News
Cheval Property Finance plc has won The Business Moneyfacts’ Best Bridging Finance Provider of The Year Award 2008 at their awards ceremony held at The Brewery on Friday 29th February.
The accolade, decided on the basis of product data collated from across the industry, was presented to Mark Posniak, Cheval’s Director of Sales and Marketing, by television financial journalist Jasmine Birtles. This was the first time this award was up for grabs and is in recognition of the growing prominence of the bridging sector.
Mark Posniak said: “Winning this award is a real feather in our cap because, unlike other awards, it is solely based on hard product data assessed by professional researchers. We know that this win is a real measure of our success in designing products to meet the market’s needs and requirements, coupled with exceptional service.”
Business Moneyfacts Editor Nikki Cann said: “All the winning institutions have offered consistently competitive, flexible and dynamic products over the past year. The awards are a fabulous opportunity to recognise and award continued commitment to banking and finance.”
Last updated: 04-Mar-2008
Cheval has launched a new bridging loan targeted at borrowers looking for an ultra-competitive interest rate.
Its “Three-Month Bridge” has an interest rate of 1.15% per month and a maximum term of three months. Unlike most other bridging loans, the product has absolutely no minimum term.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cheval, said: “There are a growing number of individuals looking to minimise the costs of bridging by having a lower interest rate and flexible term arrangements. Until now this has been very difficult for them to find. Our new product offers a market-leading rate and no minimum term, and is specifically targeting this area of the market.”
The “Three-Month Bridge” is intended to appeal to anyone with a requirement for short-term finance, but is expected to be in great demand from those involved in acquiring buy-to-let property at auction.
Landlords who purchase investment property at auction are often required to complete within 28 days, making conventional mortgage finance impractical. The new bridging loan allows the landlord to buy the property within the deadline and then provides up to three months for the bridging loan to be redeemed with a remortgage.
Mr Posniak added: “Property investors who want to buy quickly at auction can’t do so with a conventional mortgage. So they secure the property initially with a bridge and then redeem the bridge with a lower-cost remortgage a month or two later. What they require is a competitive interest rate on the bridge and no minimum term. This product will tick all the boxes as far as they are concerned.”
Interest on the Three-Month Bridge is charged on a daily basis. There is a 2% completion fee that is deducted from the loan advance. Maximum loan-to-value is 75% on non owner-occupied property and 70% on owner-occupied property. Loans from £30,000 to £1.5m are considered.
For more information please visit http://www.cheval.co.uk/ or telephone 0844 800 3208.
Note to Editors
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors recorded a sharp rise in homes sold at auction to 5,120 in the second quarter of 2007, a 22% jump compared with the first quarter. RICS believes repossessions could rise to 45,000 next year when the full impact of interest rate rises in 2007 have filtered through to higher mortgage costs.
Last updated: 15-Oct-2007
Nearly all brokers using Cheval find the application process for bridging loans to be straightforward and quick, according to a new survey.
Its poll of financial intermediaries across the UK found that 95% of the respondents considered the bridging application process ‘easy to follow’, with 96% receiving an offer ‘inside their expected timescale’.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cheval, said: “Our survey of brokers bears out what we have been saying for a long time: that the bridging process is easy to follow and that applications are turned around within very short timeframes.
The research reveals that broker satisfaction with bridging remains high. Some 89% of those questioned said they would recommend, or already have recommended Cheval to another broker. All reported that they found Cheval to be competitive on cost.
Cheval’s service delivery was rated as either good or excellent by 97% and, when asked to rate overall service from 1-5, with 5 being excellent, the average score attained was 4.1.
Traditional forms of application submission, such as fax and the post, are now only used by a minority of brokers. The poll found that 38% submitted their cases via the Internet and a further 13% used email, compared with only 18% who used the post and 30% who used facsimile.
Last updated: 22-Aug-2007
David Tropp has been appointed to the Structured Finance Team at Cheval.
Prior to joining Cheval, he worked for three-and-a-half years as a self-employed chartered surveyor, and for seven years in asset and property management.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cheval, said: “Structured and mezzanine finance are dynamic areas of growth for Cheval, and David is joining us at just the right time. We have some exciting plans to put in place over the coming months and David will be key to them.”
Last updated: 22-Aug-2007
A powerpoint presentation which describes how to register for our intermediary portal has been added to the "Downloads" section of our website. This presentation also describes how to use the portal to creat online DIPs, Application Forms and KFI documents.
To see the presentation please visit our downloads section at http://www.cheval.co.uk/downloads.php
Last updated: 01-Aug-2007
Cheval Bridging Finance is doubling the number of places available at its Bridging Academy in response to high levels of broker demand.
The lender is increasing the number of lectures being held at its Watford offices from one to two per month, enabling some 500 financial intermediaries to attend over the coming year.
Mark Posniak, Sales and Marketing Director at Cheval, said: “We have been inundated with telephone calls from brokers enquiring about places, so have upped the frequency of the classes to 24 per year. Our initiative has caught the imagination of brokers who are eager to know more about this form of finance".
Held in a dedicated lecture theatre, brokers come away from the experience with a better technical grasp of the key lending issues and a clear idea of how they can develop bridging.
Details of the Bridging Academy can be obtained by calling Michael Jones on 0844 800 3208 or emailing info@cheval.co.uk.
Last updated: 01-Aug-2007
Cheval has unveiled an AVM-based bridging product targeted at those who want rapid completion.
The AVM Bridge, launched in partnership with UKValuation, gives Cheval an “instant” valuation on property being used as security for bridging loans; instead of having to wait several days for a physical inspection. The AVM technology will allow Cheval to generate an accurate valuation as soon as the application is received at its Watford head office.
UKValuation’s property database can produce real-time valuations on individual properties as well as large portfolios. This will speed up Cheval’s loan assessment and provide ongoing risk evaluation.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cheval, said: “This product is designed to assist borrowers whose security is in major conurbations, and who have extremely tight and inflexible deadlines - for example, they may need a next-day completion. This new launch is tailor-made for them.”
Last updated: 23-Jul-2007
Cheval Bridging Finance is holding its interest rates at their present level, despite recent rises in the Bank of England’s Base Rate.
Unlike many other lenders, the bridger is not responding to the latest BBR upward move, which is the fifth since June 2006.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing, said: “We are holding our interest rates stable in the face of successive rises in the BBR. This means that Cheval Bridging Finance continues to represent value for money. In addition to the high level of service that our customers expect from us, they can also count on competitive interest rates.”
Last updated: 16-Jul-2007
Cheval Bridging Finance has appointed a new National Sales Manager and is set to recruit more Business Development Managers.
After a year as Cheval’s Southern Area BDM, Gareth Lewis has been promoted to National Sales Manager , He will head-up the salesforce and report to Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing.
In parallel with Gareth’s appointment, the Watford-based lender has announced that it will be taking on three new BDMs over the coming months.
Mark Posniak said: “Gareth’s appointment and the planned expansion of our BDM team demonstrates our commitment to intermediary business. Part of the expanded BDM team’s role will be to spread the educational message about bridging to brokers, many of whom still do not appreciate its full potential.”
The BDM’s will also offer and arrange places on Cheval’s Training Seminars on bridging finance which are held at its head office in Watford. The seminars help intermediaries understand bridging finance and boost their income from this sector.
Last updated: 18-Jun-2007
Gross mortgage lending in March saw a seasonal fall to £28.8bn in April, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).
This was 9% down on the March figure of £31.7bn, but still 18% up on the April 2006 figure of £24.4bn, and the highest April figure on record. The CML estimates that, if the figures were seasonally adjusted, they would show that lending has remained in a relatively narrow range in the first four months of the year, indicating a relatively stable picture.
Michael Coogan, director general of the CML, said: "Lending is still strong, but it does seem to be stabilising in 2007 following its major growth in 2006. With higher interest rates now beginning to have an impact, the modest slowing in activity that we have been expecting over the rest of the year looks set to materialise. Even so, we continue to expect lending in 2007 to be around 4-5% higher than in 2006."
Last updated: 21-May-2007
Last updated: 16-May-2007
We are pleased to announce that the Cheval NACFB Briding Report for 2007 has been published. A copy of this report can be found in the online portal on the downloads page.
Last updated: 14-May-2007
Cheval has completed what is believed to be the quickest £1m bridge in UK financial history.
The specialist lender turned around an application for a £980,000 loan in under seven hours.
An enquiry was received on the morning of Tuesday 17th April, and by mid afternoon funds had been transferred to solicitors, and the client had signed and returned all the documents.
The loan was drawn down at 6pm the same day.
The client used a substantial residential property in central London as security for the second-charge bridging loan, the monies of which were utilised to buy investment property in WC1.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cheval, said: “As bridgers we are used to turning loans around swiftly, but the typical application-to-completion timeframe is two to five days. This particular case needed to complete that day for the client to obtain a substantial discount from the seller of the property that he was buying. Thankfully, we have the expertise and the systems in place to perform a bridge in under seven hours.”
Mr Posniak said that the case illustrated why bridging was becoming so popular among property investors.
“Many of our clients take out bridging loans to buy the property swiftly and, once they have secured it, redeem the bridge with a remortgage one or two months later. That way they can transfer from the premium-priced bridge to a lower-cost financial vehicle. The cost of the bridge, at 1.75% per month, is often dwarfed by the discount they have won from the seller on the strength of a quick purchase.”
Press Contacts
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing, Cheval, tel: 01923 693 228
Liam O'Brien, Cormorant PR, tel: 020 7265 1489
Last updated: 23-Apr-2007
Standards of customer care within bridging have been flagged-up in a report from Datamonitor, which credits only one bridger, Cheval, as making concrete inroads in this area.
The report, entitled “UK Bridging Loans”, acknowledges that financial intermediaries have not always viewed the sector favourably, and that 75% of the market is currently unregulated, largely because transactions are usually of a commercial nature.
Datamonitor claims the market is ‘constrained’ because some brokers view it as having a reputation problem. It notes that Cheval has addressed the issue through the introduction of a customer Code of Conduct, which stipulates charging interest on a daily basis in the month of redemption (rather than on a monthly basis); minimum terms of no longer than one month; and no early redemption penalties other than the minimum term.
Despite inviting others to adopt the code as an industry-wide initiative, the report notes that no other bridger has put it in place or taken similar action.
The report states that Cheval are only one of two bridging finance companies, which are not charging early redemption penalties on bridging loans.
More generally, Datamonitor predicts that bridging will grow by 16% per year and be worth £5.6bn in 2010.
The market for short-term ‘bridging’ finance is currently worth £1.2b in balances outstanding and £2.5bn in gross advances, giving it a 0.9% share of the UK mortgage market. By 2010, it will account for 1.7% of total annual residential mortgage gross advances.
The report finds that specialist lenders will continue to dominate this growing market. At present 65% of new business is through specialist lenders, such as Cheval, while high street lenders only account for 35%.
Datamonitor does not see this changing, with many mainstream lenders still not operating in the sector and averse to the higher risk profile of bridging.
The lack of an industry-wide Code of Conduct has been commented on by the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers, which promotes professional standards within the commercial finance sector.
Adam Tyler, NACFB Associate Director, said: “Bridging is the last unregulated part of the commercial finance industry and it needs a Code of Conduct so that everyone within it can work with more confidence. We support Cheval’s Code of Conduct and would welcome one being more widely adopted by the industry.”
Last updated: 19-Apr-2007
Demand for bridging loans at Cheval Bridging Finance surged during March to levels not since seen since the run-up to M-Day.
Completed loans were up 27% on March 2006, bringing them in line with the record level experienced during October 2004, the month prior to the introduction of Mortgage Regulation. The January to March period was the busiest in the company’s 11-year history.
The high level of demand is being attributed to the rising popularity of bridging as a route to short-term finance for property purchase. Purchasers are increasingly using bridging to secure property acquisitions, either at auction or during a straightforward purchase, in order to obtain the best price.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cheval, said: “During the month prior to M-Day brokers submitted many cases ahead of regulation, which created unusually high demand. It is an indication of how popular bridging has become, that we exceeded that level of business last month.”
“Our figures reflect the fact that bridging is increasingly an important part of the lending chain and is a product achieving growing acceptance amongst brokers as a tool to solve short-term funding requirements .”
Online submission now accounts for 30% of all business at Cheval, with over 1,400 brokers now registered for electronic processing.
Press Contacts
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing, Cheval, tel: 020 8385 3920
Last updated: 09-Apr-2007
Last updated: 05-Apr-2007
We are pleased to annouce that our new and improved calculators are available behind our portal for easy access and downloading.
Please logon to our intermediary portal and go to the downloads page in order to use them. If you are not registered to use the portal - please register to allow access to these useful tools.
We hope you get great use out of these calculators.
Last updated: 04-Apr-2007
Gross mortgage lending had its highest February ever at £24.6bn according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).
Although lending was down by 7% on the £26.6bn recorded in January, it is up by 9% on the £22.5bn of lending in February last year.
Commenting on today's data, Michael Coogan, director general of the CML, said: "This is the highest February lending figure on record, and reflects the continuing strength of the market and the strong desire of many people to get a foot on the property ladder or move house. Recent speculation about whether or not interest rates will go up seems to have had little impact upon lending levels and we still expect gross lending to reach around £360 billion this year."
Last updated: 21-Mar-2007
Reckless lending by some bridging lenders is in danger of jeopardising their future and may lead to breaches of the Treating Customers Fairly principle, says Cheval Bridging Finance.
After analysing promotional literature, advertisements and press statements from a range of bridging lenders, Cheval has concluded that some are operating outside of the TCF Principle and responsible lending policy.
Cheval is especially concerned about lenders who adopt a ‘no-questions-asked’ stance to applications. Such lenders fail to ask borrowers basic questions including how or even whether borrowers can redeem their bridging loan at the end of the required term.
The result is that borrowers risk being tied indefinitely to a bridging loan, which should only ever be intended as a short-term vehicle.
Mark Posniak, Sales and Marketing Director of Cheval Bridging Finance, said: “It is very easy to lend money - anyone can do it - getting it back without making a loss is the difficult thing. How can you lend without asking any questions? There are too many bridgers who are doing exactly this. In my opinion, they are engaged in reckless lending which is completely at odds with the FSA’s principle of Treating Customers Fairly and also its concerns about “responsible lending.” You have to wonder about the long term viability of such lenders should there be a dip in the property market, or some other market disturbance.
An unregulated loan should never be an excuse to lend irresponsibly or trample over the TCF principle.”
“You can’t use the argument that, because most bridging is unregulated
[see Note to Editors], there is no problem. The fact that a loan is unregulated does not mean to say you should lend without checking, for instance that the borrower has a viable exit strategy and will be able to redeem the bridging loan.”
“Such practices may ultimately attract the attention of the Office of Fair Trading.”
Cheval believes that if in the future the scope of FSA regulation is broadened to capture more bridging loans then there will be a shake-out of imprudent lenders.
“Reckless lenders are doing real damage to the reputation of the sector and the sooner they are forced to adopt more professional standards, or close down, the better.”
Note to Editors
As with mainstream mortgages, only certain bridging loans are regulated. Commercial bridging, such as buy-to-let, escapes FSA regulation.
Press Contacts
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing, Cheval, tel: 01923 693256
Liam O'Brien, Cormorant PR, tel: 020 7265 1489
Last updated: 12-Mar-2007
Cheval Bridging Finance has moved to new purpose-designed offices that are set to act as a platform for the company’s next phase of growth.
This week the lender relocated from Stanmore in North London to the 6,000 sq ft fully customised base in Watford, which is more than three times the size of its existing offices.
Mark Posniak, Director of Sales and Marketing at Cheval, said: “Increasing broker interest is expanding our business and our need for larger office accommodation. Bridging is an important part of the lending chain and brokers now see it as a vital short-term tool in their financial toolkit.”
The centre features an education suite, which will be used to provide monthly workshops designed to explain how bridging can be used to meet short-term financial requirements, while also providing a lucrative income stream for intermediaries.
Mark added: “The education suite is intended to increase broker knowledge of what is still an unfamiliar sector for some of them. There must be thousands of landlords who would benefit from swift availability of bridging finance, but who do not because it is unfamiliar territory to their broker. We know from our research that many brokers do not appreciate that bridging is a great way to meet a client’s needs and create two income streams – the commission from the initial short-term bridging loan and then the commission from the second phase of finance, usually a mortgage.”
The relocation has been made possible by the recent recapitalisation of the company following its aquisition by Credit Investments Ltd. This has also allowed Cheval to unveil a new £10m lending limit and an ultra-flexible bridging approach.
Last updated: 23-Nov-2006
Cheval, the specialist bridging finance house, today unveils what it believes is the industry’s most flexible bridging loan criteria.
The new flexibility, which is set to fuel demand for Cheval’s bridging products, will mean that whilst loan-to-value remains a key part of assessing applications, it will be viewed in a broader context. Going forward, underwriters will focus on all aspects of the loan, especially the take out arrangements.
Criteria will be viewed as a guideline only and will not necessarily be an obstacle to an application going through.
Cheval Head of Credit, Benson Hersch, says: “Borrowers increasingly find themselves in situations where their requirements are just outside published criteria. Cheval believes in a holistic approach to assessing bridging loans and we encourage brokers to contact us to discuss their clients’ requirements. If there is a way to do a loan, then we will find it.”
This announcement follows Cheval recently increasing its maximum loan amount to £10m. It already has one of the industry’s most generous loan-to-values at 85%.
Last updated: 22-Sep-2006
Cheval, the specialist bridging finance lender, has been acquired by Credit Investments Limited. Credit Investments represents a partnership between Colin Halpern, the experienced entrepreneur, and Ellis Sher who spent seven years at Investec Bank developing and expanding the Bank’s private client structured finance capabilities.
Cheval, which has established itself as one of the leading bridging finance lenders since it opened for business in 1995, is enjoying a record year on the back of its high profile efforts to establish an industry trade body, based on its own code of conduct, its commitment to regulation and total business transparency.
Benson Hersch, Managing Director of Cheval, commenting on the acquisition, said, “This is great news for Cheval and its customers. We have reached a level where further growth needs additional capital to develop the business. We could have continued to grow organically, but with Credit Investments now behind us, we have the backing to build a commanding position in this important market segment.”
Ellis Sher, Director of Credit Investments, added, “We are delighted to be involved with a dynamic company like Cheval. We have been particularly impressed with its long term plans and the energy and expertise of its staff. We have ambitious plans for the business and the sector and believe that the combination of a capital infusion, our active involvement and Cheval’s outstanding management team will mean that Cheval can take its place as the premier brand in the bridging marketplace.”
Last updated: 14-Jun-2006
Cheval, the Stanmore based bridging finance lender, has unveiled its own Code of Practice in response to what it sees as an opportunity for the bridging finance industry to offer a completely transparent and straightforward service to their brokers and be seen to be treating their clients fairly.
The bridging finance industry has failed so far in trying to form an association and bring about a mutually agreed code of conduct.
Mark Posniak, Marketing Director at Cheval said
"In launching our own code of conduct, Cheval is hoping that it will provide a positive starting point for the bridging industry to get together and decide to adopt a similar code which will show conclusively that the bridging finance industry is serious about its standing. The benefits to both introducers and lenders will be immense. Brokers and their customers are used to transparent products in the mortgage market, particularly in this regulated environment. Bridging lenders should be making sure that their offerings are as clear in terms of charges and conditions as possible. At Cheval we have decided to practice what we preach and so brokers can really see all the costs before their clients sign."
Bridging Finance Code of Practice
Cheval believes that a Code of Practice for short term lenders should be introduced, and proposes the adoption of the following standards :-
Interest
- Interest to be charged on a daily basis
- Where a minimum term applies, this should be for no longer than one month
- No early redemption penalties to apply beyond a one month minimum period. Bridging is a short-term arrangement, so it is clearly unfair to charge early redemption penalties
Fees
- All fees are to be clearly stated at the outset, to enable customers and brokers to make fair comparisons
- Fees charged and to be within reasonable bounds, and to be clearly advised to the borrower, in the spirit of treating customers fairly. This particularly applies to unregulated loans, where Key Facts Illustrations have not been produced
- A published scale of legal and valuation fees to be available at the outset
General
- There must be a clearly plausible exit route from the bridging loan from the outset. Bridging financiers should not lend to borrowers who have no prospect of being able to repay the loan within a maximum of one year
- Plain English to be used in all documentation, and complete transparency at all times
In addition, Cheval is making the following service pledge to brokers:-
- We will respond to new business enquiries (DIP forms) within 2 business hours
- We will complete, in normal circumstances, within 7 working days
- We will pay broker and packager commission within 24 hours of completion
- We will provide all brokers with the means to create online KFI's
- We are committed to treating our customers fairly
Last updated: 16-Nov-2005
Cheval, the Stanmore based bridging finance specialist lender has today announced its membership of the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).
Cheval, which has recently appointed Mark Posniak as Marketing Director to devise and drive new business strategy, is the latest lender to join the CML.
Mark Posniak said "We are delighted to have been accepted for membership of the CML. The bridging finance market has been seen until now as a peripheral part of the mortgage business. We are sure that our membership will not only help to strengthen the image of bridging finance among our brokers and their customers but its status in the broader mortgage market."
Bernard Clarke, spokesman for the CML said "We are very pleased to welcome Cheval as members. We already represent 98% of the industry and will continue to work vigorously on behalf of all members to create and maintain a favourable operating environment in the UK mortgage and housing markets."
Last updated: 04-Jul-2005
