Bridge Financing in B.C.

Our guide to bridging the gap between your new purchase and existing home sales date

Bridge financing covers the added costs of carrying two properties for a short time.

Here's what you need to know about bridge financing (also called a bridge mortgage).

Trying to align the purchase of your new home and the sale of your existing home can be a daunting task. With the multiple parties, each with their unique needs and preferences, things can get incredibly complicated and stressful.

Here at the Silverman Mortgage Group, we know the last thing you need when you're dealing with real estate is more stress. While we can't do much about picky buyers, bidding wars or rising real estate prices, we can simplify the process of financing your next home purchase with a bridge loan.

Need short-term financing between closing dates?

Fortunately, the equity in your home isn't stuck until the sale date. Bridge financing allows you to use this for your down payment and move into your new home ahead of time. A bridge loan can even be structured in a way that allows you to skip the monthly payments and simply pay back the entire amount once the sale of your current home is complete.

You'll also be glad to hear that if your new home requires any repairs or preparation for the move, bridge financing gives you the option to start completing this work. All while living in your existing home.

Sounds good, right?

Click here to get started. Or read our guide on bridge financing to learn more about how you can cut the stress of moving out and in on the same day.

Bridge Financing Guide

  • What is bridge financing?

    Bridge financing is borrowing or lending of the down payment on your new home purchase on a closing date that is before the sale of your existing property, thus "bridging" the gap of the sale dates. 

  • How do I qualify for bridge financing?

    Qualifying for bridge financing is automatic when approved for your first mortgage, conditional upon having a firm sale agreement on your existing home, i.e. lenders cannot provide bridge financing without knowing the exact repayment date outlined in a sale agreement and without knowing the sale price verifying equity is substantial enough to repay the bridge financing from sale proceeds.

  • How much does it cost?

    Bridge financing is comprised of 3 costs: 


    1) Bridge financing processing and application fee 

    The lender charges this and not by us as your broker. The fee ranges from $300-600. The variance is if only bridging above $150,000. 


    2) Interest charge based on the amount and duration of the total bridge loan

    Interest is based on prime plus a premium, prime at present is 3.45%, and the premium ranges from an addition 2-5%. For example, $100,000 down payment at prime, plus 2.% (which is 5.45%), is then $14.93 per day of the bridge required.


    3) Your solicitor or lawyer fee for registering and discharging of the bridge loan against your existing home title


    This provides security for the lender, ensuring that they will be repaid. This cost is usually $300. 

  • What is the longest time period I can bridge for?

    Most lenders have an underwriting of 30-60 days. However, exceptions can be made for 120 days or longer, depending on the overall strength of your application.

  • How do I get the money from the bridge and repay it?

    The logistics/transfer of funds is handled between your broker, your solicitor and the funding department at your mortgage lender. This means you won't have to obtain the funds or worry about how to repay. These are all executed by your real estate financing team. 

  • Do all lenders provide bridge financing?

    Most, but not all, lenders provide bridge financing support. Alternative or B lenders are unable to facilitate bridge financing at this time. Fortunately, we can facilitate in-house bridge financing solutions for our clients.

Jordan de Brouwer

"I had a great experience with them. I was a first time home buyer and didn't know much about the mortgage application experience. They made the whole process very easy and stress free and explained each step in detail. I would recommend them to anyone looking for a mortgage, especially first time home buyers."
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Leah Allen

"We purchased a second property and Silverman Mortgage Group made the process so easy and quick. I especially liked the personalized video presentation which made it possible for us to clearly understand the process. At a very busy time in our lives almost everything was completed in the comfort of our home."
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Reid Arkinstall

"My wife and I had a great experience working with the Silverman Mortgage Group. It took us a while to find the right home but Zach and his team worked with us throughout the entire process, ensuring we always had the most up-to-date mortgage information. We look forward to working with SMG in the future."
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What is Bridge Financing?

By Silverman Mortgage • September 23, 2020
Let's say you have a home that you've outgrown, it's time to make a move to something more suited for your family. You have no desire to keep two houses, so you decide that selling your existing home, and moving into something new is the best idea. Ideally, when planning out how that looks, most people want to take possession of the new house before having to move out of the old one. Not only does this make moving (your stuff) easier, it allows you to make the house a little more "you" by adding some paint, or doing some small renovations before moving in. But what if you need the money from the sale of your existing house to come up with the downpayment for your next house? This is where bridge financing comes in. Bridge financing allows you to bridge the financial gap between the firm sale of your current home, and the purchase of your new home. Bridge financing allows you to access some of the equity in your existing property to be used towards the downpayment on the property you are buying. Now, here is where people get confused, in order to secure bridge financing, you must have a firm sale on your existing house. If your house isn't sold, you won't get the bridge financing, because there is no concrete way for a lender to calculate how much equity you have available. Instead of going through all the fine details of documentation required to apply for bridge financing, or outlining scenarios that may or may not be applicable to you, if you've got questions, why don't you contact us directly! We'd love to hear from you!

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