Serviced accommodation finance: funding short-let and aparthotel trading income
We arrange serviced accommodation finance for operators and investors funding serviced apartments, aparthotels and managed short-let stock. At scale these are trading assets, so a lender underwrites the operational income and the going-concern value rather than a residential mortgage. This is commercial finance against the units and their trade, not a regulated loan on a home.
Stabilising serviced accommodation
Serviced accommodation finance is the commercial lending that funds managed, furnished units let on flexible, longer-stay terms with a service layer, spanning serviced apartments, aparthotels and portfolios of short-let stock. At the scale we arrange, these are operating assets valued as a going concern on their fair maintainable trade, because a lender underwrites the operational income the units produce rather than a fixed lease or a residential letting.
A lender reads the trade through occupancy, achieved nightly and weekly rate, and the operating margin after management and servicing cost, then sizes loan to value against going-concern value and tests the DSCR the maintainable trade supports. Because the sector is data-poor at research-house level, it leans harder on the operator's own trading evidence and a conservative valuation than it would on a mainstream asset, which puts a clear, documented trading record at the centre of a fundable case. Tenure and structure matter: a freehold owner-operator trade is read differently from leasehold or management-let stock.
Serviced-accommodation deals run as a commercial mortgage for a portfolio or a single trading block, a bridging loan to acquire, refit or carry a newly launched scheme through its occupancy build, and development or conversion finance where units are being created. Asset finance can fund the furniture and equipment, and a VAT loan can bridge the reclaim on an opted purchase. A refinance or remortgage releases equity once the trade is proven.
The demand drivers are structural: remote and location-independent work, and a shift from informal short-term rentals toward professionally operated stock as regulation tightens (Savills). The same extended-stay pull that lifted serviced-apartment occupancy near 79% in 2025 and drove appetite up 22% into 2026 (Savills) supports the operator-led end of serviced accommodation. We package the trading record and the operating model so a lender can price the going-concern risk against limited published market data.
What we fund
- Serviced-apartment blocks and aparthotels trading at scale
- Portfolios of managed short-let and serviced units
- Refinancing serviced-accommodation stock onto commercial terms
- Acquiring and refitting units to a managed serviced standard
- Newly launched schemes building occupancy toward a stabilised trade
- Conversions creating serviced-apartment or short-let units
Indicative terms
- Loan to valueIndicative ~60 to 70% of going-concern value
- Basis of valuationGoing concern on the trading income, conservatively
- TermCommercial mortgage typically to 20 or 25 years
- Debt service coverSized on the DSCR the maintainable trade supports
- Acquire and refitBridging or development finance where relevant
- Key testsOperator, occupancy, rate, longer-stay demand, tenure
- ExitTerm refinance once trade is demonstrable, or sale
Indicative only. Terms vary by lender, asset and scheme and are not an offer of finance.
How we arrange serviced accommodation finance
We arrange serviced accommodation finance around the operator and the trading record, and pre-agree the exit. For a trading block or portfolio we place a commercial mortgage sized indicatively at around 60 to 70% of going-concern value, on a term typically to 20 or 25 years, amortised by the DSCR the maintainable trade supports. For an acquisition, a refit, or a newly launched scheme building occupancy we arrange a bridging loan across the works or the ramp, then refinance onto term debt once the trade is demonstrable. Where units are being created we arrange development or conversion finance drawn against a monitoring surveyor. Because the sector is data-poor, lenders lean on the operator's evidence and a conservative valuation, so we present a clean trading record and, where a sponsor wants to keep cheaper senior debt in place, we can place a second-charge facility behind it subject to the senior lender's consent. Asset finance can fund the furniture and equipment. We frame every figure as indicative and never as an offer or a quoted rate; the terms depend on the operator, the location and longer-stay demand.
What a lender looks for in serviced accommodation
A lender underwrites serviced accommodation on the operator, the location and the strength of longer-stay demand, then works to the fair maintainable trade the operational income supports, sizes loan to value against going-concern value and tests the DSCR. Because the sector is data-poor on published yields and occupancy, it weighs the operator's own trading evidence and a conservative valuation more heavily than on a mainstream asset, and it looks carefully at how much of the income depends on informal platforms versus durable, professionally managed demand. It distinguishes freehold owner-operator stock from leasehold or management-let units. Specialist hospitality and bridging lenders and debt funds compete on this work, with keener term debt arriving once the income is demonstrable. As an arranger with no exclusive tie, we present the trading record and the operating model to the lenders most comfortable with serviced-accommodation income.
Refinancing a demonstrable serviced-accommodation trade
Serviced accommodation finance is arranged with a defined exit. A bridging or development facility is repaid by a refinance onto a long-term commercial mortgage once the trade is demonstrable, or by a sale into the professionally operated market that is drawing rising institutional appetite (Savills reports investor appetite up 22% into 2026). The market remains data-poor on yields and occupancy, so a conservative valuation and a documented, repeatable trade are what make the exit fundable. A demonstrable stabilised income converts a day-one position into a refinanceable going-concern value and can release equity for the next scheme. We structure the facility so the refinance or sale is credible from the day it is drawn.
Finance that suits this asset class
- Commercial mortgagesLong-term debt on trading serviced-accommodation stock, sized on going-concern value and DSCR.
- Bridging financeFunds acquisition, refit or an occupancy ramp ahead of a term refinance.
- RefinancingReplaces existing debt or releases equity from a proven trade.
- Development financeStaged funding for creating serviced-apartment or short-let units.
- Asset financeFunds furniture, fixtures and equipment across the units.
Stabilising serviced accommodation?
A view on fundability within one working day.
What drives a serviced accommodation business's numbers
Serviced accommodation sits between the aparthotel and holiday-let markets, earning from short and medium stays on a lean, self-check-in cost base, so the economics turn on occupancy, achieved rate and the durability of the booking channels. The same extended-stay demand drivers apply that Savills tracks in serviced apartments: remote and location-independent work and a structural shift from informal short lets toward professionally operated stock as regulation tightens (Savills). A lender assesses the evidenced trading income, the planning and regulatory position of short-let use, and the fallback residential or assured-shorthold value. We model maintainable trade on the operated income, because the value follows the trade rather than a fixed lease.
Indicative serviced accommodation finance and structures
Indicatively we arrange serviced accommodation finance on a commercial or specialist basis to around 65 to 75% of value depending on whether the asset is a single unit, a block or an operated portfolio, sized on the evidenced or projected trading income. For a purchase and fit-out we arrange bridging for acquisition plus works, then a refinance onto a term facility once the units are operating and letting. We are clear-eyed about short-let planning and regulation, because a lender underwrites it. These are market-typical, indicative structures and never an offer or a quoted rate; the terms depend on the format, the trade and the regulatory position.
Frequently asked questions
Can you get a mortgage for serviced accommodation?
At operator scale, yes, but as commercial finance rather than a residential mortgage. Serviced-apartment blocks, aparthotels and portfolios of managed short-let stock are financed on a commercial mortgage sized against going-concern value and the DSCR the trading income supports, typically to around 60 to 70% loan to value. It is unregulated commercial lending against the units and their trade, underwritten on the operator, occupancy and rate, not on personal income.
What is an example of serviced accommodation?
Serviced accommodation covers managed, furnished units let on flexible, longer-stay terms with a service layer: a block of serviced apartments, an aparthotel, or a portfolio of short-let properties run professionally with cleaning, linen and check-in. At the scale we finance, each is an operating asset valued as a going concern on its fair maintainable trade, which is how a lender sizes finance against it rather than as a residential letting.
What are the disadvantages of serviced accommodation?
From a finance standpoint the main considerations are operational intensity, income that depends on occupancy and rate rather than a fixed lease, a shorter and less-documented track record than mainstream hotels, and a data-poor market that leads lenders to a conservative valuation and firmer underwriting. Regulation on short lets is also tightening. A clear, professionally managed trading record and a credible operator are what offset these and make a case fundable.
Do I have to tell my mortgage lender if I do Airbnb?
If a property is held on a regulated residential mortgage, letting it on a short-let platform usually requires the lender's consent, and that is a regulated-mortgage question outside what we arrange. What we arrange is commercial serviced-accommodation finance, where the short-let trade is the basis of the loan rather than a breach of it: the lender underwrites the operational income as a going concern from the outset. Where a deal would need FCA authorisation we refer it to a regulated firm.
How much deposit do I need for serviced accommodation finance?
Commercial serviced-accommodation finance is sized indicatively at around 60 to 70% of going-concern value, and often more conservatively given the data-poor market, so an operator contributes roughly a third or more of value as deposit and equity. Lenders size against the DSCR the trading income supports and a conservative valuation, not a fixed deposit. We frame leverage as indicative only and never as an offer.
Who lends on serviced accommodation?
Specialist hospitality and bridging lenders and debt funds lend on serviced accommodation at operator scale, pricing on the operator, the location and longer-stay demand, with keener term debt once the income is demonstrable. Because the sector is less data-rich, they weigh the operator's evidence and a conservative valuation heavily. As an arranger with no exclusive tie, we run the lenders most comfortable with this income rather than defaulting to one.
Stabilising serviced accommodation?
Tell us about the asset and the income plan and we will come back with a view on fundability and likely terms.