Unsecured Business Loans for Property Developers
By Joshua Giles, Founder and Director · Reviewed by the CoreFi credit team
Last updated 20 July 2026
CoreFi is a broker, not a lender. We do not set rates and lenders make all credit decisions.
In short: £10k - £250k over 1 - 3 years. Most property finance is secured against the asset.
Most property finance is secured against the asset. Development loans, bridging, mezzanine, all of them take a charge. An unsecured loan sits outside that stack entirely, which makes it useful when the asset does not yet exist or when putting another charge on your portfolio is not a trade you want to make.
Developers tend to use it for pre-development costs like planning and feasibility work before you have even found a lender for the main facility, or for equity top-ups when the development lender wants 25-30% day-one equity and your own cash falls just short, or for working capital between completions when your money is tied up in a site that has not exited yet.
The catch is cost. Unsecured rates run from roughly 6% to 20% APR depending on your business strength and how long the facility runs, and no lender sets that rate until they have credit-scored the application. That is dearer than a first-charge development loan per annum, but the comparison is not quite fair because you are borrowing against the company, not the bricks. No legal fees on a charge, no valuation, no exit fee. On a £30,000 planning budget, the maths usually stacks.
One thing worth saying plainly: some development lenders will not accept a borrowed deposit as equity. Others will, provided you can show the company can service both facilities. We check this with the development lender before we place a deal, not after.
Key Benefits
- Planning fees, architect costs, and feasibility studies funded before the acquisition charge is in place, so your secured facility is not eaten up by pre-development spend
- Bridges the equity gap on a development loan without giving away project equity to a JV partner
- No first charge or second charge on your portfolio, so existing secured facilities stay unencumbered
- Repayments are fixed, which is predictable when you are running several project timelines at once
Frequently Asked Questions
Why use an unsecured loan instead of bridging?
Bridging takes a charge, comes with a valuation and legal pack, and carries arrangement fees on both entry and exit. For costs that predate any property acquisition, planning applications, surveys, design work, that legal machinery adds cost and delay you do not need. An unsecured loan is drawn against the trading company, so it moves faster and keeps the first charge free for the lender who actually funds the build.
Can I use it as a deposit for a development loan?
Sometimes. We have placed deals where the development lender accepted a borrowed equity contribution, but they required us to show that the company could service both the unsecured repayment and the development finance costs at the same time. Plenty of development lenders still want equity from your own funds and will decline if they find the deposit is borrowed. Check with the development lender before you proceed, not after you have drawn down.
What trading history do I need?
Most unsecured lenders want at least two years of filed accounts showing the company is profitable. Your personal credit history matters too, as does your track record on previous development projects. Lenders are effectively underwriting you as a director, not just the balance sheet.
Are the rates higher than secured lending?
Yes. Unsecured rates for property developers typically sit between 6% and 20% APR depending on loan size, term, and business strength. A development loan will be cheaper per annum, but it carries legal, valuation, and arrangement costs that can outweigh the rate advantage on smaller amounts or short holds. No broker can promise you a rate before a lender credit-scores the application.
Work out your numbers
Related Funding Options
Unsecured Business Loans UK: £1k to £500k, No Property Security
Unsecured business loans from £1k to £500k for UK limited companies. No charge on your property. We broker these deals and can tell you which lenders are open to your sector & turnover.
Bridging Loans for Property Developers
Bridging finance for UK property developers: auction completions, light refurb, GDV lending, and chain breaks. We place these deals regularly. Call us to discuss yours.
Construction Finance for Property Developers
Development finance for UK residential & commercial property developers. A single facility covering land & build costs, drawn in stages. We place these deals from £250k to £25M.
Business loans by location
Lender appetite varies by city and region. If you would rather start from where your business is based, these local guides cover the same funding with the local picture.
Researching Unsecured Business Loans? Get the free guide
Plain-English, UK-specific. What it costs, who qualifies, and how to get the best terms, straight to your inbox.
- How unsecured business loans works and what it really costs
- Eligibility and the documents lenders ask for
- How CoreFi matches you to the right lenders from our panel
Ready to Get Funded?
Submit your details and we'll match you with the right lenders from our panel. No obligation, no fees.
Get matched with lendersCoreFi is a trading name of JG Core Ltd (Company #16218779, England & Wales). CoreFi acts as a commercial finance broker and does not provide regulated financial advice. All products described are unregulated business-to-business finance. Information on this page is for general guidance only and does not constitute a formal offer of finance. Terms, rates, and availability are subject to lender criteria and may change without notice.