Deal funding · Short-term

Bridge loans: borrow for the gap, but underwrite the exit first.

A bridge loan is short-term, interest-only financing on an investment property that isn't ready for its long-term loan yet: still vacant, still seasoning, or bought before the property that pays for it has sold. You pay it off by selling or by moving to a long-term DSCR loan. DSCR (debt service coverage ratio) is the property's rent divided by its full monthly payment, and that ratio is the test your exit has to pass.

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Loan sizing

Three gaps a bridge covers, and the one question behind all of them.

WORKED DEAL · VACANT DUPLEX, LEASED AND REFINANCED IN MONTH 6

Purchase: vacant duplex, rent-ready: $325,000
Bridge loan: 76.9% of price, 9.6% interest-only: $250,000
…of which interest reserve, months 1–4: $8,000
Cash at closing: $83,000 down + 1.5 points: $86,750
Interest for months 5–6, paid by you: $4,000
Leases signed in months 2 and 3: 2 × $1,550: $3,100/mo
Appraisal in month 6: $365,000
DSCR cash-out refinance at 75% of value: $273,750
Bridge payoff: −$250,000
Cash back before refinance closing costs: $23,750

Cash left in the deal$67,000

$86,750 + $4,000 in, $23,750 back; equity at the new value is $91,250. 9.6% sits between the 8.25% advertised bridge floor and the 10.45% 2025 non-bank median. The new loan at 7.375%, the 2025 median 30-year investor rate, is $1,891 a month in principal and interest; with $380 taxes and $180 insurance the payment is $2,451, so $3,100 of rent gives a 1.26 DSCR. Excludes third-party closing costs and rent collected during the bridge. Illustrative, not a quote.

Every bridge loan answers one question: how many months sit between closing and the loan or sale that pays it off? Published 1–4 unit programs give you 12 months at Roc, 13 or 19 at Lima One and 12, 18 or 24 at Kiavi, interest-only, with the whole balance due at maturity. Because the property needs little or no work, lenders size the loan mostly on what it's worth today: 70–85% of value in October 2026.

Gap one: buy before you sell. Your cash is tied up in a rental or a finished flip that hasn't closed, and the next deal won't wait for it. A bridge funds the new purchase and the sale repays it, or a cash-out bridge on the property you're selling raises the down payment. Lima One offers cash-out on its Bridge Plus, and Kiavi will bridge a property you've held over six months as a seasoned refinance. This is for investment property only: buying a home to live in before selling yours is a job for a residential lender.

Gap two: lease-up. A vacant or half-empty building has no rent for a long-term lender to count. Some DSCR lenders will use market rent instead (Roc and Civic count 90% of it on a vacant property), but many want signed leases, and filling units takes months. The bridge carries the property until the rent can.

Gap three: refinance timing. DSCR lenders typically want about 90 days of ownership before they'll lend on a new appraised value; go earlier and Roc, for one, caps the loan at 80% of your total cost basis. Bought with cash? Kiavi treats a refinance within 6 months as a delayed purchase. The bridge holds the property until the seasoning clock, the appraisal and the leases line up.

When the property can't pay its own interest yet, an interest reserve covers the gap: months of interest held back from the loan at closing and paid to the lender each month from that holdback, not from your bank account.

Interest reserve = loan amount × note rate ÷ 12 × months held back

Size it to the lease-up, not to the lender's minimum. In the worked deal, 4 months on $250,000 at 9.6% is $8,000.
Some lenders require one and size it by credit. OfferMarket's schedule calls for 1 month at a 700+ score, 3 months at 660–699, and 6 months at 660–699 or with a credit or background concern; going without is at the lender's discretion.
The reserve is borrowed money. It carries interest and points like the rest of the loan: on $8,000 at 9.6% and 1.5 points, that's $120 at closing and $64 a month.
Financing the reserve can raise leverage. On Roc's experienced-developer construction program, a financed reserve lifts the cap from 85% to 90% of total project cost, with a 1-month minimum.
When it's used up, the payment is yours. Ask before closing whether any unused reserve is credited back at payoff.

Deal checklist

Leverage and terms: what bridge lenders published in October 2026.

Bridge lenders underwrite today's value, the property's condition and your exit. Each sets its own limits; these are the published ones.

Leverage on value: 70% at Roc, 70–75% on OfferMarket's stabilized bridge, up to 85% at Lima One (80% in its FAQ).
Leverage on cost: Roc: up to 85% of the price plus verified completed capital work if you've owned the property under 6 months. OfferMarket: 80–90% of total cost, by experience tier.
Rehab-style bridge: Some lenders use the name for rehab loans. Kiavi's bridge lends up to 100% of the price (95% in its FAQ), 100% of rehab and up to 80% of ARV. Lima One's Bridge Plus funds no rehab.
Loan size: $50,000–$3,000,000 at Roc; $75,000–$5,000,000 at Kiavi; $100,000–$5,000,000 at Lima One.
Term: 12 months at Roc; 13 or 19 at Lima One; 12, 18 or 24 at Kiavi; 12 standard and 18–24 for some projects at OfferMarket.
Payments: Interest-only, with a balloon at maturity. In 2025 HMDA data, 91% of short-term investor loans paid interest only, and 95.1% came due in one balloon.
Credit: 660 at Roc, 680 at OfferMarket (660–679 by exception), 700 at Lima One.
Condition: Rent-ready. Roc's DSCR-exit bridge wants C4 or better with no deferred maintenance; its listed-for-sale bridge wants C2 or better and a value within the local market's 90th percentile.
Property: Single-family homes, 2–4 units, townhomes, PUDs and warrantable condos, plus manufactured homes at Kiavi. Lots and rural, exotic or unique properties are common exclusions.
Valuation: In-house with no third-party appraisal at Kiavi; in-house or waived at LendingOne; exterior-only case by case at Lima One. Your exit lender orders its own appraisal.
Exit test: Roc's DSCR-exit program wants rent of at least 1.10 times the payment, measured on in-place or market rent, whichever is lower.
Recourse: Expect a personal guarantee; OfferMarket's loans are full recourse.
Use: Business purpose only, on property neither you nor your family will live in.

Contract to closing

From application to payoff: four steps to a bridge that lands on time.

Count the months backwardStart at the exit: lease-up, seasoning, appraisal and refinance closing, then add slack. That count, not the lender's default, sets your term and reserve.
Send the dealThe 60-second form takes the basics: property, price, timing and exit. A loan specialist calls back with bridge terms built around that exit.
Close and stabilizeClose in about one to two weeks, sign the leases, and keep the rent roll, receipts and photos for the exit lender's appraiser.
Exit as early as you canOrder the refinance appraisal once seasoning is met, or list. With no prepayment penalty at most programs, every month you cut is interest you keep.

Cost of the money

What a bridge costs: interest-only months, points, the reserve and the way out.

You pay interest every month you hold, points once at closing, and usually nothing to leave early. Figures come from lender pages in October 2026 and 2025 HMDA data.

Rate: Advertised floors of 8.25% at Kiavi and Roc. The 2025 non-bank median across all short-term investor loans, rehab loans included, was 10.45%.
Monthly interest: Interest-only: each $100,000 at 9.6% is $800 a month, so 6 months on $250,000 is $12,000.
Points: 1.5–2 points with a $2,000 minimum on OfferMarket's schedule. Lima One charges an origination fee it doesn't publish; Kiavi rolls processing and third-party costs into a standard fee and charges no exit points.
Interest reserve: Held back from the loan, so it carries interest and points. A 4-month reserve on $250,000 at 9.6% is $8,000, plus $120 in points at 1.5%.
How interest accrues: OfferMarket charges interest on the full loan under $100,000 and only on disbursed funds above that. Ask which method applies to any holdback.
Extensions: OfferMarket: 1% of the loan for a first 3 months, 1.5% for a second 3, 2.5% for 6, capped at half the original term. On $250,000 that's $2,500, $3,750 or $6,250.
Prepayment: None at Kiavi, Lima One and OfferMarket, which also charges no minimum interest. A month-6 payoff costs 6 months of interest, not 12.
Exit-loan rate: Not locked while you bridge. At 9%, the top of LendingOne's published 7–9% average investor range, the worked deal's payment rises to $2,763 and its DSCR falls to 1.12.
Third-party costs: Valuation, title, insurance, recording and wires ($30 at OfferMarket) are billed on top, at the bridge and again at the refinance.

Where your deal fits

Six gaps where a bridge gets the deal funded, and one where it doesn't.

The next deal before the last one sellsFund the purchase now and repay from the sale, or pull equity from the property you're selling with a cash-out bridge. The sale date becomes your exit, so give it slack.

A vacant or half-leased propertyNo leases means no rent for a long-term lender to count. A bridge, ideally with an interest reserve, carries the property through lease-up.

Waiting out seasoningMost DSCR lenders want about 90 days on title before they'll use a fresh appraisal. Inside 3 months, Roc caps the loan at 80% of your total cost basis instead.

Cash back after a cash purchaseWon it with cash? Kiavi treats a refinance inside the first 6 months as a delayed purchase and returns your cash; wait longer and it lends on current value instead.

A rehab loan close to maturityThe work is done, but the house hasn't sold. Roc's no-DSCR bridge takes recently renovated or new homes that are listed, or about to be, at up to 70% of value.

A fast close on a clean propertyKiavi advertises bridge closings in as few as 7 business days and LendingOne in as little as 10–14 days, so a rent-ready listing with other bidders doesn't wait on a 30-year loan.

When to skip the bridgeIf the property already rents and you can wait for a 30-year loan, buy with the DSCR loan and pay for one closing instead of two.

Side by side

Exit planning: plan A, plan B, and what a slip costs you.

Build the bridge backward from the exit, then price each way it can slip. Figures use the worked duplex: $250,000 at 9.6%, or $2,000 a month in interest.

Item	What has to go right	If it slips
Plan A: DSCR refinance	Signed leases, about 90 days of ownership, an appraisal at plan and rent that covers the payment: $2,451 for a 1.00 DSCR, $2,696 for Roc's 1.10 exit test.	With one unit still empty, $1,550 of rent is a 0.63 DSCR, below the 0.75–1.00 minimums most DSCR lenders publish. Each month you wait costs $2,000 once the reserve is gone.
Plan B: sell	Comps that support the price, and time to market and close inside the term.	No prepayment penalty at most programs, but selling costs come out of your equity, and a late listing leaves no room for a second buyer if the first one walks.
Low appraisal	A value that supports a new loan at least as large as the payoff plus closing costs.	At $330,000, 75% is $247,500: $2,500 short of the $250,000 payoff before closing costs, so you bring cash to the refinance.
Refinancing before day 90	A lender that waives seasoning (Lima One does on its own short-term loans), or the patience to wait for the new value.	Roc caps a loan on a property owned under 3 months at 80% of total cost basis: about $260,000 on a $325,000 basis, against $273,750 on the month-6 appraisal.
Running out of term	Months of slack between the planned exit and maturity.	An extension: $2,500 for 3 months on OfferMarket's schedule and $3,750 for a second 3, with $2,000 a month of interest still running.

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Send us the deal

Closing before the long-term money is ready? Bridge it.

Your name and phone come first. After that it’s mostly taps: what the property is, how much you need, a credit band, the ZIP. Then a loan specialist phones you to go over the numbers.

About a minute from first tap to sent
Applying doesn’t pull your credit
A loan specialist phones to go over it
Investment property only, never your own home

Straight answers

Bridge loans: what investors ask before they commit.

What is a bridge loan in real estate investing?

Short-term money, paid interest-only, for an investment property that's nearly ready for its long-term loan. A sale or a 30-year rental loan pays it off. Published 1–4 unit programs lent 70–85% of value for 12–24 months in October 2026. Investors bridge to buy before selling another property, to fill a vacant one, or to wait out a refinance lender's seasoning rule.

How is a bridge loan different from a hard money loan?

The name describes the job, not the lender. Both come from non-bank lenders, and both lend on the asset. A bridge usually carries a property that needs little or no work and is sized on today's value; a hard money loan usually funds a renovation and is sized on the value after the work. Lenders blur the two, so judge the term sheet, not the name.

How much can I borrow on a bridge loan?

Published leverage ran 70–85% of value in October 2026: 70% at Roc, 70–75% on OfferMarket's stabilized bridge and up to 85% at Lima One. On cost, Roc lends up to 85% of the price plus verified completed work if you've owned the property under 6 months. Published loan sizes run from $50,000 to $5,000,000.

What is an interest reserve on a bridge loan?

Months of interest held back from the loan at closing and used to pay the lender each month, so the property doesn't need rent or your cash to stay current. It suits a vacant property in lease-up. The reserve is part of what you borrow, so it carries interest and points of its own. When it runs dry, the monthly payment shifts to you or the rent.

Do I have to take an interest reserve?

Some lenders require one and size it by risk. OfferMarket's schedule calls for 1 month at a 700+ credit score, 3 months at 660–699, and 6 months at 660–699 or with a credit or background concern; skipping it is at the lender's discretion. Even when it's optional, a reserve sized to your lease-up keeps a slow month from becoming a missed payment.

What credit score do I need for a bridge loan?

Published minimums ran from 660 at Roc to 680 at OfferMarket (660–679 by exception) and 700 at Lima One in October 2026. A higher score can mean more leverage and, at OfferMarket, a smaller required interest reserve. Expect a credit pull, a personal guarantee and a check that you have cash to close and carry the property.

How long does a bridge loan last?

12–24 months on published programs: 12 months at Roc, 13 or 19 at Lima One, and 12, 18 or 24 at Kiavi. Pick the term by counting backward from your exit: lease-up, about 90 days of seasoning, the appraisal and the refinance closing, plus a few months of slack. Extensions exist, but they cost 1% of the loan or more.

How fast can a bridge loan close?

About one to two weeks at the lenders that publish timelines: Kiavi in as few as 7 business days and LendingOne in as little as 10–14 days. Both value in-house or can waive the appraisal, which removes a common bottleneck. Title, insurance and your LLC paperwork decide the rest, so gather them while the contract is still being negotiated.

How soon can I move from a bridge to a DSCR loan?

Usually after about 90 days of ownership, when most DSCR (debt service coverage ratio) lenders will use a new appraisal; the ratio compares monthly rent with the monthly payment. Roc will refinance earlier but caps the loan at 80% of your total cost basis, and Lima One skips seasoning on its own short-term loans. Check the rule before you pick the bridge term.

What happens if my bridge loan exit slips?

Act before maturity. Your options are an extension (OfferMarket prices 3 months at 1% of the balance and 6 at 2.5%), a sale, a refinance at lower leverage, or another short-term loan sized on today's value. Interest keeps running the whole time. A loan that matures unpaid can trigger default terms, so raise it with the lender early.

Can a bridge loan help me buy before I sell another property?

Yes, when both are investment properties. A bridge can fund the new purchase and be repaid from the sale, or a cash-out bridge on the property you're selling can raise the down payment. For a house that you or a relative will move into, talk to a residential lender about a consumer bridge or purchase mortgage instead.

Do bridge loans have prepayment penalties?

Not on the investor bridge programs reviewed here: Kiavi, Lima One and OfferMarket published none, and OfferMarket also charges no minimum interest. Kiavi adds that it charges no exit points. Paying off in month 6 of a 12-month term saves six months of interest. Still read the note for exit fees, which act like a penalty.

Do bridge loans cost more than DSCR loans?

Yes, by rate. Bridge floors started at 8.25% in October 2026, and non-bank short-term investor loans had a 10.45% median in 2025 HMDA data, against 7.375% for 30-year investor loans. But a bridge runs for months, interest-only, so the gap in dollars is narrower than the rates suggest: $250,000 at 9.6% costs $2,000 a month.

Does a bridge loan help with 1031 exchange deadlines?

It can help you meet them. The IRS gives you 45 days after transferring the property you sold to identify a replacement, and 180 days, or your return's due date if that comes first, to receive it. A bridge that closes in one to two weeks keeps the purchase on schedule. Whether new debt changes the tax result is for your CPA and exchange intermediary to answer.

Other ways to fund the deal

Where these numbers come from (15)Checked October 26, 2026

Each rate, limit, fee and timeline on this page is a range we took from lender rate sheets, published program terms and public lending data, dated as listed. Read them as a picture of the market rather than a quote. What a lender offers on your deal turns on the house itself, your credit score and how many projects you have finished.