The client required the funds to repay the facility used to acquire the building, as well as complete the refurbishment works necessary for the property — this will include upgrading the entire air conditioning and ventilation, electrical, lighting and fire prevention systems, as well as landscaping the garden area surrounding the offices to meet increasing tenant demand for green space and breakout areas.

With no pre-let secured for the vacant space, and the existing first-floor tenants having only a short-term occupational lease, UTB’s structured property finance team carried out extensive due diligence for this deal, including conducting research and analysis of the asset looking at current and future demand, existing vacancy rates and possible future supply competition and opportunities. 

Working together with the client’s adviser, Westrock Capital’s director Westley Richards, the bank was able to provide the £5.7m at 56% LTGDV, over a 24-month term.

The funding gives BYM sufficient time to complete the first stage of the refurbishment and decide on a suitable next step for the remaining works.

The GDV upon completion of the total renovation works is estimated to be in excess of £10m.

•   New brokerage Elan Property Finance enters market to provide 'friction-free finance'
•   UTB improves heavy refurbishment offering
•   UTB and The Buy to Let Broker complete £1.3m bridging loan

Gerard Morgan Jackson, head of structured property finance at UTB (pictured above), said: “At UTB, we work hard to provide solutions that meet borrowers’ needs and rise to the challenge of more unusual cases.

“We also enjoy working closely with advisers like Westley Richards, who assisted us with numerous requests during complex research and analysis, but which ultimately led to us being able to provide the refinance and refurbishment funding required. 

“BYM is an expert in its sector with a talent for seizing opportunities, and we look forward to working with Westley and the BYM team on future projects.”

Westley commented: “From the very start, UTB’s structured property finance team demonstrated a desire to lend and find a solution to meet our client’s needs.

“The bank worked quickly to understand the asset and took a pragmatic and commercial approach to the underwriting, taking into account BYM Capital’s demonstrable track record of success in the commercial sector.

“Its solution delivered what they promised, and I would welcome working with Gerard and the team again.”

In an exclusive interview in the July/August issue of the B&C Magazine, UTB's head of sales for bridging Owen Bentley, and head of bridging underwriting Nikki Brett, revealed how the bank intends to greatly enhance its unregulated bridging and heavy refurbishment offering — read the full article here.