Castle Trust Bank has completed a £4.6m light refurb bridge to fund the renovation of a large Multi-Unit Freehold Block (MUFB).

The bank was approached by Nicholas Christofi from Sirius Property Finance, to structure a loan for his client, secured on Saint Marys College, a 57-unit MUFB in Newcastle with a purchase price of £6.3m.

The client was a limited company with two directors – a UK national and an Israeli national, both of whom were seasoned developers with five properties currently owned between them. They wanted a loan of £4.6m to purchase the property and carry out the works, with the intention of achieving a GDV of £9.3m.

There was an additional complication due to court proceedings regarding a utilities bill, but Castle Trust Bank was able to work together with Sirius and the client to quickly process the case once clearance had been obtained by the court, and deliver the funds required.

Anna Lewis, commercial director at Castle Trust Bank, said: “This was a large and complex bridging case, and I would like to thank Gary Maher and the team supporting him for their hard work and determination to get it over the line. Saint Marys College is a wonderful building in need of renovation. The clients had a vision to make this happen and, with the help of our light refurb bridge, they also had the funding.

“It’s an excellent example of how versatile our light refurb range can be, with loans available up to 80% LTV and fees and interest able to be added to the loan above the maximum net LTVs.”

Christofi added: “When our client first approached us there were no existing offerings in the lending market that suited their requirements. This is where, at Sirius, we come into our own as we knew exactly the correct people to approach to structure a bespoke solution that worked for all and remained active in co-ordinating all parties to a seamless completion.

“I’d like to thank the team at Castle Trust Bank for their tireless work on this complex case. Many lenders promote themselves as specialist, however Castle Trust Bank continue to prove they truly are, time after time, case after case.”