The Intermediary – May 2025 - Flipbook - Page 58
SPECIALIST FINANCE
Opinion
Innovation is more
important than ever
T
he rental market is at
a turning point. The
Renters’ Rights Bill
doesn’t just introduce
change. It accelerates
it. For landlords,
this moment is about more than
adapting to new legislation. It is
about rethinking how portfolios are
structured, managed and financed.
While the sector has evolved
through years of reform, these new
proposals are different. The shi
in tenancy standards, property
conditions and eviction rules
will fundamentally reshape how
landlords operate.
Understandably, many are taking
stock. What worked reliably five years
ago may no longer feel robust.
For brokers, this is a key moment
to step in. Clients need more than
funding. They need structure, clarity
and a lender that understands what is
changing and how to plan for it.
Looking at portfolios
Some landlords will stay the course.
Others will reshape their holdings,
adjust their asset mix or explore exits.
For those with multiple properties,
these choices can be difficult
to execute. Existing funding
arrangements oen act as a brake
on progress.
Early repayment charges (ERCs),
rigid affordability models and
inflexible product structures can
all make it harder to act. In a more
complex portfolio, where assets may
be at different stages of tenancy,
refurbishment or sale, those
constraints add up.
What should be a strategic
repositioning can quickly become a
tactical compromise.
A structured approach
This is exactly where Portfolio Edge
comes into play. It was created for
professional landlords who need a
more intelligent structure to manage
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The Intermediary | May 2025
change, without sacrificing liquidity
or control.
Rather than designing something
new from scratch, we combined two
products we already know work.
The result is a cross-collateralised
facility made up of a 2-year fixed-term
mortgage and a bridging loan.
The term loan covers assets the
landlord intends to retain. The
bridging facility supports properties
due for sale.
The structure aims to provide
certainty on what is being kept and
flexibility on what is being released.
There are no exit fees on the bridge,
so landlords can sell when the time
is right without losing value in the
process. Once those sales complete,
there is a clear path back to traditional
leverage with a more appropriate
debt profile.
Portfolio Edge allows landlords to
act with control and avoid rushed
timelines. It is not about speed. It
is about puing a plan in place that
supports longer-term outcomes.
One size never fits all
This structure is not designed for
every scenario. That is precisely the
point. It was built to support landlords
who are actively managing large,
diverse portfolios and need funding
that reflects that reality.
Where some properties are being
refurbished, others are mid-tenancy,
and decisions around retention
or sale are still being shaped. A
standard term loan may not provide
enough flexibility.
This is where brokers are
invaluable: identifying when a case
needs something more bespoke.
Working with lenders who can
adapt the structure to fit the strategy.
Staying close to the case right through
to completion.
It is rarely just about the rate.
The real value lies in building a
facility that supports the investor’s
overall goal.
ALEX UPTON
is managing director – specialist
mortgages and bridging finance
at Hampshire Trust Bank
Created in collaboration
Portfolio Edge was not built in
isolation. It was shaped through
detailed conversations with brokers
who understand the changing needs
of portfolio landlords. Their feedback,
drawn from real cases and real
constraints, guided every element of
the structure.
They told us about the challenges
they were facing – refinancing
issues, affordability mismatches,
unnecessary costs, inflexible exit
routes – and helped us design
something that removed those
barriers. The end result is a facility
that reflects what they asked for.
A structure that brings clarity,
not complexity.
Keeping pace
The Renters’ Rights Bill may have
accelerated the conversation, but
the trend has been building for some
time. Landlords are already moving
towards more professional, more
tenant-conscious and increasingly
sustainability-minded portfolios. HTB
has long supported that evolution.
This is not about reacting. It is
about anticipating what landlords will
need as their portfolios become more
sophisticated. That means building
products that support transitions, not
just transactions. It means backing
brokers who are helping their clients
think ahead and plan for the future,
not just solving the challenge in
front of them.
For us, this is about long-term
support, not one-off funding.
At a time when landlords need
structure and brokers need reliable
lending partners, this shows
what that support can look like
in practice. ●
