Land Bridging Loan
A land bridging loan is short-term finance secured on a site, used to complete a land purchase quickly — at auction, on an option deadline, or ahead of a development facility being ready — and repaid on sale, on grant of planning, or by refinancing into development finance. Leverage depends entirely on the planning status: detailed consent typically supports 60–65% of value, outline consent around 55%, and bare land with no consent 45–50%, because an unconsented site is illiquid and hard to value. Rates start around 0.85% per month with interest rolled, terms run 6 to 24 months, and completion in two to four weeks is normal.
Criteria and pricing
What lenders on our panel will typically do on this product today.
- LTV — detailed planning
- Up to 60–65%
- LTV — outline planning
- Around 55%
- LTV — no planning
- 45–50%
- Rate
- From ~0.85% pcm with consent; 1.0–1.5% pcm without
- Term
- 6–24 months
- Arrangement fee
- 1.5–2%
- Interest treatment
- Rolled or retained — land generates no income to service from
- Exit
- Development finance, sale of the site, or sale with consent
- Speed
- 2–4 weeks; 10 days achievable on clean title
Worked example — consented site purchased ahead of a development facility
- Purchase price with detailed consent
- £850,000
- Facility at 60% LTV
- £510,000
- Borrower equity
- £340,000 plus costs
- Rate at 0.89% pcm, rolled, 9 months
- ≈ £42,000 interest
- Arrangement fee at 1.75%
- £8,925
- Redemption from development facility
- ≈ £561,000
- Land value used in the development appraisal
- £850,000
Figures are typical UK market ranges as at 2026 and are indicative only — your terms depend on the asset, the exit and the lender we place the case with.
Who this works for — and who it does not
You are likely to qualify if
- Clean title with confirmed legal access and services, or a clear plan and budget to secure them
- A defined exit — a development facility agreed in principle, an offer to purchase, or a consent expected on a known timetable
- Equity of 35–55% depending on planning status
- Environmental position understood: contamination, mining or flood risk all change the valuation
- Company or SPV borrower for most cases; individuals accepted
This is the wrong product if
- Buyers with no exit beyond an intention to sell at some point at an unproven price
- Sites with unresolved ransom strips or no legal access, which most lenders will decline outright
- Agricultural land bought at development prices with no planning route
- Anyone needing 80% of the purchase price — that leverage does not exist on land at any price
What actually happens, and when
- Day 0–1
Site and title review
Planning status, access, overage and any conditions are checked before terms, because these are what change the advance later.
- Day 2–4
Terms and valuation
Valuation instructed. Land valuations take longer than residential and are the usual cause of a slipped completion date — instruct on day one.
- Day 5–15
Legals
Searches, access rights, overage and any section 106 obligations reviewed by the lender's solicitor.
- Week 3–4
Completion
Funds drawn and the site purchased. If development finance is the exit, that application should already be underway.