Bridge Loan Calculator
Price short-term financing that covers the gap between buying a new home and selling the existing one, where points and a high rate compress into a few months.
Bridge Loan Calculator
Results recalculate instantly on every keystroke. Nothing you type is transmitted.
What this result does not account for
- Results are a model, not a quotation — an institution's own figures govern.
- Every input is an assumption; change one and the answer changes with it.
- Rounding is applied only at the display layer, so totals may differ by a cent from a statement that rounds each line.
In short: A bridge loan is expensive by design because it is short. Borrowing $200,000 at 10.5% interest-only for twelve months with 2 points and $1,200 of fees costs $26,200.00 — an effective 13.10% of the amount borrowed, and far more if repaid early.
Formula
Points do not amortise over a short term, so repaying early raises the annualised cost rather than lowering it.
Worked Example
- Monthly interest. $200,000 × 10.5% ÷ 12 = $1,750.00.
- Interest over the term. Twelve months at $1,750.00 = $21,000.00.
- Add the points. 2 points on $200,000 = $4,000.00, plus $1,200 of fees.
- Total the cost. $26,200.00, or 13.10% of the amount borrowed.
- Check capacity. 80% of $500,000 less the $280,000 mortgage leaves $120,000.00 — short by $80,000.
Analyst note. Repaying in six months rather than twelve costs $15,700.00, which sounds better but annualises to 15.70% because the $5,200 of points and fees is spread over half the time. Bridge finance rewards a slow sale less than people assume. Note too that the default here does not fit: $200,000 is needed but only $120,000 is available against this equity position.
Strengths & Limits Of This Model
Where this engine is strong
- Runs entirely in your browser — no figure you type is transmitted or stored.
- Shows the full working, so every number can be traced and challenged.
- Free, unmetered and free of affiliate incentives.
Where it stops
- Generalised assumptions cannot capture every individual circumstance.
- Jurisdiction-specific rules and mid-year changes may not be reflected.
- A model output is not a substitute for a professional review of your position.
Practical Use Cases
Buying before selling in a competitive market
A non-contingent offer is materially stronger, and a bridge makes one possible. Price the eventual permanent financing with the Mortgage Payment Calculator.
Covering a deposit locked in existing equity
The capacity test shows whether your equity actually supports the amount needed. Where it falls short, a HELOC arranged before listing is usually cheaper.
Stress-testing a slow sale
Enter eighteen or twenty-four months rather than twelve. If the cost at that horizon is unbearable, the bridge is not the right instrument for your risk tolerance.
Methodology & Editorial Standards
Bridge loans are modelled as interest-only, which is the standard structure, with the full principal repaid from the sale proceeds. Total cost is interest over the expected term plus points and fixed fees. The effective cost expresses that total as a percentage of the amount borrowed, and the annualised figure scales it to a yearly rate for comparison against conventional financing. Because points and fees are incurred at origination regardless of duration, early repayment raises the annualised cost, which the half-term scenario demonstrates. Capacity is tested against combined loan-to-value on the existing property, typically capped at 80%. Some lenders instead cross-collateralise both properties, which changes the calculation and is not modelled. The engine implements the standard published formula for this calculation. Inputs are validated for domain and sign before evaluation, and any undefined case returns an em-dash rather than a spurious value.
Computation runs in IEEE-754 double precision at full internal precision; rounding to two decimal places occurs strictly at the display layer, so no cumulative drift enters the result. All monetary outputs use accounting presentation — grouped thousands, two decimals, negatives in parentheses — so figures can be transcribed directly into a model or working paper. Division-by-zero and out-of-domain inputs return an em-dash rather than a misleading number.
This engine was reconciled against an independent reference implementation and hand-verified for the worked example above before release. Our full five-stage review process is published on the About Us page.
Disclaimer. This calculator is provided for informational and modelling purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, legal, medical, or engineering advice. Verify all figures with a qualified professional before acting on them.
Bridge Loan Calculator — 20 Expert FAQs
20 analyst-written answers to the questions practitioners actually ask — optimised for voice and answer-engine retrieval.
How much does a bridge loan cost?
$26,200.00 on $200,000 over twelve months at 10.5% with 2 points and $1,200 of fees — 13.10% of the amount borrowed. Bridge finance is priced for speed and short duration, not for value.
Why are bridge loans so expensive?
Short duration means the lender must recover origination costs quickly, and the risk is concentrated on a sale that has not yet happened. Points do most of the work, which is why early repayment does not help proportionally.
How much can I borrow on a bridge loan?
Typically up to 80% CLTV against the existing property. On a $500,000 home with a $280,000 mortgage that is $120,000 — often less than buyers expect and the reason many bridges fall through.
Do I make payments on a bridge loan?
Usually interest only, $1,750.00 monthly here. Some lenders defer all interest to payoff, which preserves cash flow but increases the final settlement figure.
What if my house does not sell in time?
You pay for the extension, and terms are rarely favourable. Model eighteen or twenty-four months before committing; if that cost is unacceptable, the risk is too high.
Is a HELOC cheaper than a bridge loan?
Almost always, often by half. The catch is timing: lenders generally will not open a HELOC on a property already listed, so it must be arranged before you go to market.
Does repaying early save money?
In absolute terms yes, $15,700.00 rather than $26,200.00, but the annualised cost rises to 15.70% because points and fees do not scale with time.
Do bridge loans require an appraisal?
Usually on both properties, and the cost falls to you. It is one reason closing takes two to three weeks rather than the same-week timeline sometimes advertised.
Can I get a bridge loan with poor credit?
Bridge lenders weight equity more heavily than credit, so approval is possible, but pricing worsens sharply. Below strong credit, hard money terms and bridge terms begin to converge.
Are there prepayment penalties?
Sometimes a minimum interest period of three to six months, which functions as a penalty if your sale closes quickly. Check for it before assuming a fast sale reduces the cost.
What happens at closing on the sale?
The bridge is repaid in full from the proceeds, usually as the first disbursement. Anything left flows to you, which is why an accurate net-proceeds estimate matters so much.
Is a bridge loan better than a contingent offer?
In a competitive market a non-contingent offer can be worth more than the bridge costs, sometimes several percent of the purchase price. In a slow market the contingency is free and the bridge is waste.
Is this bridge loan calculator free to use?
Yes. It is free, requires no account, and has no usage limits. ApexConverter is funded by contextual advertising, never by selling user data.
Is my data sent to a server?
No. The engine runs as Vanilla JavaScript inside your browser under our Zero-Server Client-Side Execution model. Your figures are computed locally and are never transmitted, logged, or stored.
How accurate is this calculator?
It applies the standard closed-form formula in IEEE-754 double precision, rounding only at the display layer. The engine is reconciled against an independent reference implementation before release.
Does it work on mobile?
Yes. The interface is mobile-first with numeric keypad hints and is tested down to a 320-pixel viewport with no horizontal scrolling.
Can I use it offline?
Largely, yes. Because computation is client-side, the page continues to calculate without a network connection once it has loaded.
Which currency does it use?
Amounts display in US$ accounting format, but the underlying mathematics is currency-agnostic. The result is identical in any currency, so simply read the figures in your own.
Why does a result show an em-dash?
An em-dash indicates the calculation is not defined for the inputs given — typically a division by zero or a value outside the valid domain. We show a dash rather than a misleading number.
How do I report an error?
Email apexconverter.praxiscalc@gmail.com with the tool URL, your exact inputs, the output received and the output you expected. Verified mathematical errors are patched within 72 hours.