There is always a lot to write about when it comes to upheavals in the bridging industry – sometimes internal and often external.
The latter can be political to a large or small extent, or economic, as well as factors closer to home such as market sentiment and willingness to borrow.
This industry is in a strange place, and it seems that there are more negative aspects to focus on than positive ones. Some lenders who have left for less favorable reasons have left the rest in red when they explain that they operate in the bridging market, because of the stigma caused by the many.
When was it last updated for this 12 month period, if ever?
With that in mind, and the saying, ‘Don’t worry about things you can’t control’ stuck in my head, over the past few months I’ve been talking to other brokers and lenders – about the things we can’t control, the changes we can make to improve the industry, and what we can do to reverse the narrative and get better results for our clients.
It’s hard to shake
The discussions seem to circle back to the same points, and one of them is hard to shake: is the maximum period of 12 months for controlled bridges enough?
As with anything in finance and life, it’s healthy to review things, but when was this last updated, if ever? It seems to be one of those points that goes into the box of, ‘Well, it’s always been that way.’ With an industry that is constantly trying to fight and evolve, shouldn’t these boundaries change as well?
There have been many talks about the loan sharks muttering about this point, some even went to the Financial Conduct Authority to discuss it, but it seems that nothing has succeeded.
I’m not offering any magic solutions, but let’s talk about it
No doubt there will be people who read this old ‘chain break’ thinking and think that the 12 month term sets the conditions in stone. It is up to the advisor to educate the client about the options, the attorney to advise on the legal risks, and finally the client decides: is this something I want to do and am I sure I will pay off this loan within 12 months? And those thoughts will be right.
Usually, 12 months is perfectly sufficient, and everyone is on the same page there. A year of repayment with no early redemption fees, to encourage everyone to get out of the deal early.
The problem with extending the ‘options break’ beyond 12 months is that it can encourage clients to reject good offers for their property on the basis of, ‘I have X months left; there could be a better offer around the corner.’ While that may be the case, it may not be, and the client may be worse off, eating away at their equity with each passing month.
That said, we separate too many situations with ‘controlled bridges’ which are actually worlds apart but all under the same boundaries.
There seems to be an unregulated market, a regulated market and an expensive exemption market that sits in between
For example, in terms of prices, conditions and rate we distinguish low regulated development, regulated regulated maintenance and regulated conversion from vanilla ‘chain breaks’, however limited to the same duration. With a product and industry that claims to be attractive, solve a few problems, be fast and talk, why is the line drawn so hard?
I don’t offer any magic solutions, but I encourage people to have an open conversation.
It seems, at the moment, that there is an unregulated market, a regulated market and a very expensive exemption market that sits in between. At a time when firms have compliance, regulations and client outcomes more of a priority than ever before, isn’t this the elephant in the room that, if addressed, could improve client outcomes in certain situations?
With an industry that is constantly trying to fight and evolve, shouldn’t these boundaries change as well?
Are we putting clients at a disadvantage by giving them a controlled period of 12 months – knowing they are strong and will have to redo their bridge – instead of offering a longer, controlled period for certain conditions?
I don’t have the answer, but I think it’s an interesting question to ask right now.
Sam O’Neill is sunior bridging consultant at Kis Finance
This article appeared in the June 2026 issue of Mortgage Strategy.
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