< p>Occasionally us brokers get a case presented to us which gets our taste buds dripping with excitement. High quality clients, 1/3rd of purchase price as a deposit, joint annual income of over £200,000, excellent property, excellent business plan and cash flow forecasts, what a case! I'll have one a week please!!

I got just that case last week. “Can we complete in a week?” they begged me, to which I replied, “aye lad we can, providing your legal bods are on the ball.”And so I explained the rudimentary principles of bridging finance, (I emphasised the costs), and they just told me to get it done asap or they’d lose the property.   It was also high time I got updated criteria from the bridging fraternity as well; with regards to who's out there, who's lending, and who to steer clear of – I like to be ahead of the game – so I sent this to about 24 lenders that I knew ought to do the case, not my normal approach but I was interested in current attitude and appetite...   The GOOD: Two lenders answered my email with good appetite and terms, they matched the LTV required, they used OMV not 90 day, 3 months interest would be retained, no exit fee, and decent rates.   My recommendation to my clients was the one that was the better of the two. They offered £210,000 on £300,000 OMV, no exit fee, a cracking monthly interest of just 1.25%, and – the icing on the cake – no lender legal fees, highly unusual. Furthermore, the lender took time out to run the case by a valuer before the actual valuation and before taking a valuation fee from my clients. The case is now progressing and I'll let you know next week how it goes...   About a further ten or so lenders looked at the case but the terms weren't as competitive, or they just didn't have an appetite for it, but they at least responded and gave me options.   The Bad: This category is awarded to lenders who just didn't answer. Lenders who thought they'd just ignore me, lenders who thought if they ignored me I'd get the picture. Cheers guys, you won't get the next opportunity.   The Ugly: One lender actually called me and said, “you live in a dream world, you should get back in the real world, stop wasting my time with time wasting clients.” I was intrigued with this deity so replied, “how's that?” eager to delve into his vast font of godlike knowledge. He went on to say that, seeing as the clients had managed to screw the purchase price down to £281,750, then that's all it's worth, a property is only worth what someone pays for it, he spouted in his best Etonian accent.   What a stupid, uneducated, narrow minded, tunnel visioned view I thought. So basically, everyone who purchases under value at auction, or even privately, are being ripped off? They're not really getting a bargain at all, the silly little people...   I think the moral here is; try many lenders, so to unearth that little diamond of a deal, I was surprised not only with what I got but also from where I got it from.     Agree with him? Yes? No? Well don't bottle it up! Have your say! Leave a comment... All comments will be checked before publication and your email address won't be published.   Contact Bob Havenhand: [email protected]