Development Exit Bridging Loans
Refinance your development facility at practical completion, release your equity for the next project, and give yourself the time to sell at the right price, not the pressured one.
What is development exit bridging?
Development exit bridging is a short term loan used to repay your existing development finance facility once your scheme is complete, or very close to complete. Because the construction risk has gone, lenders will lend up to 75%, allowing you to release your equity to begin your next project, along with a fresh term of typically 6–18 months to sell your units or refinance onto term debt.
Development facilities have a fixed term, and as the redemption date approaches, most development lenders have limited appetite to extend, regardless of where your sales have got to. A development exit bridge removes that deadline, so you are never forced to discount-sell finished units simply to redeem a loan on time.
Why developers use a development exit loan
- Buy time to sell: A typical 12–18 month term lets you hold out for sensible pricing on your units rather than accepting low offers against a redemption deadline.
- Avoid extension fees and default rates: Repaying your development lender on time keeps your record clean and your relationship intact for the next scheme.
- Release equity: If your completed scheme is worth more than your outstanding development debt, the refinance can release capital to put towards your next site.
- Roll up the interest: Interest can typically be added to the loan and paid at the end of term, keeping cash flow free during the sales period.
- Reduce as you sell: Most facilities allow units to be sold down individually, with agreed release amounts repaying the loan as each sale completes.
Development exit bridging rates
Development exit bridging is one of the most competitively priced products in the bridging market, because lenders are securing against a finished asset with no construction risk. As a guide, in the current market, rates on our panel typically start from around 0.65% per month for strong schemes at conservative leverage, with most deals pricing between 0.75% and 0.89% per month depending on:
- Loan to value: Sub-60% LTV attracts the sharpest pricing; facilities are generally available up to 75% of the completed value.
- Asset type and location: Prime residential schemes price keener than commercial or mixed-use.
- Sales evidence: Units already reserved or under offer strengthen the case considerably.
- Loan size: On larger facilities, lenders compete harder and pricing can improve further. Through our network of family office and private lenders, we can also access funding lines that never appear in a Google search.
Remember that the monthly rate is only part of the picture, arrangement fees, exit fees and legal costs all affect the true cost of the facility. As a whole-of-market broker with 300+ lenders on our panel, we compare the total cost of each option, not just the headline rate.
How much can you borrow?
Lenders on our panel can typically offer:
- Up to 75% of the open market value of the completed scheme
- Loans from £100,000 to £100m+
- Terms from 3 to 24 months, with 12–18 months most common
- Interest retained or serviced, whichever suits your cash flow
Because the loan is assessed against the value of the finished scheme rather than cost, developers who have added significant value through the build can often release equity at the point of refinance.
When is development exit finance the right tool?
A development exit bridge makes sense when:
- Your scheme has reached, or is within weeks of, practical completion
- Your development facility is approaching the end of its term
- Units are taking longer to sell than the original appraisal assumed
- You want to release equity from the completed scheme to secure your next site
- You plan to retain some units and need time to arrange buy-to-let or commercial term mortgages
- Your development lender is charging extension fees or default interest
If your scheme still has meaningful works outstanding and you need additional funds to finish the build, a finish and exit bridging loan is likely the better fit, we arrange both, and will guide you to the right structure for your position.
What property can it be secured against?
Development exit bridging is available across a wide range of completed schemes, including:
- New build houses and apartment blocks
- Permitted development and commercial-to-residential conversions
- Refurbished and converted properties
- Mixed-use schemes
- Commercial and industrial units
Common fees you’ll need to pay
Fees vary from lender to lender, but you might expect:
- Arrangement fee: Normally 1–2% of the loan value
- Exit fee: Some lenders charge around 1%; many development exit products have no exit fee at all, which we will always look to secure
- Valuation fees: For the completed scheme
- Legal fees: for the lender and the borrower
- Unit release fees: Where the loan reduces as individual sales complete
- Broker fee: Usually between 0.5% – 2%
How the process works
- Initial fact find: We take the details of your scheme, your outstanding facility, your sales position and your goals.
- Market the deal: We approach the most suitable lenders from our panel of 300+, plus our network of family offices and private funders where appropriate.
- Terms and valuation: We negotiate terms, then manage the valuation of the completed scheme.
- Legals and underwriting: We actively manage the file through to drawdown, using our experience to look ahead for problems and solve them before they cause delay.
- Drawdown: Your development lender is repaid in full, and your sales period begins on materially better terms.
Where a redemption deadline is looming, speed matters, with a complete scheme and a clean legal pack, facilities can often be arranged in a matter of weeks.
Why work with Tiger Financial
Tiger Financial is a specialist UK bridging and development finance broker, trading since 2004. The development exit market is fragmented, with lender appetites and pricing changing constantly, it is impossible for anyone other than a specialist broker to know the best deal at any given time. Using our granular knowledge of the sector, and our panel of 300+ lenders, we will find you great terms, manage the entire application process and ensure a strong application is put together from the start.
Contact our team today to discuss your development and submit an application.
Development exit bridging faq’s
Development exit bridging refinances your development loan once the scheme is complete or nearly complete, purely to cut costs and buy sales time. A finish and exit bridging loan additionally provides the funds needed to complete outstanding works. If your build isn’t finished, finish and exit is usually the right route.
Rates typically range from around 0.65% to 0.89% per month depending on loan to value, asset quality and sales evidence, with arrangement fees normally 2%. Because every deal is different, the quickest way to get an accurate figure is to speak to our team or try our bridging loan calculator.
Yes. Because the facility is assessed against the completed value of the scheme rather than build cost, developers who have added value through the build can often borrow more than the outstanding development debt, releasing capital for the next project.
Most development exit facilities allow individual unit sales, with an agreed release amount from each sale going to reduce the loan. This means your finance cost falls as your sales progress.
Lenders will generally want practical completion certification and warranties in place. If your scheme is close to completion but not quite there, talk to us, some lenders on our panel will fund pre-PC, or a finish and exit structure may suit better.
With a completed scheme, a responsive solicitor and a clean legal pack, deals can complete in as little as 2–4 weeks, though 4–6 weeks is more typical. If your redemption deadline is close, contact us as early as possible.