Hampshire Trust Bank completes £2.5m triple refinance for northern investor

Hampshire Trust Bank (HTB) has completed three specialist refinances worth around £2.5m in total, covering properties across Yorkshire and Greater Manchester.

All three facilities were for SPVs controlled by the same investor group and completed in quick succession. They are HTB's first deals with this borrower.

Three assets, three sets of challenges

The portfolio mixes buy-to-let and semi-commercial property. In Leeds, there is a freehold building split into three flats. In Hyde, a mixed-use block has a retail unit below 12 apartments. In Sheffield, there are eight flats above a commercial unit.

In total, 23 residential units and two commercial units moved onto term facilities based on current market value. The Leeds loan also released extra equity, which the investor plans to use for its next acquisitions.

None of the cases was standard. Between them, they involved a mix of freehold and leasehold tenure, part-sold blocks, several borrowing entities, and semi-commercial income weighted mainly towards residential rents. HTB underwrote each property on its own merits while also considering the group's overall structure and track record.

Beating the redemption deadlines

Timing was critical. All three loans completed before the borrower's existing redemption penalties applied, which avoided extra costs. On one facility, HTB released funds on the same day it received the final certificate of title.

The deals were introduced by Manchester-based debt adviser Roscap, which submitted each case fully packaged. Regional account director Wes Baker led the deals for HTB, with support from the bank's underwriting and completions teams.

Good specialist lending starts with understanding the asset, the structure and the customer properly.

Baker said the variety of property types, tenures and borrowing structures meant HTB could not use a one-size-fits-all approach. He said the bank's teams kept each case moving once the conditions had been met.

Suleman Rafiq, co-CEO of Roscap, described HTB as a genuine lending partner. He praised its willingness to work through complex structures and its responsiveness when deadlines were tight.