Commercial Bridging Finance for a Specialist Industrial Property

The business needed short-term commercial finance because an unexpected opportunity arose to purchase the specialist premises it already occupied, with limited time to arrange a long-term commercial mortgage. The facility provided a way to proceed with the acquisition quickly while allowing time to arrange an appropriate longer-term refinancing solution.

The borrower is an established UK distribution business that had occupied the property as a tenant. Acquiring the premises was important for the continuity of its operations and would bring an operationally important asset under the control of the wider group, rather than leaving the business dependent on a third-party landlord.

The transaction involved a specialist industrial property comprising a warehouse and temperature-controlled storage facilities, together with multiple property titles and a new holding-company structure. The lender therefore needed to be comfortable with the nature of the asset, the proposed ownership structure and the leaseback arrangement.

The transaction was to be completed through a newly established property holding company, with the premises subsequently leased back to the existing trading business.

Enness identified a lender comfortable with the specialist nature of the property, the multiple titles and the proposed structure.

The acquisition was financed with circa £1.5 million of short-term commercial property finance over a 12-month term. This enabled the new holding company to complete the purchase within the required timeframe rather than risk losing the opportunity while waiting for longer-term commercial mortgage finance to be arranged.

Bringing the premises into the same group as the trading business gave it greater control over an important operational asset, rather than relying on a third-party landlord. The group has taken on the costs and obligations of secured borrowing in its place.

Short-term property finance continues to be used where speed and flexibility are required, although market activity has slowed. Quarterly data from the Bridging & Development Lenders Association (BDLA), published in September 2026, shows that member lenders completed £1.6 billion of bridging loans in Q2 2026, a 15.2% fall on the previous quarter.

Speed was central to the transaction. The client had an unexpected opportunity to acquire a property they already occupied, making the immediate priority to put short-term funding in place quickly. Bridging finance provided the flexibility to complete the purchase while allowing time to structure an appropriate long-term commercial mortgage.

The next stage is to explore refinancing the short-term facility onto an appropriate long-term commercial mortgage. The business's wider financing requirements can also be considered, including whether funding through the government-backed Growth Guarantee Scheme may be available to support its future growth plans, subject to eligibility and lender criteria.

Any refinancing or additional funding will remain subject to status, eligibility, lender criteria, valuation and the borrower's circumstances at the time.

Enness Global arranges commercial bridging finance, commercial mortgages and wider business finance for companies and property investors. Any facility is subject to status, eligibility, lender criteria and valuation, and the right option will depend on the individual circumstances of the business.