By Guy Murray, Head of Development Finance, West One Loans
Finding the right lender can sometimes be tricky and time consuming process. Mainstream banks don't often look at the whole picture, some finance development specialists offer a limited range of products, and the complex financial needs of borrowers might exclude them from competitive borrowing rates.
You need your funding partner to be flexible, able to understand complex financial situations and provide fast, reliable and efficient service.
West One have identified some key areas we believe you should consider when looking for a lender for your next development project.
Product range - Your lender should offer multiple products so they can find the best solution your project needs, rather than a one size fits all approach. They need to be able to understand complex financial circumstances and be able to adapt to changing situations that could be critical to the timely completion of a development project.
In-house expertise - Having in-house services like surveying and valuation teams can dramatically speed up the funding process. No waiting on third parties to free-up time on cluttered external supplier schedules. This helps give the lender speed and efficiency enabling them to secure funding faster.
Experience in construction - Your lender should have a good understanding of the challenges the construction industry faces and offer funding solutions that flexes with the lifecycle of the development project.
Swift drawdown process - This is vital as the last thing needed is a funding roadblock to prevent them from moving to the next phase of the project.
Certainty of finance - You need a lender that has the guarantee of funding resources when they require funds to be released. Your lender should have the means to provide the funds in need without delay.
Committed to developing long-term relationships - Business thrives on building and maintaining good relationships that stand the test of time. As the projects grow, knowing you can rely on your lender, who knows your business is vitally important. It makes the process easier, and faster and gives you peace of mind of knowing that the funding is in safe and reliable hands.
When sourcing materials, you look for fast delivery, quality of service, good customer service, and company reliability. These too are the attributes you should require from your next development funding partner.
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