- Client: EU National and Resident
- Property: Prime London property valued at circa £3 million
- Loan: £500k bridging loan
Enness was approached by an EU national and tax resident who had inherited a substantial portfolio of wealth, with much of it held in illiquid assets. Among the assets was a prime property in London, which provided an opportunity to access liquidity without having to sell the underlying asset.
The client was preparing to undertake a new project and required £500k of capital to move forward. With the London property valued at approximately £3 million, the client wanted to use a proportion of the available equity to raise the required funds while retaining ownership of the property and their wider inherited assets.
The cross-border nature of the client’s circumstances added complexity to the transaction. The client was resident outside the UK, while the security was a London property, requiring a lender comfortable with the international nature of the application and the client’s wider financial position.
Enness identified a bridging finance solution secured against the London property. The £500k facility represented a relatively low level of borrowing against the property’s approximately £3 million value, allowing the client to access the required liquidity without having to liquidate the property or other inherited assets.
The borrowing amount was structured around the client’s immediate funding requirement, helping to limit the amount of debt required and the associated cost of borrowing. Enness also worked with the relevant professional parties to help progress the transaction efficiently given the cross-border elements involved.
The resulting facility provided the client with £500k of liquidity to launch their new project while allowing them to retain their London property and wider portfolio. This enabled the client to put capital to work without being required to sell assets that formed part of their longer-term wealth strategy.
This case demonstrates how property-backed finance can provide liquidity for international clients whose wealth is concentrated in valuable but illiquid assets. Where a client has substantial property equity but does not want to dispose of the underlying asset, specialist international bridging finance may provide an alternative route to accessing capital, subject to lender criteria and the client’s circumstances.
If you hold UK property and require short-term finance to unlock liquidity without immediately selling the underlying asset, speak to a mortgage specialist to discuss your requirements.
Important: Bridging finance is short-term borrowing and requires a credible and achievable repayment or exit strategy. Where repayment depends on a future sale, refinancing or another source of funds, delays, changes in property values or market conditions may affect the anticipated exit and the overall cost of borrowing. Cross-border transactions may also involve additional legal, tax and regulatory considerations.
Read the UK version of this case study.
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Property values can fall as well as rise, and you may not get back the amount originally invested. Property investments can be illiquid and may take time to sell. Where borrowing is used, your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on a mortgage or other loan secured against it.
