European property finance, for companies.
Bridging, development and investment facilities for corporate and SPV borrowers across Europe. The product does not work the way it does in the UK, the lender universe is narrower, and the minimum sizes are higher. Here is an honest account of how it actually operates and where we can help.
By Dominic Whitecross, Co-Founder, HyLend. Last reviewed July 2026.
What is actually different about Europe
You will read, on plenty of broker websites, that bridging finance does not exist in continental Europe. That is not true and it is worth correcting, because it leads borrowers to the wrong expectations. Ireland has an active domestic short term market, with Bank of Ireland re entering bridging in November 2025 alongside established specialists. The Netherlands has its own established bridging product. Germany has Zwischenfinanzierung.
What is true is narrower and more useful. Short term, non amortising, exit led property finance underwritten against gross development value is largely a UK construct. Continental banks overwhelmingly prefer amortising facilities assessed on the borrower's ability to service debt, not on a sale or refinance eighteen months out. Where UK style structures are available, they are supplied by a comparatively narrow group of international and private lenders rather than by the domestic banking market.
Three consequences follow, and they shape every European deal.
- Minimum sizes are much higher. Where a UK bridge starts around £100,000, European facilities from international lenders typically start in the low millions. This is a fixed cost problem, not an appetite problem: dual jurisdiction legal work and local security perfection do not scale down.
- Corporate structures are the norm. Most cross border lending into European property is done to companies and SPVs, not to individuals. That is partly commercial and partly regulatory, since lending to consumers engages licensing regimes in each jurisdiction.
- Fewer lenders compete for any given deal. Which affects pricing more reliably than any headline rate comparison does.
Why the picture is shifting
Two structural forces are opening space for non bank lenders in Europe. Basel III and IV capital rules began applying in continental Europe from January 2025, pushing banks away from higher risk property exposures. At the same time, significant volumes of commercial real estate debt written in cheaper conditions are maturing and needing refinancing. Non bank lenders already hold a materially larger share of commercial real estate lending in the UK than on the continent, and that gap is where the current opportunity sits.
Market by market
An honest read on where international lending appetite is deepest, and where it is not.
| Market | Short term lending | Practical notes |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | Thin domestically, served by international and private lenders | Domestic banks show limited bridging appetite. Corporate or SPV ownership usually required. Notarial deed and land registry registration. |
| Portugal | Similar to Spain, largely non domestic capital | Specialist development finance available at higher minimums. Active international developer base in Lisbon, Porto and the Algarve. |
| Ireland | Active and reviving | The most developed short term market outside the UK, with domestic specialists and a bank re entrant. Common law and familiar security concepts. |
| Netherlands | Functioning domestic market | Established bridging product, less institutionalised than the UK but genuinely available. |
| Germany | Bank led and amortising | Zwischenfinanzierung exists but is slower and structured differently. Notarial security. |
| France | Bank dominated | Limited appetite for anything other than capital and interest. Historically among the harder jurisdictions to lend into from outside. |
| Italy | Genuinely difficult | Enforcement through the courts can take many years, which is priced accordingly or declines the deal outright. We will tell you early if a deal is not placeable. |
| Poland | No domestic bridging product; bank led | Largest CEE economy with deep logistics and residential demand. PLN or EUR denomination; mortgage via the land and mortgage register. Conservative but placeable for well-structured corporate deals. |
| Switzerland | Bank dominated, conservative and CHF denominated | Schuldbrief security, cantonal variation, low LTVs. Lex Koller restricts foreign residential purchases; commercial property is exempt. |
General market observations as at July 2026, not legal or tax advice, and not a statement of any particular lender's criteria. Every jurisdiction requires local professional advice.
What is changing in 2027, and why it matters to you
This is the part almost nobody in the broker market is discussing, and it will affect which lenders can fund your European deal.
Under Article 21c of CRD VI, from 11 January 2027 EU member states must prohibit third country firms, including UK ones, from providing core banking services into the EU other than through a locally licensed branch or subsidiary. Core banking services include lending, commitments and guarantees.
What this does not affect. Credit intermediation and brokerage are not core banking services, and the rule applies to banks and large investment firms rather than to brokers. Arranging and introducing remains unaffected.
What it does affect. The supply side. UK banks and large institutional lenders will lose the ability to lend directly cross border into the EU without local presence, and several are already restructuring through Luxembourg and Irish vehicles in preparation. If you are planning a European facility that draws in 2027 or later, the relevant question is not what rate a lender quotes today but whether that lender will still be able to fund the deal when it completes.
It is a reasonable question to put to any adviser you speak to, including us.
How we work on European deals
We arrange and introduce. We are not a lender. Facilities are arranged with lenders licensed or permitted in the relevant jurisdiction, and local legal and tax advice is taken in that jurisdiction as a matter of course.
Corporate and SPV borrowers only, on non regulated purposes. We do not act for individuals buying residential property for their own occupation anywhere in Europe. That work is regulated in each jurisdiction and a local regulated broker is the right route for it.
We will tell you early if a deal is not placeable. Some jurisdictions, asset types and structures are genuinely difficult, and a broker who takes the enquiry anyway costs you professional fees before you find out. We would rather be useful than optimistic.
We do not claim an EU passport. HyLend Limited is a UK credit broker. We do not hold, and do not claim to hold, authorisation to conduct regulated credit intermediation in EU member states.
What to send us
The jurisdiction and location, the asset and its current status, the borrowing entity and where it is incorporated, the amount and term you need, and the exit. If there is a local lender or bank already involved, tell us that too.
We will come back on whether it is placeable, roughly where pricing sits, and what the structure would need to look like: start a conversation →
Cross-border finance, market by market.
An honest, corporate-and-SPV read on how property finance actually works in each market, and where we can help.
Investing into the UK from abroad instead? See our international investors guides for the Middle East, North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe.
Spain
Notarial deed, corporate ownership; international & private lenders.
Portugal
International capital; active developer base in Lisbon, Porto, the Algarve.
Ireland
The most developed short-term market outside the UK; common law.
the Netherlands
An established domestic bridging product, genuinely available.
Germany
Bank-led and amortising; Zwischenfinanzierung, notarial security.
France
Bank-dominated, capital-and-interest; harder to lend into from outside.
Italy
Genuinely difficult; enforcement timelines priced directly.
Poland
Largest CEE market; bank-led, PLN/EUR; no domestic bridging product.
Switzerland
Bank-dominated, CHF; commercial property exempt from Lex Koller.
Valuation is where cross border timetables and leverage are decided
Valuation practice is national rather than European, and the variations are material. Germany lends against Beleihungswert, a conservative statutory mortgage lending value that sits below market value and caps leverage. Spain requires a tasación from an approved firm. The Netherlands validates residential reports through a national institute. Poland requires a licensed valuer's operat szacunkowy. Switzerland leans on hedonic models for standard residential and discounted cash flow for investment stock.
What is consistent is the principle that decides your loan everywhere: the lender applies its percentage to whichever figure its own rules require, and that is frequently not the headline market value in the report. It is the same mechanism UK lenders use when they size against a 90 or 180 day figure.
On cross border commercial deals the valuation is usually the longest single item in the timetable, so it belongs in the programme from day one. The full valuations guide →
Cross border timelines are longer, and that is structural
Eight to sixteen weeks across most of the markets we work in. Three things add the time: valuation practice is national and often requires an approved local firm, notarial completion is a scheduled event rather than an exchange of documents, and corporate and source of funds due diligence on a cross border borrower is materially deeper than on a domestic one.
None of that is a reason to avoid the deal. It is a reason to start it earlier than you would in the UK. The honest bridging timeline →
European property finance FAQs
Can you get a bridging loan in Europe?
Yes, but the product works differently. Short term, non amortising, exit led property finance of the kind familiar in the UK is largely a UK construct. Continental European banks generally prefer amortising facilities and have limited appetite for short term exit driven lending, so the equivalent is supplied by a narrower group of international and private lenders, usually at higher minimum loan sizes and through corporate or SPV structures. Ireland is the exception with a more developed domestic market, and the Netherlands has its own established bridging product.
Do you lend to individuals buying a holiday home in Spain or Portugal?
No. We arrange finance for corporate and SPV borrowers on non regulated purposes only. Residential purchases by individuals for their own occupation fall within consumer credit and mortgage regulation in each jurisdiction, and are outside what we do. If you are buying personally rather than through a company, a local regulated mortgage broker is the right route.
What loan sizes work in Europe?
Minimums are materially higher than in the UK. Where UK bridging starts around £100,000, European facilities from international lenders typically start in the low millions, and specialist development finance in Spain and Portugal usually begins higher again. The reason is fixed cost: dual jurisdiction legal work, local security perfection and cross border structuring do not scale down, so smaller deals cannot carry the cost.
Why is European property finance more expensive than UK?
Not necessarily because of the rate. The cost difference usually sits in the structure: dual legal representation in two jurisdictions, notarial deeds and land registry registration where required, local tax and registration duties, and the fact that fewer lenders compete for any given deal. Enforcement timelines also vary enormously between countries and lenders price that variation directly.
What is changing for cross border lending into the EU in 2027?
Under Article 21c of CRD VI, from 11 January 2027 EU member states must prohibit third country firms, including UK ones, from providing core banking services such as lending into the EU other than through a locally licensed branch or subsidiary. Credit intermediation and brokerage are not core banking services, so brokers are not in scope, but the rule does affect which UK lenders can continue to lend directly into EU jurisdictions. Several are restructuring through Luxembourg and Irish vehicles in response. It is worth asking any adviser how their lender panel is positioned for this.
Which European markets do you cover?
We arrange facilities across Europe on a deal by deal basis, working with lenders licensed or permitted in the relevant jurisdiction. In practice the markets where international lending appetite is deepest are Spain, Portugal, Ireland and the Netherlands. Some jurisdictions are genuinely difficult to place, and we would rather tell you that at the outset than after you have spent money on professional fees.
How long does it take to arrange finance on a European property?
Eight to sixteen weeks across most of the markets we cover. Valuation practice is national and often requires a report from a locally approved firm, completion is a notarial event scheduled in advance rather than a simple exchange of documents, and corporate and source of funds due diligence on a cross border borrower is deeper than on a domestic transaction. The practical implication is to start earlier than you would on an equivalent UK deal.
Currency: the cost line most borrowers miss
On a European deal, the exchange rate can move the economics more than the loan margin does — deposits, drawdowns, interest and the eventual exit all cross currencies, and banks rarely price that well. We work closely with Total Currency Exchange, a UK currency specialist whose payment services are provided through FCA-authorised partners, for competitive rates and properly managed transfers on cross-border deals.
Want an introduction? Tell us when you send the deal — or ask us directly — and we will connect you personally rather than leaving you to a web form. We do not provide currency advice; timing and hedging decisions remain yours with your FX provider.