Buying a vacant building
Commercial mortgage lenders want income. A vacant unit is bridged first, let second, and refinanced once there is a tenant.
Commercial short-term finance
Commercial bridging loans
Commercial bridging is short-term funding secured against commercial or mixed-use property, used when a purchase, refinance or repositioning cannot wait for a commercial mortgage. It is almost always unregulated, which gives lenders more flexibility on structure but means fewer consumer protections apply.
Whole case packaged for you
Fees disclosed upfront
Brokers, not a lender
Get an indicative quote
Step 2 of 8What’s the bridge for?
This tells us which lenders will look at it.
When it is used
Situations we see most often
Repositioning an asset
Converting offices to residential, splitting a large unit, or changing use to attract a different class of tenant.
Buying at speed
Portfolio purchases, receivership sales and lot purchases where the seller needs certainty and a short timetable.
Who it suits
- Investors buying commercial property with vacant possession
- Owner-occupiers who need to complete before a commercial mortgage can be arranged
- Developers acquiring buildings for conversion under permitted development rights
- Landlords restructuring a mixed-use portfolio
| Typical terms | Indicative range |
|---|---|
| Term | Typically 6 to 24 months |
| Maximum gross LTV | Usually lower than residential — often 65% to 70% |
| Property types | Retail, office, industrial, leisure and mixed-use |
| Valuation basis | Vacant possession value is often used where there is no tenant |
| Regulation | Normally unregulated |
| Exit | Commercial mortgage once let, or sale |
Indicative ranges based on typical specialist market terms. Your actual terms depend on the property, your circumstances and the lender the case is placed with.
How Amram handles it
What we actually do for you
We are brokers. We do not lend our own money — we package your case and place it with the lender most likely to fund it, then manage it to completion.
The conversation
We look at the building, its use class, whether it is let, and what it needs to become before a term lender will fund it.
Packaging
We package the tenancy schedule, lease details, planning position and the business case for the asset.
Lender sourcing
We approach lenders with genuine appetite for that asset class — commercial bridging appetite varies enormously by sector.
Valuation and legals
We coordinate a commercial valuation, which takes longer than a residential one and needs booking early.
Completion and exit
Completion, then the exit: a commercial mortgage once income is in place, or a sale once the repositioning is done.
What you’ll need
Have these ready and it moves faster
The single biggest cause of delay is a case assembled as it goes. We will ask for these at the start so the file is lender-ready before it is submitted.
- Details of the property, its use class and its current condition
- Tenancy schedule and copies of any leases in place
- Planning consents, including any permitted development prior approval
- Your business plan for the asset and the expected exit
- Company accounts and director details
- Evidence of the exit: term lender appetite, or comparable sales
Situations
Does one of these sound like you?
Illustrative situations rather than client case studies — the kinds of enquiry this market sees, and what usually works in each.
“I want to buy a commercial unit but it is empty and lenders want a tenant”
The building is vacant, so a commercial mortgage lender has nothing to underwrite.
What usually works“I am buying a shop with a flat above and nobody will lend”
A mixed-use building that residential lenders call commercial and commercial lenders call residential.
What usually works“I won at auction and my mortgage lender has pulled out”
The hammer fell, the deposit is paid, and the lender has just withdrawn on condition or valuation.
What usually worksQuestions
Frequently asked
Can I bridge a vacant commercial property?
Yes, and it is one of the most common uses. Commercial mortgage lenders generally want to see income, so a vacant building is bridged, let, and then refinanced once there is a tenant and a rent roll.
Is commercial bridging regulated?
Almost always no, because the security is not a residential property you live in. That gives more flexibility on structure and term, but it also means the consumer protections attached to regulated lending do not apply.
How is a commercial property valued for bridging?
Usually on vacant possession value where there is no tenant, and on an investment basis where there is. The gap between the two can be significant, which is why the loan to value on commercial bridging tends to be lower than on residential.
Can I convert commercial property to residential with a bridge?
Yes. Light conversions under permitted development are commonly bridged. Heavier schemes are usually better suited to a development facility, because the money needs to be drawn in stages against the build programme.
How long does a commercial valuation take?
Longer than residential — commercial valuers are a smaller pool and the reports are more involved. We instruct early, because the valuation is normally the critical path on a commercial case.
What sectors are hardest to fund?
Appetite shifts with the market, but specialist uses with limited alternative occupiers — leisure, petrol stations, care — usually attract fewer lenders and lower loan to value than standard retail, office or industrial.
Keep reading
Related pages and guides
Commercial mortgages
Owner-occupied and investment premises across the UK.
View pageConversions
Commercial to residential, HMOs and permitted development.
View pageBridging finance
Short-term funding secured on property, from 1 to 24 months.
View pageWhat Is a Bridging Loan and How Does It Work?
A plain-English explanation of bridging finance: what it is, how lenders price it, when it makes sense and what it costs in practice.
Read the guideBridging Loan Exit Strategies Explained
Sale, refinance or something else: how lenders underwrite your exit, what evidence they want, and what happens if the exit slips.
Read the guideBridging loan calculator
Work out the gross loan, LTV, interest and every fee before you speak to anyone.
Open the calculatorTalk the deal through
Free deal review by a specialist. We will tell you what is achievable, what it is likely to cost and what the lender will want to see.
Amram Finance Ltd is a credit broker, not a lender. We do not lend our own money and we do not approve or issue loan offers.
Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on a loan secured on it. Some forms of bridging finance and buy-to-let lending are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.