More than £50m was lent by the development finance arm of Paragon Bank last year to support much-needed residential development schemes across the South West.
The specialist division, part of the Midlands-based Paragon Banking Group, lent to developers and housebuilders behind 18 projects in the region in the year to 30 September, including schemes in Bath.
These included a £7m loan to support the acquisition of a site in Bath with planning consent for 244 residential units plus commercial space.
Paragon Development Finance senior relationship director Nigel Jackson said: “The South West is an attractive region for homeowners, property investors, students and tenants, boasting vibrant cities, good connections to the capital and a diverse and beautiful geography.
“We saw strong demand from our clients for new projects across the region, from Cornwall to Gloucester, including a range of different schemes.
“We are committed to support more developers in the South West and, with our highly experienced team and the backing of a strong and profitable bank, we have the capacity and appetite to do so.”
FTSE 250-listed Paragon provides competitive property development finance up to the value of £35m across England and Wales.
Established in 1985 and head-quartered in Solihull, specialist lender and savings bank Paragon Banking Group has more than £16bn of loan assets under management and manages 340,000-plus customer accounts.
Overall, Paragon Development Finance, which specialises in providing finance to SME housebuilders and property developers, recorded new lending of £511.9m across the UK during the period.
Among its previous Bath projects were £36.7m to Galliard Homes and Acorn Property Group to help regenerate Hope House, a grade II listed former Girl’s Day School Trust site in Lansdown, into an upmarket development of 54 one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments and houses, pictured, and £6.1m to Bath Estates to help convert unused space above iconic department store Jolly’s on Milsom Street into apartments.