Member Article

Roma Finance funds £750k property in 2 days

A savvy property developer snapped up an historic building in a Yorkshire seaside resort with fast funding and expert support from Roma Finance, the Manchester-based bridging lender.

The freehold property comprised six large luxury apartments in a tranquil setting close to the sea in a traditional holiday town. The finance was needed in order to acquire the building within a particularly restricted timescale insisted upon by the vendors, with exchange taking place late on Christmas Eve.

On a previous project, the borrower had been disappointed by another bridging lender’s somewhat ponderous responses; after being recommended to use Roma Finance by his solicitor, the matter moved forward extremely quickly.

Roma received the initial call from the London based borrower at 5pm one evening and immediately arranged a meeting for the following morning at 7am. Given the urgency of the transaction, the borrower paid Roma’s valuation and legal fees at that meeting and Roma immediately issued instructions to their valuers and solicitors.

The loan was over three months and completion of the agreement took place just two days later.

Following completion of the purchase, six new long leaseholds were created and the apartments placed on the market early in February and three have already been sold (STC).

The well-proportioned Georgian property in a picturesque setting was acquired from the mortgagees-in-possession and fortunately part of the work had already been done by the previous owner. At the time of purchase, five of the six apartments were tenanted and those tenants were given notice on exchange of contracts, so that vacant possession could be obtained shortly after completion.

Commenting on the case Roma Finance director Scott Marshall said: “This is a good example of a borrower spotting a brilliant property project and buying it quickly to maximise the opportunity. By doing this he gave the project a much higher yield and made the business plan work out very much in his favour. This is only the first of many projects we are likely to do with him. We had to pull out all the stops to get the case funded quickly, but with our expert team which included our valuers and solicitors, we were able to provide the funds needed within 48 hours.”

The borrower commented: “Roma Finance restored my faith in the bridging sector by acting quickly and in a very professional manner. I was particularly impressed that the Agreement in Principle was issued within an hour of them getting the basic information about the property and project.

“I was delighted at the way Roma took a genuine interest in the project and, furthermore, completely understood my plans and income projections for the building. The finance was completed in double quick time which ensured that I was able to comply with the vendor’s timetable. I would certainly not hesitate to use them again on my future projects.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ron Bell .