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Newspage RawSource: Tony Sanchez, Bridging Loan Directory

What happens when a bridging loan exit is delayed?

ended 12. October 2026

Bridging Loan Directory asked brokers and lenders about recent cases where a property sale or planned mortgage refinance did not complete before a bridging loan’s repayment deadline.

Did the borrower agree an extension, take out another loan, or find another way to repay?

Please explain what caused the delay, the options considered and what happened. Where possible, include the original loan amount and term, how much extra time was needed, and the additional interest, fees or borrower funds involved.

Were there cases where accepting a lower sale price made more sense than extending or refinancing?

2 responses from the Newspage community

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Tony SanchezVerified
Founder at Bridging Loan Directory
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Buying more time on a bridging loan has a cost, but so does accepting a lower sale price. In Bridging Loan Directory’s reporting, we’ve seen delayed sales hold up developers’ next purchases, and refinancing eventually repay a bridge after a planned sale fell through.
“The question is whether the extra time leaves the borrower in a better position. That means looking at the additional interest and fees, how much equity remains and how realistic the revised exit is. An extension can resolve a timing problem, but it cannot guarantee a buyer or a mortgage offer
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Michelle LawsonVerified
Director at Lawson Financial
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Exit strategies for bridge redemptions have never been so prevalent. Flipping in the current stagnant property market is tough, remortgaging onto a term is harder now due to stress testing on much higher interest rates. Borrowers should ensure they have multiple exit strategies and not look at one solitary plan. On a recent case, the purchase was caught up in the planning process. My client's bridge term expired 1 day before the Planning Committee meeting which approved their conversion- a 12mth process. It resulted in approx. £10k of additional costs to extend the bridge, get a new valuation (which down-valued from the original purchase) and fees to the lender and legal work. He also then had an enhanced rate increased by .3% and then also had to service the debt. We are now putting this onto a term product with time restraints.