£160K Drawdown Bridging Loan to Facilitate Property Purchase in France

The clients required short-term funding to complete a property purchase in France, with a strict completion deadline of one month. While the total funding requirement was £160,000, only £100,000 was needed initially, with two further staged payments due several months later.

Clifton Private Finance structured a flexible bridging loan secured against the clients’ UK property, allowing them to complete the overseas purchase on time while only paying interest on funds as and when they were required.

The Challenge

The key challenge was timing.

The French purchase needed to complete within a month, with additional pressure caused by currency conversion delays that reduced the margin for error. Any delay would have resulted in the clients missing the opportunity altogether.

Structurally, the clients did not want to pay interest on funds they didn’t yet need, requiring a drawdown facility rather than a single advance. Compounding this, the clients were relocating abroad and did not have a solicitor in place, meaning the legal process needed to be as streamlined as possible.

The Solution

We identified a specialist bridging lender offering a highly competitive rate at 0.6%, an online valuation via AVM, and a flexible drawdown facility over a 12-month term.

This allowed the loan to be structured in three stages, ensuring interest was only charged on funds actually released:

• £100,000 initial drawdown
• £30,000 second drawdown
• £30,000 final drawdown

To simplify the process further and save time and cost, we placed the loan with a lender that offered joint legal representation, removing the need for the clients to instruct their own solicitor while preparing for their move overseas.

The Outcome

The loan completed within 30 days, enabling the clients to complete their French purchase within the required timeframe. The drawdown structure ensured they only paid interest on the capital they actually used, significantly improving cost efficiency.

Without specialist advice, the clients would have struggled to find a lender willing to accommodate both an overseas purchase and a staged release facility within such a tight deadline. Our targeted approach ensured the transaction completed smoothly and without unnecessary cost or delay.