Remortgages For Property Development

We make finding a bespoke remortgage simple. Financing options are available for nearly all situations.

Building Project Remortgage interest rates from 4.89% fixed for at least two years and subsequent rates also low at this time and negotiable. From May 2024 – We have 6 new lenders for more specialised remortgage products.

Offers are limited, so please complete our short form with your details. As demand increases the lender’s criteria will start to get more strict.

There are many home improvement projects that qualify for a remortgage suitable for customers with residential mortgages. However, much of the broader market for property development loans is structured around business customers, including property developers, landlords, and investors.

Due to restrictions on residential borrowers, it can be a minefield to navigate the available options for funding development as a homeowner.

Residential remortgages are available, and there’s a vast choice with very flexible lending criteria that are perfectly suitable for large developments on your current property. Therefore, finance will not prevent you from upscaling your home, be that by installing a conservatory, loft conversion, or adding a single or even double-storey extension to the front, rear or side of your property.

Obtain planning permission or advice

When planning any developments on your property, you should contact the planning department at your local council to find out if you require planning permission before starting the project. In the case of double-storey extensions, you will almost certainly need planning permission.

Costings and Finance Options for Your Development Project

Heavy Refurbishment Finance

This type of mortgage is the most challenging type of funding to obtain for residential homeowners. There’s a lot more cost involved, and the lender will want evidence of experience from past development projects. It’s mostly suitable for developers and those with a commercial interest in the property, which makes it difficult for homeowners to tap into this line of funding.

It is still possible, provided there is sufficient evidence of projected costings backed up by a realistic schedule of works. The figures supplied as estimates will usually need verifying by a lender’s valuation expert to ensure the program of works can be completed and that all the tasks can be finalised within the proposed budget. Should you only be part-financing the project through a remortgage, the lender should be made aware of the total budget you have.

Before you’ll be considered for a remortgage on the basis that funds are released to fund a property development, lenders will require documented evidence of costings and a detailed plan, accompanied by a timescale for stages of the development being completed by, if that’s applicable, such as for a large extension which can require lenders to be updated on the development progress.

However, that isn’t always the case with specific developments, and it is determined by the type of loan you take out, which all have different terms and conditions attached to them.

The Costs That Should Be Factored Into Larger Development Projects On Your Property Include:

Trade Quotes From:

Electricians (Registered Electrical Contractor)
Joiners/Carpenters
Architects/Designers
Roofers
Plumbers
Gas Engineer (Gas Safe Registered)

If planning permission is required, the cost averages £200 per application, except for Northern Ireland, where it can be £285.

Valuation FEES:

All remortgages are based on your current property value, not prospective valuations after the development is completed. The majority of lenders will include a free valuation service; however, if you want to get an independent assessment completed prior, it will cost. The only time a future valuation may be considered is if you plan to sell the property, in which case, it’s more likely you’ll need to inquire about commercial development finance. Find the right type of funding to fund your development project.

Architect/Design Fees

This will apply to significant developments that involve structural changes. For example, an extension may be added, or a room may be made open plan. If anything you do within the boundaries of your property requires modifications to certain walls—in particular, load-bearing walls—you will need a specialist to ensure the project is completed safely while maintaining the structural integrity of your property.

Building Control Charges

Specific projects require a building control application. Subject to approval there may be additional building control inspections needed. These are handled by your local authority and are in addition to planning permission, depending on the work you have done.

Examples Of Development Projects That Can Be Subject To

The Building Regulations 2010 Include:

“replace fuse boxes and connected electrics
install a bathroom that will involve plumbing
change electrics near a bath or shower
put in a fixed air-conditioning system
replace windows and doors
replace roof coverings on pitched and flat roofs
install or replace a heating system
add extra radiators to a heating system.”

Source: https://www.gov.uk/building-regulations-approval

Contact our experienced remortgage consultants for free funding advice.

Why Should You Remortgage?

60% of Developers Could Save Money By Remortgaging To A Better Deal. How Much Could You Save?

Remortgaging interest rates from 1.16% are fixed for at least two years, and subsequent rates are also low and negotiable at this time. Please make an enquiry today without obligation.

Light refurbishment finance

Light renovation work is things like redecorating throughout your home, having your walls re-plastered or sometimes, a new kitchen or a modern bathroom.

For kitchens and bathrooms, those can be subject to Building Control Regulations if they require modifications to the plumbing or the central fuse box (electrics). If this is the case, it may be considered as a light to heavy refurbishment rather than a light refurb.

The primary concern with kitchens and bathrooms is that they must be in good working order for a home to be considered habitable. Once a kitchen is taken out, or there’s no functioning bathroom, the house will be classed as uninhabitable, which means it’s not able to obtain a mortgage.

That’s the risk to homeowners and lenders should things go wrong, and it’s partly why you need to disclose your intentions for the remortgage finance at the outset. We offer free bespoke advice from remortgage experts. Whole-of-market, custom finance options are available.

Types of Remortgages to consider

Remortgaging for property development purposes is an investment for the long term. As such, the most significant concern most homeowners have is the cost of financing the project because it is a large sum of money to borrow. It’s not as simple as comparing the best interest rates available and opting for that as your best choice. It likely won’t be, as you should consider the type of finance you put in place.

Offset mortgage

Offset mortgages link your savings to your mortgage. You won’t be earning interest on the savings, but you will be saving on the interest payments repayable over the term of the loan. It’s similar to having a guarantor, only less restrictive.

Naturally, an offset mortgage will only apply to those with savings.

For example, if you need to borrow £35,000 for a property development project, you wouldn’t need to borrow all of that. You could have savings of £10,000 and, therefore, lower your equity amount by that amount, which can be used to reduce your monthly repayments or repay the loan faster. It can be linked to one or more savings accounts, too, and it doesn’t have to be your own.

Some lenders allow mortgages to be offset by another family member. This is a handy option if you have parents with savings who are happy to link those savings to your mortgage. The savings can then be used to lower the total amount you borrow or let you access better deals with a lower LTV ratio, which in turn opens up better remortgage deals. The reason is that the lender provides less unsecured finance, so you’re able to get cheaper interest rates.

There are a couple of potential drawbacks:

1) If the savings are relied on for the income generated from the interest paid into the account, then it could be an issue as once it’s linked to a mortgage, it’s used to offset the interest payments, which means the savings will stop earning any interest.

2) If those savings are expected to grow with inflation because once they are linked to a mortgage, no interest will be paid, so the savings will lose their spending power. This is of more concern for longer-term finance, such as remortgaging to repay over a 20-year term.

Tracker mortgage

Trackers are great when interest rates are low. There’s no certainty over how long they’ll be low for though. There’s added uncertainty when you enter an agreement for a tracker rate as they can be as short as 2-year tracker deals, 3-5-year trackers, or track the base rate for the entire term of the loan.

Before entering into this type of agreement, always check the lock-in terms. It’s next to impossible to remortgage without being locked in for a fixed time, usually in the region of two years. As the rate you’re borrowing will vary as interest rates rise and fall, you won’t know for sure how much you’ll repay each month. Should the interest rates rise while you’re within the lock-in term of the loan, to a level you struggle to afford that you need to switch to a fixed rate, there will be early repayment charges payable for changing the type of product.

You’ll also need to know the rate that’s being tracked, as there are two primary base rates, the Bank of England (BoE) and the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (LIBOR). The Bank of England issued an emergency rate cut in August of 2016 following the Brexit Referendum, which put the rate at a historic low of just 0.25%. The only mortgage products to benefit from the lower interest rates are those either being renewed with a lender that uses the Banks Base Rate (BBR) or currently on a BoE tracker.

Eligibility for these types of loans depends on your risk level. BoE trackers are mostly applicable to safe borrowers, such as those with good credit scores.

As actual transactions influence the LIBOR rate by a large number of lenders, many of which include subprime lenders, the rates are often above the Bank of England base rate, although at times, that can be by a fractional percentage.

Find out if a tracker mortgage will save you money, and if so, what type and how much you can borrow for your development project.

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Drop lock mortgage

This is a combination of tracker and fixed rate. You’ll start out on the tracker rate, which is linked to the Banks Base Rate(BBR). That’s set by the Bank of England or will track the LIBOR rate.

Currently, the Bank of England rate is sitting at the lowest point it’s been for decades, so the only way it’s likely to go is up. The question nobody knows is how much it’ll move, and that’s the risk with tracker mortgages. There’s no telling by how much it’s going to vary.

For borrowers uncomfortable with uncertainty, lenders are now offering drop locks on their products. These locks mean you can move to a fixed rate at any time during your repayment period without incurring an early repayment fee.

For those who lock into longer-term arrangements, such as a five-year tracker rate, if the interest rates rose too much and you needed to switch to a fixed rate, you’d be charged the early settlement fee. With a drop lock product, you have the option to change to a fixed rate, based on the price at the time you trigger the fixed rate to begin, and there are no penalties for switching.

For those who want to benefit from the current low-interest rate but are nervous about future rate hikes, this is an option to consider. Not all lenders offer these, and comparison websites only list tracker mortgage rates without advertising which products have a drop lock available.

The only way to know all your options is to get advice from independent brokers who are Whole of Market, meaning they aren’t contracted to any lender and can access and advise on all types of mortgage options from every lender.

The same can apply to the Loan-to-Value ratios stated. For any other reason, it’ll be the advertised amount, but for consolidating your debts, the LTV can drop by 10%. That’s the only main difference in how your applications are assessed. You’ll still need to pass the affordability test and all other regulatory requirements for secured loans before your application can be approved.

Speak To An Expert To Get Your Free Remortgage Quote Today!

We could help reduce your monthly repayments by switching to a better remortgage deal

Mark Avery

Our Remortgage Expert

Jubilee Are Here To Help

Whatever Financial Situation You Find Yourself In We Have The Experience And The Expertise To Assist You In Finding The Right Property Development Remortgage Product. Get In Contact With Jubilee And We’ll Do Our Best To Make Sure The Outcome Always Works Out In Your Favour.

Other Remortgage Options:

Remortgages For Property Development Or Refurbishment