Development finance lending criteria

The applicant

Experience

We lend exclusively to applicants with property development experience

We will also assess the experience of the professional team involved in the project

Residence

The main applicant(s) must reside in the UK

Any Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) must be domiciled in the UK

Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs)

Acceptable SPVs include:

• Limited companies (Ltd)
• Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs)
• Public limited companies

Each Director, Partner (in the case of an LLP applicant) or member is required to complete and sign an application form

Adverse credit

We will not consider the following forms of adverse credit:

• Bankruptcy
• Repossession or voluntary repossessions
• LPA receivership
• Administration

The property

Location

The property must be located in one of the following regions:

• England
• Wales
• Scotland

Security

A first legal charge over the property will always be required along with a debenture and personal guarantee

Planning consent

Full, detailed planning consent must be in place for the proposed development

Tenants

We will not consider applications where the tenant is or will be any of the following:

• A family member of the applicant
• The previous owner of the property

Property size

All apartments must always be the following sizes at a minimum:

• 30m² or over (outside London)
• 25m² or over (inside London)

Warranties

NHBC or equivalent warranties must be in place

Collateral warranties with step in rights will usually be required

The loan

Interest

Interest will be rolled up until redemption of the facility and is calculated within the LTV/LTGDV limits

Deposit

We will always require evidence for the deposit

Legal representation

Separate legal representation is required on all development projects

Exit route

There must be a viable exit route for all development loans

Please note that this web page represents a sample of our lending criteria and is not exhaustive.