Crystal Specialist Finance (CSF) secured a £3.6m bridge with Together in 10 working days to save a multi-property residential refurbishment project in Cheltenham.

The applicant’s relationship with the existing lender had fallen down and so the build could not continue as no further funds would be released. However, following valuation a deal was agreed which cleared the existing balance and secured two further payments of up to £550,000 to complete the work.

The exit strategy was via the sale of a cottage and barn for £9m; however, this represents only part of the site which has a gross development value of £12m.

“The situation that the developer found himself in is not uncommon, relationships with a lender can break down for a whole raft of reasons,” states Jo Breeden (pictured), managing director of CSF.

“Many times no-one is specifically to blame, but at the same time the project needs to be completed.

“What must be remembered is that a good development with an experienced builder will find support through other routes, and in this case we worked with Together to secure a £3.6m bridge that ticks all the right boxes for the applicant based on rate, duration and exit.”

Ritchie Watson, director of development finance at Together, added: “Bridging applications are all about speed, and thanks to a very well presented application from CSF, we had all the information we needed to make an immediate decision, applying our usual common-sense approach.

“We worked closely with the team at CSF to keep the development on track for its projected finish date and it’s a great example of how property developers can benefit from bridging finance when time is of the essence.”