One in 13 Specialist Development Finance Borrowers Entered Insolvency With Loans Outstanding, Construction Capital Analysis Finds
London, United Kingdom – October 08, 2026 – About one in 13 companies that borrowed from specialist development lenders between 2018 and 2022 later entered liquidation, administration or receivership with the loan still outstanding, according to analysis of Companies House records by Construction Capital, a UK development finance broker.
The firm examined every charge registered at Companies House by a defined set of pure-play development lenders and tracked the status of each borrowing company as at 1 October 2026. Of 2,663 companies that took out a specialist development loan between 2018 and 2022, 208 (7.8%) went on to enter liquidation, administration or receivership while the lender’s charge remained unreleased, or had a receiver appointed over the charged property.
The rate varied by the year the loan was taken out, from 6.6% for 2021 borrowers to 9.2% for 2019 borrowers.
| Year loan taken out | Borrowing companies | Entered insolvency with loan outstanding | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 397 | 30 | 7.6% |
| 2019 | 533 | 49 | 9.2% |
| 2020 | 355 | 31 | 8.7% |
| 2021 | 702 | 46 | 6.6% |
| 2022 | 676 | 52 | 7.7% |
| 2023 | 581 | 38 | 6.5% |
| 2024 | 590 | 14 | 2.4% |
| 2025 | 619 | 12 | 1.9% |
Live loans
Among 1,727 companies with a specialist development loan taken out since January 2022 that is still recorded as outstanding, 84 (4.9%) are currently in administration (34), liquidation (26), receivership (22) or a company voluntary arrangement (2). That is roughly one in 20.
Loans from 2023 worth watching
Borrowers that took out loans in 2023 have already reached 6.5%, close to the 6.6% to 9.2% range that earlier years recorded over a longer period. Insolvency typically follows months or years after a loan is drawn, so the figures for 2023 to 2025 will rise as those loans run their course. The lower rates for 2024 and 2025 reflect the shorter time elapsed and should not be read as an improvement in credit quality.
Repayment speed
The same records show 24.9% of facilities taken out with pure-play development lenders in 2024 were fully repaid within 18 months, compared with 16.1% for facilities taken out in 2019. More detail on development lending activity is available in Construction Capital’s Development Lending Monitor.
Matt Lenzie, founder of Construction Capital, said: “Most development schemes complete and repay, but these figures show that a meaningful minority of borrowers end up in insolvency with their lender’s charge still in place. Many of the problems start before a spade goes in the ground: thin contingency, optimistic sales values and no plan for refinancing if the build overruns the loan term. Stress-testing the appraisal and lining up exit finance early are the cheapest protections a developer has.”
Methodology
The analysis covers charges registered at Companies House in favour of a curated set of pure-play development lenders, with lending through numbered funding vehicles and security trustees attributed to the lender. A borrower is counted as having entered insolvency with the loan outstanding if a receiver was appointed over the charge, if the company is in administration or receivership, or if it is in liquidation while the development charge remains unsatisfied. Companies in liquidation that had already repaid their loan, typically project companies being wound up after completion, are excluded. Company status is taken from the Companies House register at 1 October 2026.
Developers usually borrow through a separate company for each project, so figures count borrowing companies rather than developers. Companies that have completed liquidation and been dissolved no longer appear on the register, so the figures, particularly for earlier years, are minimums. Companies House charge filings do not record loan amounts, interest rates or arrears, so the analysis measures insolvency events, not missed payments or loan extensions. Individual lenders and borrowers are not named.
About Construction Capital
Construction Capital is a London-based development finance broker founded by Matt Lenzie, who has spent more than 25 years arranging property development finance. The firm arranges development, bridging, mezzanine and development exit finance for UK property developers and investors, and publishes quarterly market analysis built from Companies House, HM Land Registry and planning data. Construction Capital is a trading name of Lenzie Consulting Ltd, registered in England and Wales (company number 08174104). Property development finance and other business-purpose lending are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, and Construction Capital is not an FCA-authorised firm.
Media contact: Matt Lenzie, Construction Capital, [email protected], +44 20 3816 3693
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