Private Money Loans
Asset-based financing secured by the property itself, built for investors who need to move faster than conventional underwriting allows.
Learn more about Private Money LoansLoan Services
Bridge Loans
Short-term financing that covers the gap between where a property is today and the permanent financing or sale that pays the loan off.
How bridge loans work
A bridge loan solves a timing problem. The property, the borrower or the market is not yet in a position to support permanent financing, but the opportunity will not wait. The bridge funds the interim period and is repaid when the gap closes — when the building is leased, the sale completes, or the conventional loan funds.
The defining feature of bridge debt is that it is designed to be replaced. Terms are short, payments are often interest-only to preserve cash during the transition, and the structure is built around a specific, dated event that retires the loan.
Potential uses
When this financing fits
- Buying a new property before an existing one has sold, where the sale proceeds are the intended repayment.
- Acquiring a building with vacancy or below-market rents and holding it through lease-up until it supports permanent financing.
- Covering the period between a loan maturing and a replacement loan closing, so a maturity default is avoided.
- Funding a value-add plan — repositioning, re-tenanting or capital improvements — that conventional lenders will not finance until it is complete.
- Closing quickly on an opportunity while a slower, cheaper permanent loan is underwritten in parallel.
Before you borrow
Borrower considerations
A bridge is only as good as what it bridges to
The take-out — the loan or sale that repays the bridge — should be identified before you borrow, not discovered afterwards. If the take-out is a refinance, understand what that lender will require, and make sure the property will actually meet those requirements by the time the bridge matures.
Build slack into the timeline
Lease-up takes longer than projected, sales fall through, and permanent lenders move at their own pace. Size the term with room to spare, and know the cost of an extension before you need one.
Carry costs accumulate during the gap
A property in transition often produces little or no income while the loan accrues interest. Budget the full carrying cost — debt service, taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance — for the entire bridge period, and hold reserves to cover it.
Cross-collateralisation raises the stakes
Where a bridge is secured by both the property being bought and one already owned, a problem on one asset can reach the other. Understand exactly what collateral is pledged and how it is released.
Interest reserves are convenient, not free
Some bridge loans hold back part of the proceeds to make the payments. It eases cash flow, but it is your borrowed money being spent on your own interest, and it reduces what is available for the project.
The process
What happens, step by step
Define the gap
We start with the specific timing problem: what you need to do now, what event repays the loan, and when that event realistically happens.
Review both ends
We look at the property as it is today and at what the take-out lender or buyer will require, so the bridge is sized and timed to reach that point.
Assemble the file
Property information, current rent roll and operating statements where applicable, the business plan for the interim period, and evidence of the capital and reserves behind it.
Valuation and diligence
Independent valuation, title review and insurance confirmation, with a focus on the condition the property must reach by maturity.
Terms and closing
Written terms covering rate, fees, term, extension options and any interest reserve are issued for your review ahead of closing.
Execute and exit
We stay engaged through the term so the permanent financing or sale is in motion well before the bridge comes due.
Questions
Bridge Loans FAQs
How long does a bridge loan usually run?
Bridge loans are short-term instruments, sized to the event that repays them rather than to a standard schedule. The right term is the realistic time to complete your plan, plus a genuine margin for delay. Over-shortening the term to save on cost is a common and expensive mistake. We will size the term with you based on your specific timeline, and set out the extension terms in writing.
Can I get a bridge loan if the property is currently vacant?
Vacancy is one of the main reasons bridge financing exists, so it is not disqualifying in itself. What the lender will want to understand is the plan to fill the space — the leasing strategy, the market evidence behind the projected rents, and how debt service and operating costs are covered while the building is empty. A credible plan with reserves behind it matters more than current occupancy.
What is the difference between a bridge loan and a hard money loan?
There is considerable overlap, and the same loan can reasonably be described either way. The distinction is one of emphasis: 'hard money' describes how the loan is underwritten — on the asset — while 'bridge' describes what the loan is for — a defined timing gap. A bridge loan on a stabilised commercial building may be underwritten much more like conventional debt than a typical hard money loan would be.
Do I need the permanent loan approved before the bridge closes?
A formal approval is not usually required, but a clear and realistic path is. Know who the likely take-out lender is and what their requirements are, so the property is being steered toward those requirements during the bridge term rather than after it expires.
Can a bridge loan cover renovation costs as well as the purchase?
Many bridge structures include funds for capital work, typically released in stages against completed work rather than advanced up front. If your plan involves significant construction or a full repositioning, fix-and-flip or construction financing may be the better-suited structure — we will tell you which fits your project.
What if my take-out falls through?
Raise it with the lender as soon as you see it coming. Depending on how far the project has progressed, the options may include an extension, a different permanent lender, a price adjustment on a sale, or bringing in additional capital. All of those take time to arrange, which is precisely why early notice matters.
Next steps
Other financing that may fit
Many projects use more than one of these in sequence — a short-term loan to acquire and improve, then longer-term financing to hold.
Fix-and-Flip Financing
Purchase and renovation capital in a single facility, with construction funds released in stages as the work is completed.
Learn more about Fix-and-Flip FinancingRental Property Financing
Longer-term financing for income-producing residential property, underwritten primarily on what the asset earns.
Learn more about Rental Property FinancingCommercial Real Estate Loans
Financing for income-producing and owner-occupied commercial property, underwritten on the asset, its tenants and its cash flow.
Learn more about Commercial Real Estate LoansConstruction & Development Financing
Ground-up and major redevelopment financing, advanced in stages against verified construction progress.
Learn more about Construction & Development FinancingTalk to us about your deal
Tell us the property, the plan and the timeline. We will tell you honestly whether we can help and what the realistic next step is.