Property adviser Savills has added US financial groups AIG and Citigroup to its latest list of bigger ticket lenders to the UK property market. The new list names 21 such lenders compared with 19 at end-October 2011.
Property adviser Savills has added US financial groups AIG and Citigroup to its latest list of bigger ticket lenders to the UK property market. The new list names 21 such lenders compared with 19 at end-October 2011.
Savills defines ‘active bigger ticket lenders’ as those which have completed at least three deals of more than £30 mln (EUR 36 mln) over the last six months or are well advanced in their efforts to achieve such business. This criterion has been revised from October 2011, when bigger ticket lenders had to achieve total new lending over the previous six months of at least £75 mln in typical loan sizes of above £20 mln.
Besides newcomers AIG and Citigroup, Savills has reinstated Deutsche Postbank and Lloyds Banking Group as active bigger ticket lenders based on the revised criteria.
The latest list includes all the UK clearers (Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and RBS), eight German banks and five insurance companies (AIG, Aviva, Axa, MetLife and M&G Investments). Other emerging insurance or life companies are Canada Life and Legal & General.
Savills notes that the lending market has widened in recent months beyond banks and that there are now ‘many other organisations seeking to provide debt finance in one form or another’.
William Newsom, Savills UK head of valuation, commented: ‘There is no shortage of organisations seeking to provide both senior debt and mezzanine. However, the real issues are firstly that lenders are very selective, and secondly tighter lending terms. Of the lenders listed, they are looking to provide finance to selected borrowers with track record secured against good quality commercial investment properties let to strong tenants on long term leases in good locations.’
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