Some are, some aren't, and the line is drawn by the property's use, not the loan size or the lender. If you or your immediate family live in, or will live in, 40% or more of the property securing the loan, the bridge is a regulated mortgage contract under FCA rules, with the consumer protections that brings. Investment property, business premises, land, property you'll sell or let: that's unregulated bridging, the larger half of the market and the half bridgingradar serves. That 40% occupancy line is how the rules stand as of July 2026. Thresholds like this do get revisited, which is one more reason classification deserves care.
What "unregulated" does and doesn't mean
It doesn't mean lawless. Unregulated bridging lenders still operate under the general law of contract, and the established ones (the kind on our panel) run underwriting and conduct standards that would look familiar to any bank. What it means practically: the loan is treated as a commercial agreement between parties who know what they're doing, so it completes faster, flexes further, and doesn't carry the affordability and advice framework designed for homeowners. That's the trade, stated plainly.
Which one do you need?
Buying an investment property through an SPV: unregulated, straightforwardly. Bridging on the house you live in to fund a business: regulated, because your home secures it. Converting a property you'll partly occupy: the 40% test decides, and it's measured properly, not by feel. Get the classification wrong and the deal dies late, because no lender can complete on the wrong side of the line.
Where we stand
bridgingradar arranges unregulated bridging and development finance for business and investment purposes only. If your situation is regulated, meaning your home is the security, you need an FCA-authorised adviser for that product, and we'll say so immediately rather than waste your week. The engine asks the occupancy question early for exactly this reason.
Answer the occupancy questions precisely, including family members and future intentions. The 40% test is the first gate every lender applies, and it's the one detail on an application that genuinely cannot be finessed.