June 28, 2026 Industrial & Logistics

What Goes Into a Joinery Workshop Commercial Mortgage

Many joinery and cabinet maker workshops run out of a leased factory unit, even though the fit-out and heavy equipment make the space hard to leave. Owning the premises turns rent into repayments on an asset you control. Ardent Capital Group speaks with workshop owners about this kind of commercial purchase, and this guide walks through how the finance works.

Ardent Capital Group is a specialist in commercial mortgages for joinery and cabinet maker workshop operators across Australia. Our team can help you move from tenant to owner, and give you clear lending advice on structure and strategy.

Funding capacity: Access finance from $100K to $10M+, matched to your purchase price and profile.
Track record: Over $500M in funding facilitated across a decade for owners and investors.
National service: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, Hobart and surrounding regional towns.
End-to-end support: Property strategy, lender selection, structure, and settlement execution.

Reasons to own your premises

Your operation is tied to a specific layout and heavy fit-out. CNC routers, edge banders, panel saws, dust extraction, spray booths, compressors and three-phase power runs are costly to install and calibrate. Relocating disrupts production schedules, staff routines and delivery routes. Many clients, builders and designers expect continuity of supply and reliable lead times, which ties value to your address.

Owning the building lets you set the power capacity, slab loading and workflow once, then keep it stable. Repayments build equity in an asset that can support future borrowing. You also reduce exposure to lease expiries, make-good claims and rent rises.

Main drivers for ownership

Control of layout and utilities: Fix three-phase supply, extraction ducting, air lines, spray booth ventilation and floor penetrations without landlord constraints.
Cost capture: Direct repayments into an owned asset, with depreciation on equipment remaining with you.
Operational stability: Keep truck access, clear span and roller door heights consistent for sheet and joinery movement.
Strategic equity: Build an asset that can support future equipment upgrades or a second site.

When buying may not suit: If you expect to upsize quickly, plan to relocate closer to a key client cluster, or can earn a better return by deploying capital into staff, additional CNC capacity or software, renting and keeping the flexibility can be the better call. The decision sits with you.

How the finance works for a joinery workshop

Deposit and LVR: An industrial workshop is standard commercial security, so it gears to around 80 per cent, which means a deposit from roughly 20 per cent. The major banks publish no owner-occupier commercial LVR at all, which is part of why a broker matters here. Where you hold equity in a residential property, a lender can cross-secure it and fund up to 100 per cent of the purchase price on settlement.
Loan term and structure: Terms commonly run 10 to 15 years with a bank and 25 to 30 years with a non-bank. Repayments can be principal and interest for steady debt reduction, or interest only for a period to preserve cash flow during fit-out or commissioning.
Security and serviceability: The property is the primary security. Lenders assess your financials, cash flow, management accounts and tax position to test serviceability.
Owner-occupier treatment: Lenders generally favour owner-occupier purchases, given the direct link between the premises and business continuity.

How the purchase is usually structured

Many joinery and cabinet maker workshop operators hold the freehold in a separate entity, a company or a trust, and lease it to the trading business at a commercial rent. A lender then reads that inter-entity rent as the serviceability line, and the arrangement keeps the property asset separate from operating risk. The finance is written around the entity that holds the title and the lease that sits between it and the business.

Buying through an SMSF

Commercial premises usually qualify as business real property, so a self-managed super fund can hold the building through a bare (custodian) trust and lease it to your business at market rent, funded by a limited recourse borrowing arrangement. The lending ratios are tighter and the fund's liquidity and contribution position drive what is possible. We structure the finance around the entities you already hold, and leave the tax and superannuation detail with your accountant and SMSF specialist to sign off.

What underwriters focus on

Business financials: Two to three years of financial statements, BAS, management accounts and ATO position, with attention to margins by job type.
Serviceability strength: Cash flow cover, add-backs like depreciation and existing interest, and sensitivity to timber price swings and builder payment terms.
The property and valuation: Zoning for industrial use, clear span and internal height for racking and sheet handling, slab rating for heavy machines, three-phase power, ventilation and spray booth compliance, truck access and parking.
Deposit and equity position: Cash, retained earnings, or equity in other property, including residential, to support a higher overall LVR.
Lease and occupancy: If part owner-occupier and part tenanted, lenders review existing leases, WALE and tenant quality.

The valuer treats fixtures built into the building, such as the spray booth and in-slab services, as part of the security, and treats removable equipment like CNCs and edge banders as separate. A specialist broker who understands workshop layouts, removable equipment versus fixtures, and how valuers read high fit-out assets can present the file the way a credit team needs to see it.

A worked example

This is an illustrative scenario that shows the kind of situation we can assist with, and how the thinking might run.

Situation: A cabinet maker in Bayswater VIC leases a 650 m2 strata unit running a nested-base CNC, an edge bander, a spray booth and central dust extraction. The lease has 18 months left and the landlord has flagged a rent rise.
Goal: Secure long-term occupancy, add a second CNC and re-run ducting without needing landlord consent.
Options that would be mapped:
- Buy the current unit if it comes up off-market, minimal downtime, though limited yard and height.
- Buy a larger freehold nearby with 8 to 10 m clearance and better truck access, at a higher price but more room for future lines.
- Acquire the property in a trust and lease it back to the trading company at market rent for a clean rent trail.
- Consider an SMSF purchase for a portion of the equity, with liquidity and contributions reviewed first.
Funding structures that would be considered:
- Up to 80 per cent LVR against the commercial property, principal and interest over a 25 to 30 year term with a non-bank.
- Interest only for two to three years during fit-out, then converting to principal and interest.
- Residential security used to leverage your equity, with clear release milestones.
- Separate asset finance for the second CNC and upgraded extraction.
How we would approach it: we would map the ranges, structures and repayments for each path and set out the cash flow impact, so the owner can choose the route that suits them. The figures above are illustrative, not confirmed outcomes.

Beyond the mortgage: joinery workshop finance

Asset finance for joinery equipment: CNC routers, edge banders, panel saws, compressors, forklifts and dust extraction, funded through CNC equipment finance matched to their productive life.
Fit-out and refurbishment finance: Spray booths, ventilation, acoustic treatments, air lines, power upgrades and internal reconfiguration to improve workflow.
Working capital: Cover timber inventory, hardware, finishes and longer builder payment cycles without starving operations, with cashflow finance for a joinery workshop sized to your job pipeline.
Business overdraft: Flexible buffer for work in progress and seasonal swings between kitchen runs and commercial joinery packages.
Refinancing and debt consolidation: Restructure multiple facilities into simpler repayments and free capacity for new equipment.
Construction and renovation: Add a mezzanine for assembly, widen roller doors, pour thicker slabs or extend the shed if zoning allows.
Business or premises acquisition finance: Buy the building, a neighbouring unit, or a competitor's book and equipment as part of a growth plan.

These facilities can work together, for example an ownership purchase that frees equity for new machinery, or a refinance that consolidates repayments and improves serviceability.

Working with a joinery workshop finance specialist

Ardent Capital Group arranges and structures commercial mortgages for joinery and cabinet maker workshop owners. We fit the finance to how you plan to hold the property and how you intend to occupy it.

We service Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and surrounding metro and regional areas. We have helped facilitate over $500M in funding over a decade for over 1,000 borrowers.

If you want clear, specific lending advice and a plan built for optimal financial outcomes, talk to us. Our team can help you today.

Our team structures the workshop property loan for operators across Australia, and getting to the right lender is where the difference is made.

Common questions

What deposit do I need to buy a joinery or cabinet maker workshop? An industrial workshop is standard commercial security and gears to around 80 per cent, so plan for a deposit from about 20 per cent. Where you already own a home or another property with equity, a lender can use it as additional security to reduce the cash you contribute.

Can my SMSF buy the workshop and lease it back to my business? Yes, commercial premises generally qualify as business real property and can be leased back at market rent, subject to contribution limits, liquidity needs and SMSF lending rules.

Do valuations include my dust extraction and machinery? Valuers usually treat fixed building improvements as part of the property, and treat removable equipment like CNCs and edge banders as separate, which is better funded through asset finance.

What property features do lenders prefer for joinery use? Industrial zoning, clear span with adequate internal height, a rated slab for heavy machines, three-phase power capacity, compliant spray booth ventilation, truck access and parking.

How is serviceability tested for project-based revenue? Lenders review two to three years of financials, work in progress and pipeline, customer concentration with builders and shopfitters, and apply add-backs such as depreciation to gauge cash flow cover.

Can I buy a larger site and sublease surplus space? Yes, lenders assess third-party leases, WALE and zoning, and they will model your owner-occupier rent alongside external tenant income.

Can fit-out costs be included in the mortgage? Some structural items that become part of the building can be funded within the loan, while machinery and removable systems are typically better placed in asset finance to match useful life.

Written by

Nick Chong

Managing Director, M.AppFin, Dip. Mortgage Mgmt

Nick holds a Bachelor of Agricultural Economics, a Master of Applied Finance and an Advanced Diploma in Financial Planning. He founded Ardent Capital in 2016 after more than a decade in financial planning and mortgage broking. For the past ten years he has led a team of finance specialists, mortgage advisers, brokers and credit analysts, all working to secure optimal outcomes for clients and always acting in their best interests. The team brings both a qualitative and a quantitative approach to every deal.