Mercantile Trust has introduced Automated Valuation Models (AVMs) into its bridging loan process.

AVMs are now available on residential bridging up to £100,000 and a maximum loan to value (LTV) of 75%, subject to confidence score and criteria.

Unlike the majority of bridging lenders which allow the use of AVMs, they are available with Mercantile Trust in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The lender adds that the broker controls when the AVM is run so they know very early on in the process if a traditional valuation is needed.

The introduction of AVMs complements other enhancements Mercantile Trust unveiled during 2022, including in-house and free legals on refinance applications. For those who require rapid finance, these changes collectively make bridging even more attractive, as they enable cases to be processed more quickly than normal.

Maeve Ward, director of commercial operations at Mercantile Trust, said: “The introduction of AVMs is a further enhancement to our process and another step in our mission to improve the customer’s journey and reduce operating cost.

“We are committed to investing in technology and streamlining our existing processes to provide a platform that brokers can rely on to transact at speed. They can also be confident that they are partnering with a lender which offers flexibility and certainty of funding.”