Refinance your pub or bar property loan

Ardent Capital Group brings the same method to every client: execution and strategy, clear advice for smart lending, and long-term growth. That means the right lender, structure and timing, straight advice so you borrow with confidence, and today's deal built toward where you want to be tomorrow. On a licensed venue refinance the work is in presenting the trade, because the valuation follows the earnings and the earnings are now yours rather than the previous operator. We build that case, take it to the lenders still writing licensed security, and stay with it past drawdown. Every figure is subject to serviceability, lender appetite and approval.

We refinance commercial facilities from $50K up to $30M, whether that is a single venue freehold you want repriced or several held under one structure. The new limit is set by the current going concern valuation and by servicing, not by what you originally borrowed.

Because your bank can only tell you what your bank will do, and licensed security is written by a narrower group of lenders than standard commercial. We do the legwork: we run the comparison across more than 40 lenders, work out which are genuinely writing licensed and gaming security right now, and present to one at a time so your credit file does not collect an enquiry for every conversation. We also model the break costs, valuation and legals against what moving actually gains you, and if it does not stack up after those costs we will tell you that.

Between 50% and 65% of value. A licensed venue is specialised security rather than standard commercial, so it gears lower than a shop or a warehouse. The figure follows a current going concern valuation, which is driven by the earnings rather than the building.

It is usually the biggest thing that has moved. At purchase the lender was assessing the outgoing operator accounts and pricing the risk of a handover it had not seen you complete. With two or three years of your own accounts the assessment is of a venue you have already proven you can run, which is a materially different file and often a materially different valuation.

Three to six months before your expiry or review date gives you room to choose rather than react. A commercial facility is written to a term and then falls due, unlike a home loan that simply runs. Starting early also means the valuation lands after your strong season rather than in the middle of the quiet one, which matters more at a venue than almost anywhere else.

Yes, where the current valuation supports it. Cash out is assessed on the purpose of the funds, and a bistro rebuild, a courtyard, a cool room or an accommodation upgrade are all ordinary purposes. Where the work is expected to lift the trade we present it that way, with quotes and a timeline, which is a stronger case than an open-ended limit.

They form part of the going concern value, so they are captured in the valuation rather than assessed separately. Appetite varies more than the valuation does. Several banks restrict lending where gaming is a significant share of revenue, while specialist licensed lenders write it as a matter of course. Knowing which is which is the practical difference at a refinance.

It is a common reason to move and it says nothing about your venue. Licensed security is written by a narrower group than standard commercial, and that group shifts as banks reweight their books. We know who is actively writing it this quarter, including the specialist non-banks, and we place the file where the security type is not the deciding issue.

Often yes, and it is one of the more useful things a refinance does at a venue. A longer amortisation makes the base repayment comfortable through the quiet months, an interest only period can carry a refurbishment while a room is closed, and a separate working capital facility keeps stock off the mortgage. We set the structure around the trading year rather than a flat monthly figure.

Then we work with the position as it is. If the balance now sits above the new lender maximum, a partial repayment at settlement can bring it into range. Where a single bad year sits in the accounts we present the underlying trade with it, normalised for one-off costs, and alt-doc assessment is available with several lenders. We tell you which of these applies before anything is lodged.

Four to six weeks from application to settlement for a straightforward file. A going concern valuation on a licensed venue takes longer to commission than a standard commercial one, and SMSF refinances take longer again. We give you a realistic timeline at the start so you can plan the expiry date around it.

The existing loan statements, two to three years of financial statements and tax returns for the operating entity, recent BAS and monthly trading figures, the liquor licence and any gaming entitlement detail, personal tax returns and notices of assessment for the guarantors, and a statement of assets and liabilities. We work through the list with you at the start rather than asking for things one at a time.

The costs are a going concern valuation, legal and settlement fees, any lender establishment fee, discharge costs from your current lender, and break costs where you are leaving a fixed rate. Break costs are an economic cost, calculated on the day and driven by how much fixed term is left. We put the real numbers against the benefit before you commit to anything.

Yes, it is possible, and we arrange these. It is also one of the more intricate refinances in commercial finance, and the detail is what decides whether it works. From 10 August 2026 a new arrangement can only be used for business real property, and a venue trading wholly as a business qualifies, though a site with a residence on the same title generally does not. It has to stay the same single property, and it is limited to the balance outstanding plus accrued interest, so there is no top up, no redraw and no cash out inside the fund. The holding trust is reassigned to the incoming lender rather than dissolved, which carries a legal cost worth weighing against the gain. Your operating company leases the venue back in writing, at market rent supported by an independent appraisal, and the rent has to actually be paid. Cross-collateralisation is not available inside super. Reassign the holding trust to the incoming lender on the same single property, the major banks have exited SMSF lending, and lenders want a liquidity buffer left in the fund after settlement. We know this sounds complicated, and we can assist to make things clearer. Reach out to our team and we will guide you through the entire process. We structure the finance, tell you which lenders will take a licensed freehold as SMSF security and on what terms, and bring in the SMSF specialists and licensed advisers who set the fund side up. You will not be working it out on your own.

Most of the time, no. Where a refinance requires significant preparation due to its complexity, a small mandate fee may apply, and we will always be upfront about this before any work begins.

Although we are based in Sydney, we service clients across all major Australian cities, including Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart, along with their surrounding regional areas. Wherever your venue is located, we can arrange your finance.

Beyond refinancing the freehold, we also assist with asset finance and working capital. On asset finance, that covers commercial kitchen equipment, cool rooms, glass washers, coffee machines, audio visual and gaming room fitout. On working capital, we arrange business overdrafts, lines of credit and cash-flow funding to carry stock through the quiet months and to bridge a refurbishment, and we can fold these into the refinance where it makes sense.

Yes, and it is a very common starting point. Most operators take on the purchase facility the venue came with and leave it alone while they get on with running the place. That is our core ethos, helping you understand the right strategy, structure and clear advice from the very first conversation. Our main borrower profiles are established business owners and commercial property investors with facilities from $50,000 upwards. We will start by telling you what the venue is likely to value at on your own trading rather than the previous operator, what the costs of moving actually are, and whether the move is worth making. If it is not, we will say so and you can stay where you are.