Case Study: £740,000 Care Home Refinance at 100% LTV
Some deals are difficult because of the deadline. Others are difficult because of the structure. This one was both. An experienced property investor needed to refinance a bridging loan secured against a care home, held in an OpCo/PropCo structure, at 100% of the lender’s valuation, and before the existing bridge expired. Each of those factors alone narrows the market. Together, they rule out all but a handful of specialist lenders.
We secured a £740,000 term loan against the lender’s £740,000 valuation, 100% loan-to-value, at a very competitive rate, and completed the refinance well before the existing bridge matured. Here is how a genuinely specialist case came together.
All figures are real, and we’ve kept the client anonymous. This is an example of the specialist bridging and refinance work we do for property investors across Manchester and the North West, including care homes and other trading assets that most lenders will not touch.
The Deal at a Glance
| Client | An experienced landlord and property investor (anonymous) |
| Challenge | Refinance a bridge on a care home, before expiry |
| Property | A care home, held in an OpCo/PropCo structure |
| Lender’s valuation | £740,000 |
| Amount secured | £740,000 term loan |
| Loan to value | 100% of the lender’s valuation |
| Rate | A very competitive term rate |
| Outcome | Bridge refinanced before expiry; exit secured |
The Client
Our client was an experienced landlord and property investor, looking to refinance an existing bridging loan secured against a care home. The care home was held in an OpCo/PropCo structure, meaning one company, the operating company, ran the care home business, while a separate company, the property company, held the underlying property. The client wanted to replace the short-term bridging facility with a longer-term term loan, and needed a quick completion to repay the existing bridge.
The Challenge
This was a specialist refinance, and several factors combined to sharply narrow the available lending market.
Care Home Security
Care home finance is a specialist area in its own right. Only a relatively small number of lenders will provide funding against care home assets, because the value is tied to the operation of the business, not just the building. That alone rules out most mainstream lenders.
The OpCo/PropCo Structure
The OpCo/PropCo structure added a further layer of complexity. The lender had to be comfortable with the relationship between the operating company and the property-owning company, and with the transaction’s overall structure. Not every lender that considers care homes is comfortable with this structure.
100% Loan to Value
The client required finance at 100% of the lender’s £740,000 valuation. Full loan-to-value lending is unusual on any commercial deal, let alone a specialist one, so this narrowed the field again.
A Bridge on the Clock
Finally, the existing bridging facility made timing critical. The client wanted to move off short-term bridging and onto a term facility, and the refinance had to complete quickly enough to repay the existing loan cleanly.
Why This Case Was So Specialist
- Care home security, which only a small number of lenders will fund.
- An OpCo/PropCo structure the lender had to be comfortable with.
- A 100% loan-to-value requirement against the lender’s valuation.
- An existing bridge on the clock, needing a timely, certain exit.
- Together, these ruled out all but a handful of specialist lenders.
Our Approach
With so many specialist factors in play, lender selection was everything. We undertook a detailed assessment of the client’s circumstances, the property and the proposed structure, covering:
- The client’s experience as a landlord and property investor.
- The existing bridging facility and the refinance requirement.
- The nature and operation of the care home.
- The OpCo/PropCo structure and how the two companies are related.
- The lender’s £740,000 valuation and the 100% loan-to-value position.
- The requirement for longer-term finance and a fast completion.
Given how few lenders can support care home finance within an OpCo/PropCo structure, identifying the right one was the difference between the deal happening and not happening. We found a lender whose criteria and appetite genuinely aligned with the transaction, and presented the application clearly, highlighting the client’s experience, the property, the operating structure and the proposed refinance.
We then actively managed the case through underwriting, valuation and due diligence to keep it moving to completion in time.
The Solution
We secured a £740,000 term loan against the lender’s £740,000 valuation, representing 100% loan-to-value, and, importantly, at a very competitive rate. That gave the client an attractive longer-term financing solution while meeting every one of the transaction’s challenging requirements.
The new term facility allowed the client to refinance the existing bridging loan and move away from short-term finance. The chosen lender accommodated the specialist nature of the deal, the care home security, and the OpCo/PropCo structure, despite how few lenders operate in this market. And critically, the refinance completed well before the existing bridge expired, giving the client a timely, certain exit, which is exactly what a sound bridging loan exit strategy is meant to deliver.
The Outcome
A genuinely complex, specialist refinance completed cleanly and on time. The client moved off short-term bridging onto a competitive long-term facility, against a care home asset, within an OpCo/PropCo structure, at full loan-to-value.
What We Achieved for the Client
- Secured £740,000 of term finance at 100% of the lender’s valuation.
- Achieved a very competitive long-term rate.
- Refinanced the existing bridging facility and moved off short-term finance.
- Secured funding against a care home, a specialist asset class.
- Accommodated the OpCo/PropCo structure with a lender comfortable with it.
- Completed well before the bridge expired, securing a timely exit.
An Expert View from Faisal Rashid
This is the kind of case that separates a broker with real specialist reach from one without. A care home, in an OpCo/PropCo structure, at full loan-to-value, refinancing a bridge against the clock- there are only a handful of lenders in the country who will even look at that combination.
Knowing exactly who they are, and how to present the case so they say yes, is what twenty-five years in this business gives you. The client had a genuinely difficult set of requirements. The answer was never a mainstream lender. It was the right specialist one, approached the right way.
Faisal Rashid, Founder of Westminster Finance. Former banker, MP and Mayor, with over 25 years in finance.
What This Case Shows for Care Home and Specialist Investors
If you are financing a care home or another specialist trading asset, especially within a corporate structure, a few lessons stand out from this deal.
- Specialist assets need specialist lenders. Care homes are valued on their operation, and only a small pool of lenders will fund them. A mainstream lender is usually the wrong first call.
- Structure matters as much as the asset. An OpCo/PropCo arrangement adds complexity that not every specialist lender will accept, so the case has to go to one that will.
- Full loan-to-value is possible in the right case. 100% of the lender’s valuation is unusual, but achievable where the case and the lender are well matched. It is never a given.
- Refinance a bridge before it matures. Moving off short-term finance onto a term facility ahead of the deadline gives you a certain exit, rather than a scramble at maturity.
Financing a Care Home or Specialist Asset?
If you are buying, refinancing or restructuring finance on a care home or another specialist trading asset, particularly within an OpCo/PropCo or similar structure, the lender you approach makes all the difference. We have the specialist reach and the structuring experience to place complex cases that most brokers cannot, across Manchester and the North West. Speak to our team, and we will tell you honestly what is achievable.
