You can, and the process works similarly to financing a property purchase. Bridge finance is much faster to arrange than a mortgage, although it is only short-term and does carry higher interest rates.

If you're buying land with planning permission, you can use bridging finance for either residential or commercial investments, and the lender will primarily be interested in your exit strategy.

Land finance can be challenging, as most bridge lenders prefer property investments at a lower risk. However, if you have sufficient security, and can demonstrate how you will repay the loan, there are options.

Your exit strategy determines how you plan to pay back the short-term bridge loan - some of the common methods include:

• Developing the land and selling it at a profit - bridge loans can provide a fast financing solution to help you invest in a plot of land, particularly if it is subject to a bidding war, or being sold at auction. Once the development is complete, or you have secured planning permission, you can sell it on, repay the lender, and keep the profit.
• Refinancing on a self-build mortgage - you can get a self-build mortgage if you have the right skills to build your own home, or have a contractor who does! Self-build mortgages release funding in stages, usually requiring a deposit of at least 25%, and sometimes up to 50%. You can use a bridge loan to secure the land, and then remortgage to refinance the initial investment, plus the construction costs.
• Taking out developer finance to cover the investment cost. Development finance is similarly short-term, but you can use a bridge loan to invest in land, and then development finance can cover the costs of the development work itself. You can combine bridge finance and development finance in some cases.
• Using a standard remortgage - bridge loans are fast, so if you plan to get a mortgage but don't have time to wait, then a bridging loan can be a temporary solution while you get longer-term lending in place.

There are, yes, but a lot depends on how likely you are to secure permission in the future.

If permission is refused or takes a long time to secure, you might be in a difficult position with repaying the bridging loan, so this is a much higher risk proposition.

Some niche lenders will finance land without planning, but you will need to pay a substantial deposit, with some LTV caps as low as 50%.

Usually, the LTV will be limited on a land purchase, and you can borrow up to 65% of the investment value.

If there is no planning permission, you will need a higher deposit.

The rates are usually higher than for property bridging loans, but you can find competitive deals through an independent broker.

Lenders assess every bridging loan application on its own merit, but in general, they will look at:

• Whether you have planning permission in place - and, if not, how likely it is to be granted.
• Your exit strategy - this must be viable, and you'll need to provide documentation or evidence to back it up, such as a mortgage agreement in principle.
• How much experience you have in developing land. Not all lenders require you to have a minimum number of years experience, but it can help mitigate the risk factor.
• Your credit history is also relevant, and a clean credit score will mean you are a lower-risk applicant and can achieve lower interest rates.

There are indeed - if you are a limited company, or a Special Purpose Vehicle, you can take out a commercial bridging loan on a land purchase.