£11.9m facility delivers 58 new homes in Ashford

• We’ve provided an £11.9m development facility to support 58 new homes in Ashford, built using sustainable ICF construction.
• The deal involved a share purchase and a sales-led exit, requiring a tailored funding structure shaped in partnership with Pronto Management Consultants.
• Legal support from Muckle LLP helped navigate the complexities, ensuring smooth delivery from instruction to close.

The scheme will bring high-quality residential flats to market, with full planning consent already in place and a phased delivery strategy guiding the rollout.

The homes will be built using Insulated Concrete Formwork (ICF) construction, chosen for its sustainability and strong thermal performance. The site was acquired via share purchase, and we structured the facility to support a sales-led exit, taking a tailored approach to both funding and delivery risk.

This deal came to us through Alex Kotelawala at Pronto Management Consultants, a specialist advisory firm known for structuring debt facilities for complex real estate transactions. Pronto played a key role in shaping the deal, navigating the intricacies of an SPA acquisition and a subordinated mezzanine facility, while making sure the funding structure worked commercially and aligned with the client’s delivery strategy.

The transaction was led by Rob Syrett, our Lending Director, with support from Elysia Walters, Relationship Manager, Scott Apps, Head of Distribution, and our credit and legal teams.

Rob Syrett, Head of Origination, Development Finance at HTB, said:

This was a sophisticated transaction with multiple moving parts, from ICF construction and a share purchase structure to a sales-led exit. At HTB, we look at projects in their full context. That means not just bricks and mortar, but the business model and delivery strategy. Our role was to structure a facility that aligned with the client’s objectives while managing the complexity around multiple stakeholders. That’s where HTB adds real value: pragmatic structuring, commercial insight and relationship-led delivery.

Alex Kotelawala, Director of Retail & Commercial Finance at Pronto Management Consultants, commented:

This deal brought together some of the trickiest elements in development finance – from a share purchase acquisition and subordinated mezzanine facility to ICF construction and a sales-led exit. At Pronto, we take pride in making complex situations manageable. Our focus was on shaping a funding package that balanced risk and reward while keeping everyone moving in the same direction. HTB were fantastic partners in that process – pragmatic, collaborative and commercially sharp. Together we delivered a solution our client could have real confidence in, and we’re excited to build on this success with HTB in future projects.

Legal support came from Muckle LLP. Claire Naughten, Senior Associate in the real estate finance team, led the transaction, with Georgia Sproat advising on the security and intercreditor arrangements, and Ross Galbraith leading on the construction elements.

Claire Naughten, Senior Associate at Muckle LLP, commented:

We were delighted to support HTB on a transaction that demonstrated real depth of thinking and collaboration. The share acquisition and ICF elements added complexity, but a focused, solutions-led approach across all parties ensured a smooth progression from instruction to close.