Kent Reliance (OneSavings Bank)

Kent Reliance is a specialist lending brand within OSB Group, one of the UK's largest specialist mortgage and lending organisations. The brand traces its origins to the Kent Reliance Building Society, which was founded in 1898 and served savers and borrowers in the South East of England for over a century before its lending business was acquired by JC Flowers & Co in 2011 to form the foundation of what became OneSavings Bank. This heritage gives Kent Reliance a distinctive position in the UK lending market — combining over 125 years of lending experience with the modern specialist focus and institutional backing of a FTSE 250-listed group.

OSB Group PLC is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is one of the UK's most significant specialist lending groups, with a substantial lending book spanning residential, buy-to-let, commercial, and bridging finance. The group's scale provides Kent Reliance with access to deep capital resources, sophisticated operational infrastructure, and the stability that comes with institutional-grade governance and regulation. At the same time, the Kent Reliance brand maintains its specialist focus and the flexibility that characterises the best specialist lenders.

Kent Reliance's commercial property lending proposition is particularly strong in several areas that distinguish it from both high street banks and other specialist lenders. First, the brand has deep expertise in complex borrower profiles — individuals and companies whose circumstances do not fit the standard criteria of mainstream lenders. This includes borrowers with multiple income sources, complex company structures, overseas income, historical credit events that have been resolved, and other characteristics that cause automated lending systems to decline applications without proper assessment.

Second, Kent Reliance is one of the UK's strongest lenders for portfolio landlords with commercial property holdings. The brand's portfolio assessment approach considers the overall health and diversification of the borrower's property portfolio, the aggregate income and debt position, and the borrower's track record of successful portfolio management. This holistic approach typically delivers better outcomes for experienced landlords than lenders who assess each property application independently without considering portfolio-level strength.

Third, Kent Reliance has particular expertise in semi-commercial and mixed-use properties, where its ability to assess blended income streams from commercial and residential elements provides a competitive advantage. Properties such as shops with flats above, office buildings with residential elements, and other mixed-use assets are core business for Kent Reliance, and the brand's experienced underwriters and specialist valuers ensure that these properties are assessed accurately and fairly.

Loan sizes with Kent Reliance range from £50,000 to £3 million for commercial mortgages, with loan-to-value ratios of up to 75%. Terms of up to 25 years are available, with fixed-rate periods typically of two, three, and five years and variable rates linked to a reference rate. The brand lends to individuals, limited companies, SPVs, LLPs, and partnerships, providing flexibility in borrower structure. Personal guarantees are required for company borrowing.

Kent Reliance's underwriting philosophy centres on experienced human assessment of each application. Rather than relying on automated scoring that accepts or rejects based on data points, the brand's underwriters review the full context of each case and apply their professional judgement to assess the overall strength of the proposition. This approach is particularly valuable for applications with unusual features — a borrower with strong recent performance but an older credit blip, a property with a short lease but a reliable tenant who intends to renew, or a transaction structure that falls outside the standard parameters of automated systems.

The brand's typical interest rates for commercial mortgages start from around 5.75% to 6.5%, reflecting its specialist positioning and the additional underwriting effort involved in assessing complex cases. Rates vary based on LTV, property type, borrower profile, and the overall complexity of the application. While these rates may be higher than the most competitive high street offerings for straightforward cases, they provide access to finance for borrowers who may not be able to secure lending from cheaper but more restrictive lenders. For many Kent Reliance borrowers, the ability to access finance at all — or to access significantly more favourable terms than the alternatives available to them — represents substantial value.

The application process with Kent Reliance is designed to be efficient while accommodating the complexity that characterises many of the brand's cases. Initial enquiries are assessed by experienced underwriters, with indicative terms typically provided within 48 hours. The brand's broker development managers provide specialist support, helping to structure applications and anticipate potential issues. Formal applications require standard documentation including accounts, property details, and identification, with additional information as required for complex cases. Completions typically take six to ten weeks from formal application.

Kent Reliance benefits from OSB Group's substantial operational infrastructure, including experienced legal, compliance, and property valuation functions. The brand's valuer panel includes specialists in semi-commercial and complex property types, ensuring that valuations accurately reflect the characteristics and value of the properties being financed. This is particularly important for mixed-use and semi-commercial assets, where inexperienced valuers can produce valuations that significantly understate property values or fail to properly reflect the income potential of blended commercial and residential elements.

For Commercial Mortgage Broker clients, Kent Reliance is a go-to recommendation for complex cases that require pragmatic underwriting and specialist expertise. The brand's willingness to consider cases that other lenders decline, combined with its deep experience in portfolio lending, semi-commercial properties, and non-standard borrower profiles, makes it an invaluable part of our lender panel. Our relationship with Kent Reliance's underwriting team enables us to present complex cases effectively and to achieve the best possible outcomes for borrowers whose circumstances require a lender with genuine specialist capability.