Bromley Development Finance: 2 Unit Residential Scheme at 25A Hayes Lane Enters the Pipeline

A new small-site residential application in Beckenham has landed on the borough's planning register, and it is the kind of scheme our desk sees funded week in, week out: a single plot split into two homes, with the finance built around a self-build element and a clear exit.

The application

Per the London Borough of Bromley planning register, application 26/03182/FPA at 25A Hayes Lane, Beckenham, BR3 6QS was received on 25 August 2026 and is pending decision. The proposal subdivides the existing site to form 2 separate dwellings. That involves partial demolition of the existing house, construction of a new two storey semi-detached self-build or custom build dwelling, a single storey in-fill extension to the retained home, and demolition of the single storey garage in the rear garden.

The use class is residential throughout, so there is no change of use to argue over, and the plot sits in an established suburban street rather than on a contested edge-of-settlement site. As a minor application it falls under the standard eight week determination target, so a decision could land well before the end of the year if there are no objections that force a committee hearing.

Where it sits in the Bromley pipeline

Our estimate puts the gross development value at £1,215,000 across the two units, which works out at a little over £600,000 per home. That is modest by value, but it is exactly the size of project that dominates applications across the borough: infill plots, garden land and subdivisions rather than large flatted blocks. We track schemes of this type, and the lenders active on them, on our Bromley development finance page, and Beckenham has been one of the steadier sources of two and three unit applications this year.

The finance angle: what funding the scheme will need

There are three moving parts to fund here: demolition and construction of the new semi, the in-fill extension to the retained dwelling, and the existing property itself, which is the obvious security for any facility.

As a rule of thumb, specialist commercial lenders will go to around 60 to 65 per cent of GDV on a scheme of this size, which on our £1,215,000 figure caps a senior development facility at roughly £730,000 to £790,000. Cost cover is usually the tighter constraint, with most lenders wanting the sponsor to fund somewhere between 10 and 20 per cent of total build cost plus the land equity. Because the existing house is already owned, that land equity is normally in place before a spade goes in.

One point to flag early: the application describes the new home as self-build or custom build. If the applicant intends to live in it, part of the borrowing may fall inside the regulated mortgage regime and would need to be arranged through an appropriately authorised firm. If both homes are for sale, or the retained dwelling is being kept as a rental, it is a straightforward unregulated development loan with bridging specialists and challenger banks both competing for it.

Our read as brokers

Sponsors on schemes like this should line up four things before approaching lenders. First, a costed build schedule from a contractor, not a rough estimate. Second, a written exit: sale of the new semi, plus either sale or a term refinance of the retained home. Third, a check on the self-build CIL exemption, which can take a meaningful sum off the cost stack if it applies. Fourth, a fallback for the exit. If the new house is finished but unsold, a development exit bridge lets the sponsor release the build lender and hold out for the right buyer rather than discounting at practical completion.

Our desk expects this application to attract lender interest once consent is in. The value per unit, the residential use class and the existing security all point to a facility that can be placed quickly. The work is in getting the paperwork right before the decision notice arrives, not after.