Investor appetite for fast and flexible finance is on the rise, with new figures demonstrating a rise in the volume of bridging loans secured in the past quarter.
According to data released by the Association of Short Term Lenders (ASTL), in the 12 months to the end of Q2 2017, the organisation’s bridging lender members wrote more than £3 billion worth of loans. It is the first time in the ASTL’s history that this annual milestone has been surpassed, topping the previous years’ figure of £2.8 billion for the year ending 31 June 2016.
In Q2 2017 alone, ASTL members wrote £875 million worth of loans, a rise of 5.8% when compared to the previous quarter and an increase of 10.6% year-on-year. Most significantly, the value of applications put in across the three-month period was 39.6% higher than the same quarter a year ago.
Meanwhile, as investors have demonstrated their appetite for bridging loans, MFS’ own research has uncovered the property preferences of homebuyers across the UK. Providing vital insight for property investors and real estate developers into the types of homes people wish to buy, our study was featured in City AM this week – it reveals an overwhelming preference for traditional and refurbished homes over new-build developments.
You can read the full findings of our latest report – New-Build v Traditional Real-Estate: UK Homebuyers Decide – by clicking here.
Further to this research, MFS has also recently expanded its FlipFinance2017 initiative to help support property investors in need of bridging finance. Launched to industry acclaim and strong demand, the funding initiative as now been doubled to £40 million. Contextualised by a staggering 1.4 million empty homes that currently lie dormant, viable categories of property include those available at auction and probate, in need of refurbishment and/or restoration work, as well as vacant properties on the market.