Vacant Commercial Property Funding

Milen Johar • 20 November 2023

Tricky Commercial Property Purchase Funded!

A London based friend was trying to sell a vacant commercial property in Bradford & asked me to assist his buyer who‘s normal finance broker was struggling to get traction.

Vacant commercial property has been tough to fund given how lockdowns & restrictions have affected business.
This case was the perfect storm as the property had been purchased significantly below market value by the seller and was being sold at market value to the buyer.
It had been occupied by squatters for some time & was in need of minor repair & an improved EPC rating prior to finance.

Facing these obstacles, Lee Albino & the Commercial team at Shawbrook Bank understood the background, saw potential & were superb to get the term deal done. Huge thanks also to the team at Brilliant Solutions (UK) (best packager) as Kieran Barnden & Michael Craig were simply unreal, showing continued support to see this over the line.

Friend is ecstatic he sold & the buyer has sealed his long term tenant operating an MOT / Servicing Garage. Whisky thank you gift was gratefully accepted.

As always, feel free to reach out if I can assist with any financing needs. My network is open to all!

2 awards. 1 very proud moment for VKJ Finance.

by Milen Johar • 20 October 2026
I’m genuinely humbled to share that VKJ Finance has been recognised with TWO BUILD Real Estate & Property Awards 2026: 🏆 Specialist Property Finance Broker of the Year 2026 – London 🏆 Bridging Finance Excellence Award 2026 – London Awards are always nice to receive, but what makes these particularly meaningful is what sits behind them: - clients who trust us with some of the most important financial decisions they make, - lenders we work alongside and the relationships with we’ve built with BDM’s and Underwriters over the years, - professional partners spanning solicitors, insurance, accountancy, surveyors, architects, builders, developers and more. At VKJ Finance, our focus has always been simple — understand the transaction, find the right solution and get the deal done. I’m incredibly grateful to everyone who has trusted me and VKJ Finance along the way. These 2 awards are a reflection of that trust as much as anything else. A huge thank you to our clients, our lender partners and everyone who has supported VKJ Finance. Two awards. One very proud moment. Plenty more to come I hope. As always, if I can assist any of you in financing your projects or with any property finance needs, then please feel free to get in touch. #BridgingFinance #DevelopmentFinance #BuyToLet #HMO #CommercialFinance #RealEstate #PropertyDevelopment #PropertyInvestment #FinanceBroker #PropertyFinance #BUILDawards

28 New Build Flats Refinanced for a Build to Rent Developer!

9 March 2026
A block of 28 new build flats were presented to us for an experienced developer and landlord wanting to retain the entire block in their portfolio. VKJ Finance Milen Johar and Keystone Property Finance delivered a fast and collaborative result for the borrower which involved: ✅ The creation of new long leases being sold into a subsidiary SPV from the DevCo. ✅ Joined up approach from our valuation partners Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward in accepting recent retypes enabling the deal to move speedily to offer. ✅ Fast work from our pre offer, underwriting and post offer teams to get an unbelievably fast completion! This deal highlights how great solutions can be found when lenders, brokers, underwriters and our legal / surveyor partners work wonderfully together. Well done to all involved and looking forward to the next complex deal from VKJ Finance! 🙌

15 Unit Block Refinanced for a Build to Rent Developer!

9 March 2026
Huge thanks to Paige Archer and the team at LendInvest (LSE: LINV) who refinanced 15 flats in a new build to rent block for an experienced developer client! It was a tricky case where the client was transferring a directors loan balance owed back to them from the DevCo to a brand new PropCo to use as the purchase deposit, with new leasehold titles created and multiple surveys to manage. Pa i ge Archer and the underwriting team at LendInvest (LSE: LINV) simplified the application process for the client to only upload required documents to 1 case instead of to each one individually, they understood the directors loan transfer given their experience in development finance, and sped through underwriting by only asking necessary common sense questions rather than irrelevant ones that often get thrown at experienced clients in complex scenarios. There was a small hurdle over an EWS1 the surveyor thought was required that was successfully challenged, but thanks to her and the team, they pushed to get this across the line for the remortgage to complete in time so the client could move off their development finance. This case was a perfect example of how brokers and BDM’s stay in touch to keep up to date on criteria / appetite changes that creatively solve problems for clients for when the exact situation arises! As always, if I can assist any of you in financing your projects or with any property finance needs, then please feel free to get in touch. 
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