Islamic property finance firm, Offa, has launched a bridge-to-let finance service.
Offa was the first to introduce Sharia-compliant bridging finance to the UK and its new bridge-to-let offering can provide finance within weeks instead of months, depending on credit rating and risk criteria. This allows aspiring landlords or seasoned property investors to buy and upgrade below-value properties, releasing equity.
Customers avoid double-application fees for bridging and buy-to-let, paying a flat £495 bridge-to-let fee instead, and they save 0.5% on buy-to-let arrangement fees. There is no minimum term on the bridge product and Offa will allow top-slicing on the range.
The service is available to anyone purchasing property in England and Wales aged 18 or over, with a minimum income of £18,000 per annum, and with a minimum property value of £80,000.
Offa follows an ethical finance model designed in accordance with Islamic finance principles, which means not charging interest and not investing in sectors deemed harmful to society – such as alcohol, tobacco, animal testing, gambling and the arms trade.
Instead of using interest, Offa’s buy-to-let product involves the Islamic finance principles of co-ownership-with-leasing. Customers acquire the property in partnership with Offa and make monthly payments to increase their share, over time owning it.
Sagheer Malik (pictured), Offa’s group chief commercial officer and MD of retail finance, said: “Speed is the crucial factor in real estate. Our ultra-quick bridge-to-let service is the first of its kind in this sector, allowing both Muslims and non-Muslims to save huge amounts of money, unlocking equity and providing wealth for their families. We are now offering faith-based finance products that not only out-perform those of our competitors in Islamic finance but also those in conventional finance.”
Naseer Ahmed, Offa’s managing director of bridge finance, added: “By combining our teams’ decades of industry experience with the latest technology, we at Offa are on a mission to bring Islamic finance into the 21st century, leaving behind the onerous paperwork and cumbersome systems that many customers have typically had to suffer in the past.”
