Commercial mortgage broker for the whole market
Owner-occupier and investment commercial mortgages from £150,000 to £25m+ through 100+ lenders. Indicative terms fast, with an offer typically in 2 to 4 weeks.
You have found the premises. The vendor wants to move. Your bank wants three more weeks of accounts and the deal is drifting. Going whole-of-market fixes that by taking your case across the panel, not to one bank’s credit team. Vortex Finance arranges owner-occupier and investment property mortgages, so you get the lender whose appetite fits your trade or yield.
We do not lend our own money. We sit on your side of the table, package your case so an underwriter takes it seriously, and place it with the right funder. There is no fee for indicative terms, and our fee model is confirmed upfront before any application. Every figure is indicative.
Key facts
- Indicative 4.5–7.75% per year; prime covenants with low leverage at the lower end
- Up to 70–75% LTV on owner-occupied premises, nearer 65% for investment
- Terms of 5–25 years (some to 30); offer in 2–4 weeks, completion in 4–8 weeks
| Scenario | Indicative rate | LTV |
|---|---|---|
| Owner-occupier premises | 4.5–6.5% p.a. | 70–75% |
| Commercial investment | 5.5–7.75% p.a. | 65% |
| Semi-commercial | 5.5–7.5% p.a. | 70% |
Cost calculator
Compare commercial mortgages by what you need
Start with the angle that matches your deal. If timing is tight, a commercial bridging loan can bridge the gap to a term facility; a ground-up scheme moves to development finance.
Commercial bridging loans
Fast finance for shops, offices and mixed-use, with an exit onto a term commercial mortgage.
Explore ›Finance against commercial land
Secure a commercial plot, with or without planning, ahead of a build or term facility.
Explore ›Development finance
Fund a ground-up commercial scheme, then refinance onto a commercial mortgage.
Explore ›Off-market and structured finance
Equity and JV capital where senior debt caps below what the deal needs.
Explore ›How a commercial mortgage works
A commercial mortgage is a longer-term loan secured against commercial real estate in commercial use rather than a home. This commercial mortgage product runs on capital repayment in most cases, though interest-only is common on investment deals where you hold and later refinance or sell. Two questions decide your deal: what is the property, and who is borrowing.
Owner-occupier finance and investment finance
Two situations bring people to us, and the right lender differs.
- Owner-occupiers are trading businesses buying the commercial premises they operate from. You stop paying rent and build equity in your own asset. The bank underwrites how the firm trades, so accounts, profit and sector carry weight.
- Investment buyers treat the building as a property investment let for yield. The funder underwrites the rent and the tenant, and an interest serviced facility keeps cost down while you hold. We also help a landlord and property investors restructure a property portfolio, scale an investment portfolio or commercial portfolio, and back property developers matching their property ambitions.
A bank that loves a strong owner-occupier covenant may have no appetite for a multi-let industrial unit. One credit team gets one answer; the market gets the right one.
Your commercial mortgage deposit
Loan-to-value sets the cash you put in. On owner-occupier deals you can reach 75% of the price, so plan for 25% to 35% in. An investment case caps nearer 65%. Remortgaging is sized against the equity already in the building, that remortgage set by its property value rather than fresh cash.
A few levers help. A stronger covenant, profitable accounts or a blue-chip tenant on a long lease, pushes pricing down, as does lower gearing.
Commercial mortgage interest rates and what moves them
Your commercial mortgage interest rate runs indicatively 4.5% to 7.75% per year. A prime covenant with low leverage sits at the lower end; weaker trading, a short lease or higher gearing push you up. Commercial rates track the Bank of England base rate plus a margin for your risk, sizing your mortgage payments before you apply.
Three choices change the number. A fixed rate buys certainty over a set rate period, where a variable rate or tracker may start lower but moves with the base rate. Owner-occupier pricing often beats investment for the same building, and a standard commercial unit prices keener than specialist property. Watch the early repayment charge if you may refinance inside the term. We quote the mortgage deal that fits.
Semi-commercial and part-residential premises
A shop with a flat above. A pub with accommodation. A takeaway with living space over it. A semi-commercial mortgage funds this kind of premise under one title rather than two separate loans, blending residential and commercial space.
It is its own product, priced between residential buy-to-let mortgages and pure commercial, indicatively 5.5% to 7.5% per year up to around 70% of value. It suits investors after income from both a commercial and a residential tenant in one deal. Mainstream banks struggle to categorise such commercial properties across their range of commercial products; specialist funders price them right.
How underwriting reads your trading accounts
For an owner-occupier deal, the funder is really underwriting your business. They want the trade to service the loan, so their lending criteria centre on cashflow, not the bricks.
Expect two to three years of accounts, recent management figures, and bank statements. A clean, well-presented file moves faster than a pile of documents the underwriter has to chase, and that packaging is where we earn the timeline back. If your accounts have a wrinkle, a dip in one year or a change of entity, we flag it up front and place it with a funder who looks past it.
Using a whole-of-market broker
The most common reason people call us: their bank’s business banking arm said no. One bank is one appetite; a decline does not kill the deal.
We are not tied to any lender, so we shop 100+ lenders, including specialist lenders that never advertise, and place your case with the one most likely to fund it. A specialist broker earns its keep on the awkward cases, the short lease, the niche sector, the recent restructure, where a high street bank has no box to tick it into. We run a soft credit check with your consent first, so exploring your options never marks your file. Our fee is disclosed before you commit. Ask for recent case studies on similar property finance and the best deal we can find.
How to apply for a commercial mortgage
You do not need a full document pack to start. Tell us the property, the loan size you need, how you will hold it and how you will repay it. The application process then runs in clear stages.
We shortlist funders and package the case; you choose a route before anything is submitted. The chosen bank instructs a RICS valuation, underwrites the business or the rent, and issues an offer; legals run alongside, and funds release on completion. What slows it down is rarely the funder: valuation delays, missing documents and slow solicitors, so we push every party from day one. Most commercial lending falls outside Financial Conduct Authority rules because it is business activity; where a case is regulated, an authorised adviser confirms the position on the call.
Common worries, answered straight
Is it hard to get a commercial mortgage? +
Can I get one as an existing customer of my bank? +
When a commercial mortgage is the right tool
Owner-occupiers buying the property they trade from, building equity instead of paying rent.
Offices, retail and industrial let for yield, serviced from the rent.
A unit with a flat over it, or a pub with rooms, on one title.
Release existing equity, with no fresh cash needed if the value is there.
One bank’s appetite is not the market’s; we target the funders that fit.
Commercial mortgage questions, answered
Who is a commercial mortgage for, and what does it secure? +
Can a company apply? +
Will getting a quote hurt my credit score? +
Get indicative commercial mortgage terms
Tell us the property, the loan size and your timeline, and we come back with indicative terms from the funders that fit your case.