Fact file:
•    Purpose of Loan – Conversion of 15 grade-II listed barns in Powys, Montgomeryshire, Wales
•    Purchase Price - £890,000
•    Build costs - £1,295,000
•    GDV - £3,050,000
•    Loan Facility - £205,000 toward the purchase of the site, £1,295,000 towards the construction costs of the project.
 
The barns, which were situated in Montgoneryshire, Wales, were all grade II listed, however Regentsmead, which has been lending since 1934, had the experience and knowledge to fund this sort of development, which may have been deemed tricky to other lenders.

“There is an obvious issue with taking on listed barns for a conversion. There are numerous things that could go wrong, including ecological issues that occurred such as the presence of bats. Often in these situations, a lot of the costs are hidden and only come out as the conversion is underway.” explained Ashley Ilsen of Regentsmead.

Whilst Ashley would not describe this as its ‘bread and butter’, its unrivalled knowledge in the market meant that it knew how to fund the project, which also led to even more barn conversion projects in a similar area since.

“It’s not the first time we have funded such a project and I imagine it won’t be the last. The builder is highly skilled at this type of project which requires significant expertise. This teamed with some valuable input from the surveyor and an experienced funder overseeing it has led to an extremely successful project,” concluded Ashley.