Why the exit comes first
A bridging lender is not lending against your ability to pay monthly. It is lending against a single event: the sale, the refinance, the receipt. If that event is credible, the property type, your credit history and the rest are secondary. If it is not, nothing else matters.
Exit 1: Sale of the property
What it needs: evidence the property will sell at a price that repays the loan with margin, within the term. Comparable sales, an agent's appraisal, and for finished developments, reservations or exchanges. Lenders assume 3 to 6 months to sell a normal house and longer for anything unusual, so a 12-month term on a sale exit is normal.
Where it fails: optimistic values, thin markets, a property that will only sell to another investor at a discount.
Exit 2: Refinance on to a term mortgage
What it needs: proof the property will qualify for a buy-to-let, HMO, commercial or portfolio mortgage at the end of the term, at an LTV that repays the bridge. That means rental income that passes the term lender's stress test, a property that will be mortgageable when the works are done, and a borrower who passes the term lender's checks on income and credit. A decision in principle from a term lender is the strongest evidence and some bridging lenders insist on it.
Where it fails: rent does not cover the stress test; the borrower cannot get the term mortgage on personal grounds; the six-month ownership rule pushes the refinance past the bridge term; HMO licensing is refused.
Exit 3: Sale of another property
What it needs: the other property on the market or under offer, with a solicitor instructed and a realistic date. Lenders will often take a charge on that property as additional security.
Where it fails: the other sale falls through with no fallback.
Exit 4: Development finance
For land bridges. The exit is a development facility that refinances the land and funds the build. Lenders want the development lender's indicative terms in hand at the start.
Exit 5: Other receipts
Inheritance, a business sale, an investment maturing, a pension lump sum. Acceptable where documented and dated. Vague expectations are not an exit.
Two exits are better than one
The best-structured bridges have a primary exit and a fallback: refinance, and if that fails, sale; sale, and if that fails, refinance at a lower LTV. Presenting both up front gets better terms and, more importantly, protects you if the market moves.
About the numbers on this page. Rates, fees and loan-to-values are typical market ranges for unregulated bridging in England, given so you can size a deal. They are not an offer. Your terms depend on the property, the exit, the lender and you.
Questions we get asked
Do I need a decision in principle before I apply for a bridge?
Not always, but for a refinance exit it is the single most persuasive document you can provide, and some lenders require it. We can arrange the term mortgage decision alongside the bridge.
What happens if my exit fails?
Talk to the lender early. Most will extend for a fee if there is a credible new plan. If not, the fallback is a sale, possibly at a discount, or a re-bridge with another lender. Neither is pleasant, which is why the exit is planned before the loan starts.
Can the exit be 'I'll sell it to another investor'?
Lenders will want to see what an investor would pay, which is usually less than the open-market value the loan was based on. It weakens the case. A retail sale or a refinance is stronger.
Tell us the deal.
A few numbers and a postcode is enough for a first view. Indicative terms cost nothing and commit you to nothing.