Development finance in Edinburgh
CoreFi is a commercial finance broker arranging development finance for Edinburgh property projects. We introduce ground-up builds, conversions and refurbishments to specialist lenders across a whole-of-market panel. We do not lend; the lender assesses the scheme, sets the loan-to-value and decides the terms.
CoreFi is a commercial finance broker arranging development finance for property projects across Edinburgh, from new-build schemes at regeneration sites to conversions and refurbishments in the established parts of the city. Development finance funds the land purchase and build costs of a project in stages, typically released against valuations as work progresses. We are not a lender; we introduce your scheme to specialist development and bridging lenders on our whole-of-market panel, who assess the project and decide the terms.
Edinburgh property is high-value and tightly constrained by heritage, with much of the city centre inside a World Heritage Site and conservation areas that shape what can be built and how. That makes lender selection matter. A ground-up scheme at Granton Waterfront, a Georgian townhouse conversion in the New Town and a student or build-to-rent scheme near the universities all need lenders comfortable with that specific type of work. Every loan-to-value, loan-to-cost and timeline mentioned here is indicative only; the lender makes the final call on both approval and pricing.
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Share the scheme
Tell us the site, the type of work, whether it is ground-up, conversion or refurbishment, the costs, the planning status and your intended exit. Edinburgh's heritage constraints make planning position especially important.
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We match specialist lenders
We approach development and bridging lenders on our whole-of-market panel with appetite for your scheme's size, location and build type, and help package the appraisal for their assessment.
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You review terms and draw down
We bring back offers and explain the loan-to-cost, drawdown schedule and interest treatment. The lender sets the loan-to-value and final terms; nothing is guaranteed until they are issued.
Where development happens in Edinburgh
Edinburgh's development activity is concentrated but varied. The largest regeneration story is Granton Waterfront in the north of the city, a major long-term housing-led project bringing thousands of new homes, alongside continued redevelopment across Leith and the wider waterfront where old industrial land is turning into residential and mixed-use schemes. Fountainbridge and the former brewery and canal-side sites west of the centre have seen sustained residential and commercial development. Around the University of Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt at Riccarton and Edinburgh Napier, purpose-built student accommodation and build-to-rent remain active. In the historic core, work is more often conversion and refurbishment: turning Georgian and Victorian buildings in the New Town, Old Town and Southside into apartments, offices or hotels, tightly governed by conservation-area and listed-building constraints and the city's World Heritage status. Each of these calls for a different lender profile. A high-volume ground-up housing scheme, a heritage conversion and a student block carry very different risk and drawdown patterns, and lenders specialise accordingly.
How development finance is structured
Development finance is not a single lump sum. Lenders typically fund a proportion of land cost and the bulk of build cost, released in stages against a monitoring surveyor's valuations as the project hits milestones. The two figures that matter most are loan-to-cost, the share of total project cost the lender will fund, and loan-to-gross-development-value, the share of the finished value they will lend against. Interest is often rolled up and settled on exit, whether that is sale of the units or a refinance onto longer-term investment finance. For smaller or faster projects, or where a purchase needs to complete quickly, bridging finance can bridge the gap before a full development facility or a sale. Edinburgh's heritage constraints and planning timelines mean lenders pay close attention to planning status, professional team and the exit route. We help you present those clearly. The exact loan-to-cost, drawdown schedule and interest treatment are always set by the lender based on the scheme in front of them, not by us.
How CoreFi helps
We are a broker, so our role is to match your Edinburgh scheme to lenders with genuine appetite for that type of work and to package the case properly. Development lending is a specialist corner of the market: challenger banks, specialist development funders and bridging lenders all have different comfort zones on scheme size, location, build type and borrower experience. Because we work across a whole-of-market panel rather than one funder, we can take a Granton-area housing scheme, a New Town heritage conversion and a Leith mixed-use project to different lenders in parallel. We help you assemble the appraisal, costs, planning position and exit strategy that lenders expect to see, then bring back offers to compare. We do not lend and we do not decide your application; the lender assesses the scheme and sets the loan-to-value, rate and terms. If the facility completes, the lender pays us a commission, so the introduction usually carries no separate cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
What projects can development finance fund in Edinburgh?
Ground-up residential and mixed-use schemes, conversions of period buildings and refurbishments. It is used across regeneration areas like Granton Waterfront and Leith, as well as heritage conversions in the New Town and Old Town.
How is development finance released?
In stages, not as one lump sum. Lenders typically fund land and build costs and release drawdowns against a monitoring surveyor's valuations as the project progresses. The exact schedule is set by the lender.
Does CoreFi lend on Edinburgh developments?
No. CoreFi is a broker. We introduce your scheme to specialist development and bridging lenders on our whole-of-market panel. The lender assesses the project and decides the loan-to-value, rate and terms.
Do Edinburgh's conservation rules affect funding?
They can. Much of central Edinburgh sits within a World Heritage Site and conservation areas, so lenders pay close attention to planning status and build type on conversions and listed buildings. A clear planning position helps your case.
Can you arrange bridging finance too?
Yes. Where a purchase needs to complete quickly or a project needs short-term funding before a full facility or sale, bridging finance can help. Availability and terms are decided by the lender based on the scheme and exit.
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