--- title: "Residential Bridging Exit" description: "See how a client refinanced off a residential bridging loan and cleared a £500,000 balance in 10 days, 3 days before the term expired." url: "https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/residential-bridging-exit-10-days" site: "Mortgage Lane" collection: "case-studies" date: "2026-09-30" author: "Seren Norton" category: "Case study" reviewed: "2026-10-15" reading_time: "4 min" byline: "Seren Norton" author_credentials: "CeMAP · FCA authorised firm" language: "en-GB" robots: "index,follow" --- # Residential Bridging Exit See how a client refinanced off a residential bridging loan and cleared a £500,000 balance in 10 days, 3 days before the term expired. See how a client refinanced off a residential bridging loan and cleared a £500,000 balance in 10 days, 3 days before the term expired. ## Case study Speak to a Mortgage Lane adviser about your options. ## In short Mortgage Lane refinanced a client off a residential bridging loan and cleared a £500,000 balance in 10 days, 3 days before the bridging term expired. The application was submitted on the 18th, the offer was issued on the 21st and the case completed on the 28th, against a bridging facility due to expire at the end of the month. ## Residential bridging exit: £500,000 cleared in 10 days Our client came to us last-minute needing a refinance off an existing [residential bridging loan](https://mortgagelane.com/short-term-finance/bridging-loans), with the facility due to expire at the end of the month. With no time to lose, the case needed to move from application to completion inside a hard deadline. We took the application from submission to completion in 10 days, clearing the £500,000 existing balance just 3 days before the bridging term expired. ## Case overview *Case overview* | Detail | Summary | | --- | --- | | Property type | Residential | | Existing balance cleared | £500,000 | | Trigger | Bridging facility expiring at month-end | | Application submitted | 18th of the month | | Offer issued | 21st of the month | | Completion | 28th of the month | | Margin before term expiry | 3 days | ## The scenario Our client approached us needing to refinance off their existing residential bridging facility, which was due to expire at the end of the month. Letting a bridging term run out without an exit in place can mean reverting to a lender’s default rate or facing further charges, so the case needed to move at speed from the outset. ## The challenges 1. **A hard expiry deadline.** The bridging facility was due to run out at month-end, leaving a narrow window to secure and complete a refinance before the term lapsed. 2. **Late notice.** The client approached us last-minute, which meant the entire process (application, offer and completion) had to be compressed into the time remaining before expiry. 3. **No room for delay in underwriting.** With the deadline fixed, any slippage in valuation, underwriting, or legal work risked pushing completion past the point where the existing facility would lapse. ## The solution We moved quickly to place the case with a lender able to turn around a residential remortgage at pace, submitting the application on the 18th. The case reached formal offer within 3 days, on the 21st, keeping the timeline firmly on track for completion before the bridging term expired. From there, we kept the legal and underwriting process moving so nothing held up completion in the days that remained, the kind of coordination that [residential bridging finance](https://mortgagelane.com/short-term-finance/bridging-loans) exits often need when the clock is already running. ## The outcome Completion took place on the 28th, just 3 days before the client’s existing bridging facility would have expired. The £500,000 balance was cleared in full, with the client moved onto their new facility before any risk of reverting to the bridging lender’s default terms. ## Frequently asked questions **What happens if a bridging loan isn’t refinanced before the term ends?** Depending on the lender, letting a bridging term expire without an exit in place can mean reverting to a default rate, or facing additional fees and charges. Arranging the exit, whether a sale or a [residential bridging](https://mortgagelane.com/short-term-finance/bridging-loans) refinance, well before the expiry date avoids that risk. **How quickly can a residential remortgage complete when a bridging term is about to expire?** It depends on the lender and how much preparation work can be done upfront, but a case can move considerably faster than a standard remortgage when there’s a fixed deadline to work to. In this case, the process ran from application to completion in 10 days. > [!IMPORTANT] > Further reading > > Full lending criteria for bridging finance are on our [bridging loans](https://mortgagelane.com/short-term-finance/bridging-loans) page. ## Related case studies - [2026](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/residential-bridge-exit-london)Case study[Owner-Occupied Bridge](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/residential-bridge-exit-london)How we refinanced a London terrace house off a bridging loan, switching lenders when the redemption figure rose, and completing 5 days before expiry.[Read more about Owner-Occupied Bridge](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/residential-bridge-exit-london) - [2026](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/emergency-bridging-loan-auction)Case study[Emergency Bridging Loan](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/emergency-bridging-loan-auction)See how a client completed a £700,000 auction bridging loan on a former care home in just 6 days, using a desktop valuation.[Read more about Emergency Bridging Loan](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/emergency-bridging-loan-auction) - [2026](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/semi-commercial-bridging-loan)Case study[Semi-Commercial Bridging Loan](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/semi-commercial-bridging-loan)See how a client secured a £1.46m bridging loan on a semi-commercial block of 16 flats and a commercial unit, completing in just 4 working days.[Read more about Semi-Commercial Bridging Loan](https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/semi-commercial-bridging-loan) ## Coming up to the end of your bridging term? The earlier we can start on a refinance, the more options are usually available. Published: 2026-09-30 Last reviewed: 2026-10-15 Source: https://mortgagelane.com/case-studies/residential-bridging-exit-10-days