Bridge Loan Financing for Nationwide Real Estate

Nationwide Residential Bridge Loan Brokers

Wave Private Money is a direct bridge loan broker based in San Diego with more than 20 years of experience providing real estate investors and homeowners with commercial and residential consumer bridge loans. Offering fast approvals, funding, competitive rates, and reliable service for direct bridge loan financing, Wave Private Money has become one of the nation's top hard money residential bridge loan brokers.

In many situations, bridge financing can be the best option to quickly borrow against the existing equity in a piece of real estate. A hard money bridge loan can be funded for an investment property within days. An owner-occupied residential bridge loan will take approximately 2-2.5 weeks due to current federal regulations that all lenders must comply with. Private bridge loans from hard money lenders can be approved and funded faster than any other source of bridge loan financing. Wave Private Money also brokers commercial bridge loans.

Hard Money Bridge Loans & Financing  

What is a Bridge Loan?

In its most basic form, a real estate bridge loan is short-term financing provided to a borrower to allow them to purchase a property before their currently owned property is sold. Bridge loans are short-term loans for real estate transactions which generally require quick funding.

A property owner uses a short-term bridge loan to borrow against the equity in their existing property to finance the purchase of a new property. As soon as the new property is acquired, the previous property is sold in order to pay off the bridge loan. Bridge loans can also be utilized in reverse order by obtaining the loan against the new property being purchased and then paying off this loan when the previous property is sold.

Bridge loan financing typically has a term of less than 12 months. Wave Private Money is a nationwide bridge loan broker able to provide funding for hard money bridge loans on investment property within a matter of days. Owner occupied residential bridge loans take longer to fund (generally 2-3 weeks) due to current federal regulations that must be followed.  

Home Bridge Loans – Bridge Loans for Home Purchase 

Home bridge loans can be used in various ways depending on the needs of the borrower. The home bridge loan can be secured against the existing home to pull out equity in order to purchase the new property.

A bridge loan for home purchase is typically used when the borrower already has a sufficient down payment for the purchase of the new home. In this scenario, the home bridge loan is secured by the new home being purchased.

If needed, the borrower can obtain 2 home bridge loans, a bridge loan against their current home to pull out equity for a down payment and another bridge loan to fund the remaining balance on the purchase of the new home. Bridge loans for home purchases are the fast and easy way to secure a new home before selling an existing home.  

Various Types of Real Estate Bridge Loans

Various real estate bridge loans on multiple property types are available, from bridge loans for real estate investors purchasing new investments to residential bridge loans for homeowners moving to a new home. Wave Private Money has the expertise to offer many different types including bridge loans for residential real estate, business bridge loans, bridge loans for home purchase (owner occupied bridge loans), commercial bridge loans and bridge loans for investment property.

Real estate bridge loans are known by many other names including: bridging loan bridge financing bridge loan mortgage bridge mortgage gap financing caveat loan interim financing swing loan.

Multifamily Bridge Loans 

A multifamily bridge loan is a short-term financing tool that allows a borrower to quickly purchase or refinance a multi unit property. The short-term multifamily bridge loan gives the borrower time to make any needed repairs or improvements, lease any vacant units and then refinance with long-term financing. Multifamily bridge lenders typically specialize in short-term lending of 1-2 years and are able to fund quickly to help the borrower secure the property. Multifamily bridge loan rates are generally higher than what is available from long-term traditional lenders. Bridge financing for multifamily property is available for numerous property types including duplex, triplex, 4 plex (quadplex) and 5+ unit properties.

Residential Bridge Loans

A residential bridge loan is a popular way for real estate investors and property owners (homeowners) to borrow against their existing residential property in order to purchase a new property. Residential bridge loans for home purchase can also be used in the reverse order by securing the loan against the new property.

In many cases a property owner wishes to purchase a new owner occupied primary residence but doesn’t have the necessary liquid funds for a down payment. The property owner could sell their current residence and use the proceeds from the sale for the down payment (or all-cash offer), but they would then have to find temporary housing until the purchase of their new primary residence is complete. This logistical hassle of moving twice can be avoided with bridge loan financing from a residential bridge loan lender.

With a residential bridge loan, the property owner is able to pull equity from their existing property to raise a down payment or make a full cash offer for the purchase of a new home. Once the new property is acquired, the original property is sold in order to pay off the residential bridge loan. Residential bridge loan lenders are less concerned with the credit worthiness of the borrower. Hard money bridge loan lenders focus primarily on value of the property and the borrower’s equity within that property. This is because real estate bridge loans are secured by the equity in the borrower’s home so the lender puts less emphasis on income verification or credit issues when considering whether or not to approve the private bridge loan. This is beneficial for borrowers who may currently have less than ideal credit or issues on their record but have sufficient equity in their property.

Residential bridge loan lenders are able to provide funding very quickly as the source of the funds is fast and flexible private money as opposed to institutional lenders such as banks and credit unions.

Pros & Cons of Bridge Loans

Bridge loan mortgages can save time and money for real estate investors and homeowners in specific situations when funds are needed to purchase a new property before a currently owned property is sold. Ensure that the pros outweigh the cons prior to pursuing bridge loan financing.

Pros of a Bridge Loan

PRO – Quickly utilize equity within a property without selling

This primary benefit of a bridge loan is borrowing against the equity in an existing property to purchase a new property. Bridge loans for investment property can be funded within a few days if needed. Owner occupied residential bridge loan mortgages generally take 2-3 weeks due to current federal regulations. Hard money bridge loan lenders are able to provide much faster financing than banks that offer bridge loans.

PRO – Avoiding the inconvenience and cost of moving twice to purchase a new home

When a homeowner has sufficient equity in their primary residence but doesn’t have enough cash available for a down payment for the purchase of a new home, they may be forced to do the following:
1. Sell their current home
2. Move into temporary housing
3. Purchase the new home
4. Move into the new home

If the homeowner instead obtained a bridge loan for home purchase, this would allow them to only move a single time. Once they had purchased their new home they would move into it and then sell their existing residence to pay off the residential bridge loan.
 
PRO – Have an offer accepted without a contingency to sell existing home 

Many homebuyers submit offers with a contingency that the homebuyer’s current residence must first be sold. Homebuyers have this contingency when they need the net proceeds from the sale of their current home in order to purchase the new residence.

Sellers view an offer with this type of contingency as weak and are much less likely to accept it, especially in a hot real estate market. Instead of providing offers with contingencies, homebuyers with sufficient equity in their existing homes should consider bridge loans to purchase the home.

A buyer who first obtained a bridge loan mortgage against their current residence would have the necessary funds for a down payment (or possibly full amount of the purchase price in cash) and could present an offer without the contingency of first selling their existing property.

PRO – Bridge lenders provide loans to borrowers denied by banks and credit unions

Bridge lenders are primarily focused on the value of the borrower’s property and the existing equity as opposed to the borrower’s income and creditworthiness.

Banks generally deny a loan request due to poor credit or other problems on record such recent bankruptcies, short sales, loan modifications, foreclosures, mortgage lates, insufficient employment history or being self-employed.

Private money bridge loan lenders can still consider providing bridge loans to borrowers with the previously mentioned issues if the borrower has adequate equity in the property.

PRO – Bridge loans are available against property currently listed on the market

Traditional lenders will not provide a loan against a property that is currently listed for sale. These lenders do not want to go through the approval and underwriting process only to have the loan pay off within a few months. Short-term lending is not their thing.

Bridge loan lenders understand the importance of providing short-term financing and have no problem with funding a bridge loan mortgage against property that is currently on the market.

PRO – Bridge loans do not require “ability to repay” for qualification

For owner occupied loans, current federal regulations for qualifying are strict. Borrowers must prove they have sufficient income and provide financial information to the lender to ensure the borrower’s debt to income ratio (DTI) will stay be below a certain limit.

Borrowers for owner occupied property who cannot currently prove they have adequate income to qualify for the needed loan amount will not be able to receive financing from either a conventional or hard money lender. A bridge loan is an exception to these government regulations. The sale of the existing property serves as the repayment for the borrowed loan amount as opposed to income.

The bridge lender will still want to understand the borrower’s income and expenses to ensure the borrower is able to make the necessary payments on the loan.  

Cons of a Bridge Loan 

CON – Higher interest rates compared to conventional loans

Interest rates for bridge loans from hard money lenders will be higher compared to conventional bank loans. The higher interest rates are generally offset by the ease of obtaining the loan and the speed of funding.

CON – Higher transaction costs

The origination fees for bridge loans are often around 2 points. The borrower will also need to pay all of the standard real estate transaction fees such as escrow, title, recording and notary fees.

Bridge Loan Rates – Bridge Loan Terms

Bridge Loan Rates

Bridge loan rates from hard money lenders are higher than traditional loans from banks. Bridge loan rates will vary from lender to lender, but will generally be in the range of 8-12% interest for hard money bridge loans depending on various factors of the specific bridge loan scenario.

While the bridge loan rates from a hard money lender will be higher, the borrower will be able to receive funding within a week or two (compared to over a month from a traditional lender). The likelihood of the bridge loan being approved by a hard money lender is much higher as they do not have the same stringent lending requirements as banks.  

Bridge Loan Requirements

Overall there are very few hard money bridge loan requirements which makes the bridge loan application and funding process quick and easy.

Equity in a Property – A hard money lender who offers bridge loans is primarily concerned with the value of the real estate being used as collateral for the bridge loan and the amount of equity the borrower has in the property. Ensuring the borrower has sufficient equity in the property provides the bridge lender with security which allows the lender to provide quick financing to the borrower.

Financial Strength – The bridge loan borrower must demonstrate they have the financial strength necessary to make the monthly loan payments while the bridge loan is outstanding. The bridge lender may want to see some income documentation such as a tax return, W2, pay stubs, or bank statement, but a deep dive into a borrower’s finances is typically not required.  

Loan to Value Ratios (LTV) and Loan Amounts for Bridge Loans

Bridge loans from hard money lenders have lower loan to value ratios (LTV) than traditional mortgages obtained from banks. The bridge loan lender will generally allow for a loan to value ratio up to 70-75% for residential property. This is to ensure the borrower has enough equity in the property to protect the lender from a default.

Loan amounts available for a residential bridge loan can range from a relatively small amount of $20,000 to a jumbo bridge loan in the millions of dollars. The borrower may sell the property or arrange other long-term financing in order to pay off the bridge loan.

Bridge Loan Example

An example of a traditional bridge loan would be when a homeowner or investor currently owns a property and wishes to purchase a new property. The property owner doesn’t have sufficient funds for either a down payment or an all cash offer to purchase the new property. The property owner needs to secure the new property before selling the existing property.

If property owner has significant equity in their property they can use bridge loan financing to borrower against the equity in their property. The borrowed funds are then used to purchase the new property. Once the new property is purchased, they can move into it and then sell the original property which pays off the bridge loan. The bridge loan “bridges the gap” between the purchase of the new property and the sale of the existing property.

Property Types for Bridge Loans

Bridge loans are available for various types of property such as:
- Residential
- Owner occupied or investment
- Single-family, multi-family, apartment buildings
- Commercial
- Industrial