Running a licensed venue means lumpy money
Pubs, bars and hotels earn in bursts. Summer, the footy finals, Christmas parties and long weekends carry the year. Then the quiet stretches arrive with the same rent, rates, wages, insurance, licence fees and supplier bills. A venue can be a strong business across twelve months and still be short in any given eight-week window.
The big spends rarely wait for a good month either. Fire safety and building compliance upgrades, kitchen replacements, a beer garden rebuild, accommodation room refurbishments, new cool rooms and cellar equipment. Then there are the strategic moves: buying the freehold you lease, buying a second venue, buying out a partner, or expanding into the shop next door.
Typical timing problems for venues
- Compliance works ordered by council or a fire safety audit with a deadline
- Refurbishments needed before peak season to capture the trade
- Venue or freehold purchases with fixed settlement dates
- ATO debt from GST and PAYG over a slow year
- Insurance claims after storm, flood or fire that take months to pay
- Waiting on settlement of a venue or property sale
Pub, bar and hotel scenarios
| Scenario | Loan purpose | Exit |
|---|---|---|
| Country hotel with a compliance notice and a deadline | Funds fire safety and building upgrades on time | Refinance once works are signed off |
| Bar wants to refit before summer | Funds fit-out, furniture and bar equipment | Summer trading cash flow |
| Publican buying the freehold from the landlord | Bridges the purchase until bank finance is approved | Bank refinance of the freehold |
| Hotel group buying a second venue with a short settlement | Funds the deposit or full purchase quickly | Refinance or sale of another asset |
| Venue damaged by a storm, insurer still assessing | Pays for repairs so trading resumes | Insurance payout |
| Operator has sold the business, settlement in two months | Clears ATO and supplier debts to protect the sale | Sale proceeds |
| Partner exit after a dispute | Funds the buy-out so the remaining partner keeps the venue | Refinance to a longer-term lender |
These scenarios illustrate how venues use short-term finance. They are examples, not claimed results.
Why venue finance takes so long elsewhere
Licensed venues are a specialist area for banks. Expect requests for several years of financials, trading history, management accounts and a specialist valuation, plus questions about the licence and any gaming. Credit committees meet on their own schedule. A bank refinance commonly takes up to three months or more, and you may not be approved for the amount you need.
Cash flow lenders are rarely a fit for the amounts venues need, and their daily or weekly debits hurt a business with a large wages bill. Trade credit from breweries or suppliers can come with strings attached that limit your choices.
How Equity Tap lends to venue owners
We lend $50k to $5m for one to twelve months, secured by a first mortgage, second mortgage or caveat over residential or commercial property anywhere in Australia. If you own the freehold, it can be the security. If you lease the venue, your home or another property can be.
We don't order a valuation before approval, and we don't need tax returns, BAS, profit and loss or bank statements. That means no specialist hotel valuation to wait for and no trading accounts to prepare before you get an answer. We need ID, the property and mortgage details, the purpose and evidence of the exit.
Interest for up to the first six months can be prepaid or added to the loan, so there are no scheduled payments while the refurbishment is done or the insurer pays. Interest is not waived, and you see the full cost before you sign. We are business owners ourselves, so we understand the difference between a struggling venue and a good one in a quiet month. Read more about us.
Exits we see for venues
- Refinance to a bank once works are complete or the purchase has settled
- Peak season trading
- Insurance payouts
- Sale of the venue, the freehold or another property (see property sale advance)
- Sale of surplus equipment or a related business
How it runs
Call us or have your broker call. Conditional approval can often be given on the phone, with a term sheet in about 30 minutes once we have the scenario. If the freehold is the security and there's an existing first mortgage, a second mortgage lets you leave that lender in place, though their consent may be needed. Eligible loans can settle in as little as 24 hours.
Broker note
Hotel and bar deals often stall at the bank for valuation and credit. If you need a bridge while the bank works through it, or a quick answer for a client facing a compliance deadline, send it through the broker page. You deal with the decision maker directly.
Also see cafés and restaurants and commercial property loans. Apply online or call 1300 123 024.
Business-purpose lending only. Approval, timing and terms depend on the scenario.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use the pub freehold as security?
I lease my bar. Can I still borrow?
Do you need a specialist hotel valuation?
Can you fund compliance works with a council deadline?
Can I bridge the purchase of a venue while the bank decides?
Do I need to show trading figures?
How long can I keep the loan?
Brokers: send the scenario through the Equity Tap broker channel and you will deal with the same lending team.