Guy Harrington, CEO of specialist lender Glenhawk, believes the UK homeowner loan market has been one of the most resilient since the outbreak of Covid-19.
Reflecting this fact, the fast growing lender has enhanced its market leading product range by launching its first regulated bridging product.
With interest rates starting at just 0.55% per month, terms of up to 12 months, loans available from £100,000 to £1.5 million and with no administration or exit fees this represents a really strong debut in the regulated space.
Harrington states the launch is the culmination of 18 months of hard work having experienced an exponential growth in enquiries for a regulated product:
"It started with FCA regulation, and is a significant milestone for the business. The UK homeowner loan market has been one of the more resilient since the outbreak of Covid-19, underpinned by government stimulus and changing consumer trends.
It is also a sector that is hugely underserved and we are confident our market differentiating ethos of fairness and transparency will be particularly appealing. We expect strong demand due to the simplicity of the product, and with the support of our newest funder, J.P. Morgan, we look forward to rapidly scaling our regulated bridging book before launching other revolutionary products.”
Headed up by its director of lending, Nick Hilton, Glenhawk has formed a dedicated team focused on the new product. Hilton believes the timing is right to stir things up:
“The regulated bridging market is ripe for disruption and we believe we have the team in place to replicate the success we have enjoyed in the unregulated space, whilst remaining highly disciplined in our underwriting processes.”
Representing 55.6 per cent of the bridging market, up from 37.5 per cent in the same quarter in 2019, regulated bridge lending hit a record high in Q2. This is the first time it has outperformed unregulated transactions.
This upsurge has been driven by homeowners increasingly looking at development and refurbishment opportunities as the trend for working from home prompts them to look at best utilising their existing space. Added to this, the number of people who are looking at upsizing or downsizing has recovered to pre-Covid levels, underpinned by government stimulus such as the introduction of the stamp duty holiday in July.
Summing up Glenhawk’s philosophy Harrington concluded:
“We act with the principals of an institution but the agility of a start-up moving quickly and decisively on opportunities and always look for ways to help our partners do the same.
We have a senior-leadership team on hand, who are deeply experienced in the real estate and financial worlds and can offer a unique understanding of our clients’ challenges. Our dedicated underwriters will guide and support every loan from the initial enquiry through to the loan completion and with an efficient credit approval process in place our clients should never have to miss an opportunity.”