Bridge has interest rates from just 0.39% per month for the first 6 months (rising to 1.15% per month from month 7) and our flat rate Residential Bridge has interest rates from 0.64% per month. View our transparent product guides here . Ask who will be processing your loans and how you can contact them Most lenders have multiple departments involved in each loan, which can create a slow, disjoined experience. At Funding 365 one expert underwriter will take your case from enquiry all the way to redemption and is always available by phone or email. Our 100% 5 star Google and Trustpilot reviews attest to this. The bottom line is that the bottom line is crucial for the success of property professionals. Luckily, options now exist for borrowers to achieve top tier service standards at very keen pricing levels.

What is property auction finance? Auction finance is a type of short term property loan. It’s specifically designed to be fast and simple in order to deliver for auction purchases, which usually have to complete within 28 days of the auction or the transaction collapses and the 10% deposit is forfeit.   Auction finance loans are usually 12 months long and they ‘bridge’ the gap between the date of the auction purchase and the loan exit. The exit for our loans are usually either a longer term buy to let or commercial mortgage, or the sale of the property.    How does auction finance differ from other bridging loans? Some lenders have separate short term property auction finance products. At Funding 365, you can use any of our bridging products for auction purchases. All of our bridging loans are designed to be fast and simple and our highly competitive interest rates start at just 0.64% per month.   You can view all of our bridging products here .   Which types of properties do we provide auction finance for? We lend against residential investment, commercial and semi-commercial properties. We can also provide extra funding in our loans for refurbishment of the properties, if needed.   When should you get in touch with us? You can ask us for terms before or after an auction.   Having lender terms before an auction will give you bidding confidence. There is no downside to asking us for terms before an auction as we don’t charge admin fees.   The only fees that we charge are a 2% arrangement fee and legal and valuation fees at market rate. The first fee that you would need to pay is the valuation fee, which is only charged once you’ve confirmed that the loan is going ahead.   How quickly can we deliver auction finance? Our funding is principal-led, which means that we’re in charge of our credit and we can release funds without any delay. We’ve never missed an auction finance deadline.   Here are a few tips to ensure that your property auction purchase completes before the deadline: 1.   Choose solicitors who are experts in auction finance. Bridging loans are often slowed down by lawyers who are inexperienced in the speed requirements and bespoke nature of short term property finance. 2.   Ask if your loan would qualify for an automated valuation model (AVM) valuation. This is an online valuation which can be sourced by our underwriters from their desks. AVMs are significantly quicker (and cheaper) to source than Red Book valuations (where a valuer physically inspects a property and writes a report). However, AVMs are only available for residential properties and we require that the property has a Hometrack confidence score of 5 or higher. In practice, this is mainly properties in areas where a large number of similar properties have sold recently, so they are often properties in towns and cities. You can find out more about our AVM Bridge here . 3.   Choose a responsive lender with a strong service track record. Our decision-making underwriters always answer the phone and they aim to provide bespoke terms within just one hour. We have won a number of industry awards for our service and have a 100% 5 star rating on both Google and Trustpilot.

Northern Ireland is an incredible place, home to rugged coastlines, rolling countryside and vibrant communities. As a born and bred Northern Irishman, I may be a little biased. I’m not, however, biased about the opportunity that Northern Ireland offers for property investment. The recently released House Price Index (HPI) Q2 2025 reports revealed that residential property prices in Northern Ireland grew faster than inflation in the 12 months ending June 2025 - unlike in England - with a 5.5% HPI compared to a 3.6% Consumer Price Index (CPI). This is good news for investors in the region and a sign of confidence in the strength and stability of the market. What’s more, the reports confirmed an average residential property price in Northern Ireland of £185,108 which is significantly lower than England’s average of £290,956. This lower entry point doesn’t just reduce the upfront investment, it also means a smaller stamp duty bill. An investment buyer purchasing the average Northern Irish home would save £8,638 in stamp duty compared to buying the average home in England.   For developers looking to flip properties and landlords looking to scale their portfolios, these figures are not only appealing, they’re financially strategic. Lower entry costs combined with stronger relative growth make the region a compelling proposition.   Of course, as with everywhere, local expertise offers an advantage. Working with trusted partners who understand the market, as well as all of the possible finance options, can significantly impact a project's success.   As a bridging lender who funds in Northern Ireland, we’ve assisted developers and landlords the length and breadth of the region, from Ballycastle to Kilkeel and Derry to Newtownards.   Our versatile and highly competitive Northern Ireland Bridge and Northern Ireland Specialist 3 & 5 Year BTL loans have enabled our borrowers to deliver on a wide variety of objectives. Uses for these products have included investment property purchases, light refurbishments, house to flat and HMO conversions, ground up development facility refinances, property portfolio consolidations and business cash flow releases.   We pride ourselves on working flexibly with our clients, creating bespoke solutions with highly competitive interest rates from just 0.84% per month for Northern Irish bridging loans starting at £100,000. Our understanding of the nuances of the market in Northern Ireland means that we can deliver speed and certainty of funding and our commitment to personal service helps to ensure that our deals progress smoothly and efficiently.   For savvy developers and landlords, with support from intermediaries and lenders who are experts in the region, Northern Ireland offers the opportunity to maximise returns and build long-term value in a growing market.

It seems likely that, at some point in the near future, AI will significantly impact business by replacing jobs. In some industries it already has.   Technological innovation in recent years has transformed how mortgages are delivered. At Funding 365, we use various fintech tools to improve the efficiency and security of our transactions. Our underwriters use Thirdfort and Creditsafe , for example, to assist with our KYC and AML checks. We’re also happy to be on various platforms which amalgamate lenders’ criteria, rates and fees for those brokers and borrowers who are not familiar with the ever-changing specialist lender landscape.   However, the specialist property finance industry has always prided itself on relationships. It values collaboration between brokers and lenders to craft bespoke solutions for property professional clients who want to know that they are choosing the best option not only in terms of price, but also service. This won’t change overnight.   Current technology is simply not sophisticated enough to replace human underwriters for complicated enquiries. I can’t speak for regulated bridging and long term buy to let lenders whose enquiries are usually more straightforward, but the unregulated bridging, development and specialist BTL cases we see have elements of nuance that still benefit from being underwritten and handled by a human. That AI is not yet sophisticated enough for highly bespoke underwriting is great news for our team. We have a unique underwriter-led proposition, which means that two thirds of the Funding 365 team are underwriters. These multi-tasking experts take on the roles of the likes of BDMs, case managers and asset managers at other lenders.   When you send an enquiry to Funding 365 by your preferred method - phone, email, WhatsApp, website chat, social media, carrier pigeon - one of our decision-making underwriters will look at it and get back to you personally. They also aim to send out bespoke, credit-backed terms within just one working hour of receiving a full enquiry.   If your case progresses, the same underwriter will manage it through the valuation and legal processes to completion. They will also hang on to the loan during its term, handling drawdowns if applicable, all the way to redemption. This means that one person manages each of our loans from start to finish, providing our brokers and borrowers with a uniquely certain, swift and seamless journey.   Whilst I will continue to follow fintech developments - and particularly AI - with interest, at present, the best specialist property finance solutions are still created when brokers and lenders put their heads together.   The march of progress is unstoppable, but in an industry where relationships and tailored solutions are king, our jobs are safe, for the moment, at least.

We launched our Specialist 3 and 5 Year Buy to Let products just one month ago, but they already account for 15% of Funding 365’s business pipeline. Given this response to our new products, it is clear that there is a strong demand for competitive, specialist buy to let solutions with a bespoke, service-led proposition.   Mainstream lenders are reluctant to look at complicated scenarios and tailored solutions, which is where specialist lenders like Funding 365 excel. We designed our buy to let products specifically to cater for three areas - quirky properties, complex borrowers and underserved regions. This is evidenced by the BTL loans now in our pipeline, which include houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), flats that are not yet tenanted, holiday lets, foreign nationals, expats and a large percentage of properties in regions outside of London.   Quirky Properties Traditional lenders favour straightforward buy to let securities. Specialist lenders like Funding 365, on the other hand, underwrite in a highly bespoke manner - which means that we can become comfortable with unusual properties rather than reject them outright.   Alongside flats and houses, we consider HMOs, multi-unit freehold blocks (MUFBs), holiday lets, student accommodation, social housing and other less common securities. We also consider semi-commercial properties where the commercial element is less than 30% of the property value.   Complex Borrowers The tailored underwriting approach of specialist lenders also allows them to consider more complicated borrower scenarios to create bespoke solutions. At Funding 365 we offer funding to foreign nationals from a large number of countries, as long as they have a UK credit footprint and UK bank account. We are also happy to consider borrowers with adverse credit profiles.   Underserved Regions A common misconception is that London based lenders prefer to lend on properties in the South East. Funding 365 has always had securities from a wide geographical area across England and Wales on its loan book and, since launching our Northern Ireland Bridge product earlier this year, the region has grown to become a key one for us.   Northern Ireland is particularly underserved by buy to let lenders with a genuine appetite to lend, and even more so by specialist lenders with competitive rates for non-standard properties and borrowers. Our Northern Ireland Specialist 3 and 5 Year BTL product specifically caters for these landlords, with solutions between £100,000 and £3million from 7.49%pa, fixed.   Our new Government has made ambitious plans to increase housing stock in the UK to catch up with demand. Private landlords are going to be integral to supplying the rental homes that are needed, and specialist lenders will play a vital role in supporting them in their endeavours.

The Labour Government swept in last July with a fresh take on how to get the nation supplying the homes that the people of the UK need, promising 1.5 million new homes in England in their first term.   It’s too early to make a call on when this will be achieved or not. The number of new homes built in England in Labour’s first six months in office continued to fall, but it can be argued that all changes take time to have real effect and the trend was already declining under the previous Government’s term.   Clearly it’s not an easy fix. There are various issues which need to be addressed, above and beyond those that are under the Government’s control. Many parties will need to come together to support such an ambitious plan for more homes - including developers, construction firms and building material suppliers - all of whom will need ready support from the commercial finance industry.    So what are the biggest challenges?   Planning reform The Government has been prioritising removing what it sees as the main barriers to building new homes by overhauling planning and increasing land supply. There is no doubt that these have been significant barriers to increasing the housing stock in recent years.   The revised National Planning Policy Framework revealed in December included restoring mandatory council housing targets as well as guidance to building on the Green Belt and the newly coined Grey Belt. The Planning and Infrastructure Bill being introduced into Parliament later this month has been designed to contain much of the primary legislature required to enact the Government’s plans. The Government intends it to ‘take an axe to red tape’ by speeding up and streamlining the planning process to build homes and major infrastructure projects.   However, reform itself will not speed up the planning process if there are not enough trained planning officers to implement it. The Government believes that an additional 300 new recruits across England by the end of 2026 will suffice, but that’s less than one tenth of the 3,100 planning officers who left the public sector between 2010 and 2020. Certainly, the 300 won’t have any impact at all in the near future whilst they are being hired and trained.     Either way, an improved planning system and increased land supply will not themselves deliver the 1.5 million new homes.   Developer profit margins This target will require the build of over 300,000 new homes in England per year, which is a number not achieved since the 1970s. Back then, local authorities were a large contributor to the supply of new homes, roughly equal to that of private companies.   Now, local authorities are a very small factor and the Government is hoping that private companies will pick up the shortfall.   However, unlike local authorities, private firms need to make an immediate profit to survive and the construction industry has been facing big challenges in recent years, including dealing with a chronic shortage of skilled workers as well as a lack of availability and affordability of building materials.   In 2024, the total number of construction firms becoming insolvent was 4,032, which is a 25.3% increase on the 3,218 of pre-pandemic 2019. Of all cases where the industry was captured in the statistics, construction experienced the highest number of insolvencies (source: BCIS and the Insolvency Service ).   So how can private developers and construction firms - who are crucial players in the Government’s plan - make enough profit? Since higher profits can be made when supply is lower than demand, it’s counterintuitive for them to hugely increase their efforts and essentially flood the market with new homes. This would make them less profitable than they currently are. The only way that this might make financial sense is if it coincided with their costs coming down.   I’m sure that construction industry bodies, associations and lobbyists are working hard to persuade the Government to make changes to increase the supply of skilled workers and increase access to affordable building materials. The Government must realise how critical these factors will be to achieving its ambitions. Stamp duty changes Unless the Government applies a last minute grace period - as many people hope they will, given the predicted backlog with conveyancers - an increase in Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) in England will come into force on 1 st  April.   Changes include reducing the threshold for main residences from £250,000 to £125,000 and for first time buyers from £425,000 to £300,000.   For landlords buying property, the Additional Property SDLT will increase for the £125,000 to £250,000 bracket, which will move from 5% to 7%. To put that in context, the average price for a residential auction property sold in England during the three months to January 2025 was £187,167 (source: EIG Property Auctions ). For this average purchase, the increase in Additional Property SDLT would equate to an extra £3,743.34.   Any additional SDLT cost to buyers will not help developers to sell their new homes. In practice, the developers may find themselves absorbing some or all of that additional cost in order to secure sales, further reducing their margins. Leaving the challenges aside, what are the opportunities? Property conversions Whilst much of the attention is on ground up development, ‘net additional dwellings’, which measures the change in overall housing stock and is likely to be the indicator that Government will base its success on, includes not only new build properties but also property conversions and changes of use.   As many people continue to largely work from home, there’s less demand for office space and many office buildings present excellent opportunities for conversion to residential.   Bridging finance can help here, too. Funding 365’s Light Refurbishment product, for example, allows for property conversions with works up to 40% of the day one value and has interest starting at just 0.69% per month, with no exit fees. Our Heavy Refurbishment product delivers cost of works up to 150% of the day one value. View our Heavy Refurbishment product guide here .   Commercial finance options The reasonable cost and certainty of funds will be crucial factors for developers to succeed. Different types of firms involved in delivering homes will benefit from different funding choices. Invoice factoring might be a wise option for a building material supplier, for example. However, since Funding 365 is a property finance lender, that is what I’ll focus on.   Luckily, the cost of funds for specialist lenders are currently coming down, which means that we are able to pass on lower interest rates to our customers.   Development lenders tend to specialise in funding certain types of development projects. At Funding 365 we focus on small developments, providing funding between £250,000 and £1.5 million for projects across England and Wales. View our Development product guide here .   Delays in obtaining planning permission disproportionately affect SME developers, who, unlike bigger developers, are often unable to juggle resources across different sites.   Bridging finance can help with projects that run past their development finance term, either for ‘development exit’ which provides extra time for developers to market and sell their properties, or for ‘finish and exit’ which also includes completing the build.   Working together All of the extra costs affecting developers - labour costs, material costs, site delay costs and stamp duty costs - will hamper the Government’s plans. There are many obstacles to delivering such an ambitious number of new homes and at present it appears that the Government is hoping that simply recording an aspirational figure and making some planning reforms and local authority targets will make it happen.   Private firms are the ones who will actually deliver the bulk of the new homes - and whilst their costs remain high, it simply isn’t economically viable for them to deliver so many. The Government needs to do more to try to reduce their costs.   In the meantime, the commercial finance industry is committed to playing its part in supporting developers, passing on any reduction in cost of funds and endeavouring to provide new product solutions.

Once the beating heart of local communities, the British high street has seen a steady decline in recent years. Shifting consumer habits, economic pressures, high business taxes and the rapid rise of online shopping and services have all taken their toll on bricks-and-mortar stores, resulting in more stores closing than opening.   Luckily, there is cause for cautious optimism. A PWC report confirmed that the rate of net shop closures stabilised in 2024. Some types of business, particularly convenience stores and coffee shops, saw a net increase in outlets. The high street appears to be adapting.   Furthermore, property professionals are once again seeing high street property - typically shops with flats above - as a shrewd investment. Our team has seen enquiries for bridging and short term buy to let loans for semi-commercial properties increase significantly in 2025 - up 40% in January to April this year compared to the same period last year.    Nearly half of these enquiries were to facilitate the purchase of new semi-commercial property. A key advantage of purchasing semi-commercial property is that the stamp duty land tax (SDLT) is payable at the commercial rate rather than the residential rate. With a maximum rate of 5%, this can represent a significant saving for properties over £250,000.   Another attraction of mixed-use properties for landlords is the dual income streams which can make them more resilient in a fluctuating market. With the ongoing uncertainty around the implications of the Renters Reform Bill for residential landlords, it’s not surprising that more landlords are investigating portfolio diversification. From a funding perspective, bridging finance can be very useful for the purchase of semi-commercial property. Bridging lenders typically deliver funds quickly, allowing investors to move at speed to take advantage of attractively-priced opportunities, including at auction. Bridging facilities also often permit - and even fund - property improvements, which enable landlords to charge higher rents and increase their yields. Property developers can also use bridging funding to convert mixed-use properties into fully residential ones. It may surprise you to hear that semi-commercial bridging finance can be highly competitively priced. At Funding 365, we include semi-commercial property where the commercial element is up to 30% of the property value in our residential bridge product, which features interest rates from just 0.69% per month. What’s more, we fund refurbishment with a cost of works up to 40% of the day one value at the same interest rates. View our Residential Bridge product guide here . For landlords looking to diversify their portfolios and property developers looking to repurpose vacant units, there are clear opportunities in semi-commercial property. Funding 365 is proud to be at the forefront of providing rapid and affordable funding to help invigorate and rejuvenate our high streets.

What is an AVM? AVM stands for Automated Valuation Model. Put simply, an AVM is a type of property valuation report that is created by specialist software using online data. AVM reports are increasingly being used as an alternative to the traditional RICS Red Book valuation.   What are the benefits of using an AVM? There are two main benefits to borrowers of AVM bridging loans: Speed : an AVM is significantly quicker than a traditional property valuation because it does not require a valuer to access the property and write up a report. An AVM valuation can be obtained in a few hours compared to one or two weeks for a traditional valuation. Price : an AVM is also considerably cheaper than a traditional property valuation. Each case is different as each property, valuer and lender combination is different, but a ballpark is 10 times cheaper.   Therefore, AVMs are particularly useful in situations where a quick completion is essential and up-front cash is limited. AVMs are common in auction purchases for this reason, as buyers have to complete within 28 days of the auction or lose their 10% deposit.   What are the limitations to AVMs for bridging loans? Lenders usually permit smaller maximum loan sizes and lower loan to value (LTV) levels under their AVM products compared to their standard bridging products. These limitations are purely due to the fact that AVMs are not as robust as traditional valuations and therefore open the lenders to greater risk.   At Funding 365 we can deliver loans up to £1 million using an AVM, with LTVs capped at 55% for refinances, 65% for open market purchases and 75% for open market purchases where the borrower will refurbish the property using their own funds. View our AVM Bridge product guide here .   When can you not use an AVM? AVMs are currently possible for residential properties only. Additionally, some residential properties are not suitable for an AVM as they do not have enough comparable data and therefore won’t attain a high enough confidence level.   What is a confidence level? Each AVM report is given a confidence level score based on the report’s likely accuracy. Funding 365 will typically only lend against properties using an AVM with a Hometrack confidence level of 5 or above. Highly unusual properties and remote properties with few other buildings nearby are unlikely to have enough comparable data online to attain this level of confidence.   In summary An AVM is an Automated Valuation Model, an online tool that lenders use to value residential properties. AVMs save borrowers time and money compared to traditional valuations and are therefore often used for bridging loans when the borrower needs a quick purchase and / or a lower up-front cost.   If you have any further questions about AVMs you can speak directly to a Funding 365 underwriter on 0800 689 0650 or underwriting@funding-365.com  or via the chat function on this website.   Funding 365 currently uses Hometrack to compile our AVM reports. Find out more about Hometrack here .

Some bridging lenders are better suited to specific uses as they are restricted by their products or processes. As many lenders don’t publicise their product guides, it can be hard to know their true appetites. That’s why we believe in transparency - you can find guides showing criteria and interest rates for all of our products on our website. The evolution of bridging finance When we set up Funding 365 over a decade ago, the uses for bridging finance were predominantly linked to speed. Auction purchases with a week remaining before completion deadline or loans for portfolio landlords needing extra time to apply for new long term facilities, for example. Often these traditional uses involved some kind of light refurbishment element.   In the years since, other uses for bridging finance, such as development exit and commercial-to-residential heavy refurbishment conversion, have risen to jostle for dominance.   Interestingly, in the past few months we’ve noticed a levelling off of these newer uses and a resurgence of the traditional ones. Nearly 50% of our bridge completions over the past month have had a light refurbishment element to the project, either funded by the borrowers or by us.   This trend may be more visible to us at Funding 365 because we’re highly competitive in this area of the bridging market. Our Residential Bridge, with interest from 0.69% per month, allows borrowers to complete light refurbishments with their own funds. Our Light Refurbishment product, which funds works with a value of up to 40% of the day one property value, also starts at just 0.69% per month.   So what opportunities does this trend suggest might be arising for our clients?   Auction purchases The Essential Information Group’s National Auction Survey confirms our experience of an increase in property auction activity. They found that in July 2024 there was an increase of 41.7% in lots sold nationwide compared to the same period in 2023. The North East of England took the top spot, with an increase of 67.6% in lots sold this July versus last year.   With just 28 days to complete an auction purchase or lose the 10% deposit, bridging finance can be an excellent source of funding. Many bridging lenders are able to complete at speed, although it does depend on their source of funding and whether they control their credit in-house.   At Funding 365 we have a number of institutional funding lines, but as our funding is principal-led we have credit autonomy. This means that we can move exceptionally quickly. We even aim to send credit-backed terms within just one hour of receiving a full enquiry.   HMO conversions We’ve also seen a notable increase in enquiries from borrowers looking to purchase houses to convert into HMOs in order to lease them to housing associations. This has likely stemmed from the Government steps to combat the problems that are being caused by the chronic lack of housing combined with a relatively rapid population growth.   These residential to HMO conversions usually require only light refurbishment, so fit within our Residential Bridge or Light Refurbishment products.   The right lender The good news is that if you or your clients are wondering if a business opportunity can be facilitated by bridging finance, you can always speak to a Funding 365 underwriter to get an expert view.   We’re unique in the industry in that we have an underwriter-first approach, whereby we encourage everyone to speak directly to one of our decision-making underwriters with their enquiries. If you progress with one of our loans, the same underwriter will manage it all the way through to redemption, which delivers a swift, seamless, certain experience for everyone involved.   Our efficient, personal service has won us multiple industry awards and we’re very happy to work with all intermediaries. Just give us a call to speak to one of our underwriters who can give you a full answer, quickly.