Bridge loan vs
development finance
The two products are often used interchangeably, but they are underwritten, priced and structured differently. A side-by-side guide to choosing the right tool.
Indicative parameters only. Rate, leverage and term are set by the chosen lender and confirmed on completion of underwriting.
How to tell which you need
If the work that drives the return is mostly physical and yet to happen, the transaction is in development finance territory. If the asset is broadly in its end state and the requirement is about timing, liquidity or capital structure, a bridge is usually the right tool.
The hardest cases sit in between, where a heavy refurbishment can be funded either way. That is exactly where framing matters most: the same project reaches a different lender pool, at different terms, depending on how it is presented. We help borrowers get that right before approaching the market.
For a longer treatment, read Bridge Loan or Development Finance? How to Tell Which You Need.
Bridge vs development,
answered.
A bridge loan is a short-term facility drawn in a single advance against an asset that already exists, while development finance funds construction or substantial works and is drawn in tranches as those works progress. The simplest test: if the value that drives the return is mostly physical and yet to happen, the transaction needs development finance; if the asset is broadly in its end state and the requirement is about timing, liquidity or capital structure, a bridge is usually the right tool. The two are underwritten, priced and structured differently.
Not sure which your deal needs?
Send a short brief. We will tell you candidly, and how we would take it to market.