Bridging Soup fires the questions at Michael Clifford, commercial director at District & County Investments.
Bridging Soup (BS): You joined District & County Investments last year, what is your role and please can you tell us a little bit about your background.
Michael Clifford (MC): My main responsibilities include commercial strategy, credit appetite and proposition development, with a focus on delivering clear underwriting frameworks, consistent decision-making and scalable origination across bridging, refurbishment, commercial and development lending.
I’ve over 19 years’ experience in banking and finance, having held senior leadership roles across the specialist property finance sector, including at Hodge, and operating at Commercial Director level within short-term and development finance.
My background includes developing and executing strategic growth plans, aligning products, teams and processes with commercial objectives, and delivering product, operational and pricing enhancements to support sustainable profit growth.
BS: District & County Investments use a net lending model to fund developments – how does that work?
MC: We structure facilities around the capital that is actually deployed into the project; land, build costs and professional fees, rather than inflating the loan with retained interest. It’s a simple shift, but it materially improves how a deal performs.
Firstly, more of the debt is doing real work from day one. Capital goes straight into the asset, improving efficiency and reducing wasted headroom.
Secondly, it removes day-one leverage distortion. The debt reflects actual deployment, so LTC and LTGDV metrics are cleaner and easier for developers, brokers and equity partners to assess.
We also build our interest model around that same principle. Interest is uncapitalised and accrues only on drawn funds, rather than being rolled up from day one. That directly protects developer profit by avoiding unnecessary compounding and ensuring the cost of debt stays aligned to how the facility is actually used.
The result is a simpler, more transparent capital structure with less drag. Developers can see exactly what they’re paying for, and more importantly, more of the capital is working inside the scheme.
For SME developers in particular, that drives better capital velocity and stronger IRR outcomes which becomes critical as they scale and look to recycle equity across multiple projects.
BS: District & County Investments also offer bridging finance including for auction and land purchases and so what demand have you seen for such finance so far in 2026 and what’s your view for the rest of 2026?
MC: Demand has been solid to start 2026, particularly in areas where speed and certainty are critical such as for auctions, land transactions and time-sensitive acquisitions. That part of the market continues to play to bridging’s core strengths.
What’s been more notable is the shift in borrower behaviour. Developers and investors are being more selective, but also more reliant on short-term finance to secure opportunities where traditional lenders can’t move quickly enough. We’re also seeing bridging used more strategically, not just as a stopgap, but as a tool to unlock value ahead of refinance or development.
Looking ahead, demand is likely to remain somewhat uncertain against the current macroeconomic backdrop. However, that creates a degree of upside for bridging. In more volatile or constrained conditions, borrowers tend to lean into the flexibility that bridging offers, whether that’s speed of execution, structuring, or the ability to move ahead of longer-term financing.
For lenders, that puts more emphasis on execution being able to move quickly, price risk appropriately, and deliver certainty. The fundamentals of bridging remain strong, but the market is less forgiving, so the quality of underwriting and clarity of proposition matter more than ever.
BS: How do you support brokers new to bridging and development finance and what aspects surprise them the most?
MC: For brokers new to the space, the key is simplifying what can often feel like a complex product set. We focus on being accessible and transparent, taking time to walk through deal structure, exit strategy, and how we assess risk, rather than expecting brokers to have all the answers upfront.
That includes working collaboratively on cases, helping shape deals early, and being clear on what works and what doesn’t. In bridging and development finance, speed matters, but clarity matters more, so we try to give brokers confidence in both.
What often surprises new brokers to District & County Investments is how different the product behaves compared to more traditional lending. In particular, the importance of structure over headline pricing, how leverage, exit, and cashflow all interact to determine whether a deal works.
They’re also often surprised by how much of a difference the way a facility is structured can make. For example, net lending and uncapitalised interest can materially improve how a deal performs, even if the headline rate looks similar. That shift from focusing on price to understanding true cost and usability of capital is usually a key learning curve.
Ultimately, once brokers understand that, they tend to move quickly from seeing bridging as a niche product to recognising it as a highly flexible tool that can unlock a wide range of opportunities for their clients.
BS: The Bridging & Development Lenders Association (BDLA), of whom you are a member, has reported consistent growth in the sector over the last year and so what plans do you have in the coming months to build upon the continued growth in the sector?
MC: The growth reported by the BDLA reflects a market that continues to evolve and mature, but sustaining that growth requires discipline as much as ambition.
For us, the focus is on building a scalable platform rather than simply chasing volume. That starts with clarity of proposition continuing to lean into net lending, simple interest and an asset-agnostic approach so brokers and borrowers understand exactly how we lend.
Alongside that, we’re investing in the front end of the business. Strengthening broker relationships, expanding our distribution through experienced BDMs, and maintaining a consistent presence in the market are all key to driving a high-quality pipeline.
Equally important is execution. As the market grows, the ability to deliver quickly and reliably is no longer a point of difference; it’s a baseline requirement. That means continuing to refine our credit process, streamline legals and valuations, and ensure we can move at the pace borrowers expect without compromising underwriting standards.
Finally, we remain focused on funding and capital efficiency. As we scale, improving cost of funds and optimising how capital is deployed will be critical to maintaining competitiveness while protecting returns.
Growth in this market isn’t just about doing more deals, it’s about doing the right deals, consistently, and building a platform that can perform through different market conditions.
