Semi-Commercial Mortgages Devon
Single-facility commercial mortgages for the shop-with-flat-above archetype and other residential-commercial mixed assets where residential floorspace is 40%+. Up to 75% LTV. Blended ICR ~145%. Mid-2026 rates 6.5–8.5% pa. We arrange the unregulated cases (let residential element); cases where the borrower or family member occupies the flat fall under the FCA's regulated mortgage perimeter and we refer those out to a regulated broker.
LTV
70–75%
Cover test
Blended ICR 140–150%
Rate range
6.5–8.5% pa
Facility
£150K–£2M
Underwriting a Devon semi-commercial commercial mortgage
Semi-commercial is the term for commercial mortgages on mixed-use property where the residential element is at least 40% of total floorspace, typically the classic shop-with-flat-above archetype that defines Devon's market-town and suburban high streets. The product gives lenders comfort from the residential security (easier to re-let an empty flat than an empty retail unit), so semi-commercial routinely prices 50–100bps inside pure commercial investment on the same building.
There is one structural complication every borrower must understand. Commercial mortgages are unregulated by definition and fall outside the FCA's regulated mortgage perimeter, which is what we arrange. If the borrower or an immediate family member personally occupies the residential element, the deal moves inside the regulated mortgage perimeter and stops being a commercial mortgage. We do not hold FCA authorisation because the products we arrange are unregulated, so where a deal falls into regulated territory we refer it to a regulated mortgage broker partner. We flag this at outset rather than discover it three weeks into legals. The classic case: the independent retailer who buys the freehold of their shop and lives in the flat above sits inside the regulated perimeter; the same building bought as an investment with the flat let on an AST sits inside our unregulated commercial scope.
Active Devon semi-commercial spines: Fore Street and the High Street in Exeter, Union Street and the city-centre parades in Plymouth, the resort high streets of Torquay and Paignton, and the market-town centres of Newton Abbot, Tiverton, Barnstaple, Honiton and Tavistock. Most semi-commercial deals are £150K–£800K facility size. Worked example: an Exeter Fore Street shop with two flats above, £475K valuation, retail let on a 10-year FRI to a national coffee covenant, both flats let on ASTs (unregulated, in our scope). InterBay Commercial placed at 75% LTV, 6.95% pa on a 5-year fix, 25-year term, blended ICR 148%. Worked example two: a Newton Abbot shop-plus-three-flats with all flats let on ASTs to arms-length tenants, £585K, placed via Together at 70% LTV, 8.45% pa, blended ICR 145%.
See our dedicated semi-commercial service page for the product mechanics in detail. For purely residential blocks above commercial, see HMO blocks; for predominantly-commercial buildings with smaller residential elements, see mixed-use.
Semi-commercial assets we fund
Shop with one or two flats above
Classic Devon high-street archetype. Exeter Fore Street, Plymouth Union Street, the Torbay resort parades and the market-town centres of Newton Abbot, Tiverton and Barnstaple.
Restaurant or pub with operator flat (let)
Operator flat above licensed-trade premises let on AST. Sits as unregulated commercial. Owner-occupied flat cases fall outside our scope, referred to a regulated broker.
Office with residential conversion above
Office at ground or first floor with residential floors above (post-Class E to mixed change-of-use).
Vacant semi-commercial acquisition
Bridge-to-let funded acquisition with refurbishment and re-letting both elements before term-out.
Multi-flat above commercial
Larger semi-commercial blocks with 3–5 flats above ground-floor retail. Specialist underwriting on blended ICR.
Heritage and Victorian conversions
Listed-building semi-commercial; heritage-comfortable lenders only. Exeter Cathedral quarter, Totnes and harbour-town conservation-area stock, Victorian arcades.
Finance structures for Devon semi-commercial
Single-facility semi-commercial commercial mortgage is the primary route on unregulated cases (residential element let on AST or to a limited-company tenant). Bridge-to-let funds vacant acquisition with agreed exit onto term semi-commercial. Cases where the borrower or family member will occupy the residential element fall outside the unregulated commercial scope, we refer those to a regulated mortgage broker partner.
Owner-occupier commercial mortgage
Where the borrower's business trades from the property, EBITDA cover at 1.3–1.5x.
Commercial investment mortgage
Let assets, ICR-led underwriting at 140–160% stressed cover.
Commercial bridge-to-let
Vacant or value-add acquisition with agreed term-out onto investment mortgage.
Commercial remortgage
End-of-fix or capital raise on existing assets.
The Devon semi-commercial estate
A deep, active product across Devon. The classic high streets, Exeter Fore Street and the city centre, Plymouth Union Street, the Torquay and Paignton resort parades, and the market-town centres of Newton Abbot, Tiverton, Barnstaple, Honiton and Tavistock, all run on shop-plus-flat-above stock dating from the Victorian and Edwardian eras through the 1930s. Vacant bank and retail units retained as Class E commercial space with new flats above, under change-of-use consent, are a current source of semi-commercial profiles across the county. The semi-commercial market trades steadily, these assets rarely sit vacant for long because the residential element is intrinsically lettable.
Lender appetite for Devon semi-commercial
Strong on the unregulated cases we arrange. <strong>InterBay Commercial</strong> (OSB Group) is the most active named lender on the Devon shop-plus-flat archetype, typical 7.75–7.5% pa at 70–75% LTV. Together covers more challenged cases (vacant flat at acquisition, weaker commercial covenant) at 8.5–9.25% pa. <strong>Shawbrook</strong>, Aldermore, YBS Commercial, HTB and Cambridge & Counties all have meaningful semi-commercial appetite on let residential cases. Each has a distinct LTV / minimum-loan / covenant profile, we know which fits what. Cases that fall inside the regulated mortgage perimeter (owner-occupied residential element) are out of scope for us and we refer those to a regulated broker.
Semi-Commercial FAQs
Developing a semi-commercial scheme in Devon?
Free-of-charge scheme assessment. Indicative terms within 48 hours.