Loans Information

What is a Bridging Loan?


A bridging loan as the name implies is a loan used to "bridge" the financial gap between monies required for your new property completion prior to your existing property having been sold.

A bridging loan is in simple terms a short-term mortgage that is secured against the property that you are selling, with the money that is lent being used to complete the purchase of the new property. Because of the nature of their use, bridging loans can be arranged in a very short period of time, usually around seven to ten days, which is important when you need to complete on the purchase or risk loosing the property.

Bridging loans are short term loans arranged when you need to purchase a house but are unable to arrange the mortgage for some reason, such as there is a delay in selling your existing property. Timing is of the essence when selling one property and buying another. Sometimes if you are looking for a new home and the right property becomes available, it is not always possible to wait until your current home is sold.

The beauty of bridging loans is that a bridging loan can be used to cover the financial gap when buying one property before the existing one is sold. For example, if you are in a chain, where you are buying a property at the same time as selling a property, it's possible that you'll be put in the situation where you need to complete your purchase, but the funds from your buyer are not available. You are now under pressure to complete on a particular date but do not have the funds available. This is where bridging loans come in. They are looked on as short term lending to cover a specific short term need.

Bridging loans can be arranged for any sum between £25000 to a few million pounds and can be borrowed for periods from a week to up to six months. Because of the nature of bridging loans they can usually be arranged at short notice and within a few days. Bridging loans are widely available and can usually be arranged by your existing mortgage provider.

A bridging loan is similar to a mortgage where the amount borrowed is secured on your home but the advantage of a mortgage is that it attracts a much lower interest rate. While bridging loans are convenient the interest rates can be very high. When considering a bridging loan please remember that you may be paying not only for the bridging loan but also for the mortgage on your existing property. Although bridging loans are convenient, you need to consider the pitfalls too, like the high interest rates.

The downside to the fast nature of these types of loan is that the interest rates charged on them are relatively high, this is because not only are they short-term and for large amounts, but the risks to the lenders of non-payment are higher than for other circumstances and this is taken into account when the loan rates are calculated. Although the rates are high when compared to other loans available on the market, when you take into account the short amount of time over which this interest is charged, and the benefits that a bridging loan can bring, the costs are reasonable.

Bridging loans are designed to provide you with the equity from your current home in order to make your new purchase, before you are able to sell your own property. The loan is secured against the home that you are selling in the form of a mortgage or second mortgage, and will allow you in general to release around 65% of the property's value. With these funds you are then in a position to complete the purchase of the new property, and once your old property sells you can clear the bridging loan. If you are considering such a loan, you should be confident of a sale, and that you will be able to clear the debt within six months, as the high interest rates are something that you do not want to be paying long-term.

Bridging loans are available to the people that have found it more difficult to get mortgages, such as those with an adverse credit rating. This enables these people to build a track record before applying for the traditional mortgage. Bridging loans can take from 48 hours at the shortest to around ten days if the circumstances are more complex.

Despite the costs, bridging loans are very popular, after all if you have spent a lot of time searching for the perfect property you will not want to miss out on it because of a relatively short delay in the sale of your current property. It is in these cases where bridging loans can prove invaluable, enabling you to secure the sale of the home that you want, and concentrate on the sale of your property at a later date.

Bridging loans can be provided for:

Residential property

Commercial property

Land

New build

Renovations or refurbishment

Speculative properties

Conversions

Overseas property

You may freely reprint this article provided the author's biography remains intact:

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help UK homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.


MORE RESOURCES:

ABC News

Fed prohibits subprime 'liar's loans'
Seattle Post Intelligencer - Jul 18, 2008
From 2003 until last year, stated-income loans were the big fad because they allowed borrowers to exaggerate their incomes without having to provide tax ...
Fed loan rules fall short of proper audience Daytona Beach News-Journal
Fed may update new mortgage rules: Kroszner Reuters
Fed's war against shady home loans CNNMoney.com
Telegraph.co.uk - Los Angeles Times
all 1,097 news articles


Enterprise Financial Reports Second Quarter Earnings, Continuing ...
FOXBusiness - Jul 17, 2008
Total portfolio loans at quarter end increased $349 million to $1.85 billion, a 23% increase over one year ago. Since December 31, 2007, loans increased ...
National Bankshares, Inc. Announces Higher Second Quarter Earnings MarketWatch
BB&T earnings slip on loan losses San Antonio Business Journal
FPB Financial Corp. Announces 2008 Second Quarter Earnings and ... FOXBusiness
FOXBusiness - MarketWatch
all 937 news articles


Voice of America

Feds too much in the house
Boston Herald, United States - 2 hours ago
They include Housing and Urban Development’s public-housing programs, the Federal Housing Administration’s insured low-interest mortgage loans, ...
EDITORIAL: Follow rescue with reform TMCnet
• On the Hook The Post-Standard - Syracuse.com
Rescue Plan Is Latest In a Series of Risks Wall Street Journal
FOXNews - Dispatch Online
all 117 news articles


Washington Post

SBA Opens Additional Disaster Outreach Centers
MarketWatch - Jul 18, 2008
"Loans up to $200000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate. Homeowners and renters are eligible for up to $40000 ...
Deadline to Apply for SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans Is August 18 Earthtimes (press release)
Number of SBA loans drop in third quarter White Mountain Independent
SBA: Iowa disaster loans top $100 million Gazette Online
Bizjournals.com - Trading Markets (press release)
all 292 news articles


KCBS

Countrywide Filing Shines Light on Loans
Wall Street Journal - Jul 17, 2008
The new data provide a close look at 158000 mortgages that had been slated for sale by Countrywide Homes Loans before last summer's credit crunch -- which ...
California expands lawsuit against Countrywide International Herald Tribune
California officials expand Countrywide lawsuit Los Angeles Times
California, Jerry Brown Goes After Countrywide InjuryBoard.com
Legal News Line - Insurance News Net (press release)
all 94 news articles


Mortgage market weathers storms
San Francisco Chronicle,  USA - 3 hours ago
"People are coming in and applying for loans and buying, and the loans are getting approved and funded." An index published by the Mortgage Bankers ...
Struggling, but Staying in a Home New York Times
If you're shopping for a mortgage these days, here's what you need ... MarketWatch
Inside Wall Street: That Ticking Sound You Hear Out in the ... Money Morning
Rocklin and Roseville Today - San Francisco Chronicle
all 16 news articles


S. Korea's Home Loans May Go Sour Fast
코리아타임즈, South Korea - 5 hours ago
"The default of home-backed loans will likely rise fast if a slowing economy shrinks household incomes down the road." South Korea's consumer prices soared ...


The Southern Ledger

Investment firms, banks step up Fed loans
The Associated Press - Jul 17, 2008
Investment firms didn't draw such loans in the prior week. Such borrowing rose as high as $38.1 billion in early April. The Fed opened its emergency program ...
Investment firms, banks step up Fed loans Ottawa Recorder
Keep the Fed Away From Investment Banks Wall Street Journal
Central bank to stem crisis The Times
Reuters - Wall Street Journal Blogs
all 119 news articles


40-year loans a life sentence
NEWS.com.au, Australia - Jul 18, 2008
By Craig Binnie CASH-strapped home buyers are being pushed into 40-year home loans that can end up costing them $200000 in extra interest but only cut their ...


Banks lean on staff to push loans
The Age, Australia - 16 hours ago
ACTU president Sharan Burrow said banks should be forced to provide more details about the commissions earned by loan sales staff so that customers had a ...
Banks 'pushing' families into debt The Australian
Mortgage sales pressure fuelling credit crisis: ACTU ABC Online
all 6 news articles

loans - Google News

Good Credit Loans | home | site map | School Bus Clothing | Florida Pool Heating
© 2006