June 5, 2026 Medical & Allied Health

How Podiatry Clinic Owners Approach a Commercial Mortgage

Owning the rooms your podiatry clinic treats from is a considered step, and one that turns rent into equity in a tangible asset. At Ardent Capital Group we speak with allied health owners about this kind of commercial property purchase, so this guide walks through how a lender reads a clinic freehold and what shapes the numbers.

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

Funding range: Ardent can help you access finance of $100,000 to $10,000,000+.
Track record: We have helped facilitate over $500,000,000 in funding over a decade.
Coverage: We service Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, Hobart and surrounding regional towns.
Sector focus: Deep experience with medical and allied health premises, including podiatry-specific fit-outs and ownership arrangements.

If buying your premises is on the horizon, our team can map a podiatry clinic property loan with you and show how the figures come together.

Why podiatry clinic owners choose to buy

A clinic's address anchors patient retention, GP and physio referral networks, and walk-in orthotics retail. Your fit-out is specialised and costly to replicate. Typical podiatry layouts include two to four treatment rooms with sinks and suction, a nail-surgery room with compliant sterilisation, a gait analysis lane with pressure plate or treadmill, onsite orthotic milling or 3D scanning, reception and accessible amenities. Fit-out and equipment commonly run to $150,000 to $500,000 depending on scale and compliance requirements. Owning the rooms reduces relocation risk and lets you plan upgrades on your timeline.

Repayments build equity in a tangible asset. Rental increases are replaced by a loan schedule you control, with options to align repayments to cash flow seasonality. Ownership also strengthens practice value when you choose to sell the business and keep the freehold.

Key drivers for podiatry clinics:

Control over fit-out and compliance: Infection control and accessibility upgrades become capital improvements to your own property.
Address stability: Protects GP and allied health referral patterns, car parking arrangements and local brand recognition.
Equity creation: Repayments build an owned asset that can support future expansion or refinancing.
Potential tax efficiency: Rent paid by the trading entity to the property entity can be set on commercial terms and documented clearly.

Buying may suit less well when your lease has a short runway but you plan to relocate, when you are testing a new catchment, or when capital is better deployed into staffing, marketing, equipment or a second site. The call rests with you, and we are glad to talk it through either way.

How lenders approach a podiatry clinic purchase

Deposit and LVR: Where a lender recognises podiatrists under its healthcare program, finance can extend to 100 per cent of the purchase price on the clinic property alone, with no additional security. Assessed as standard commercial, the premises gear to around 80 per cent, so plan for roughly a 20 per cent deposit. Which path applies depends on the lender, and knowing which recognises podiatrists is much of the work.
Loan term and structure: Banks commonly write terms of 10 to 15 years, while non-bank lenders can run 25 to 30 years. Structures include principal and interest for steady equity build, or interest only for a period if cash flow priority is clinical growth or a staged fit-out.
Security and serviceability: The property is the primary security. Lenders assess practice financials, BAS, tax returns and patient revenue stability, along with any secondary security and your equity position.
Owner-occupier treatment: Lenders typically view an owner-occupied allied health property favourably due to consistent patient demand and lower vacancy risk.

Common ways finance is structured

Many podiatry clinic operators hold the freehold in a separate entity, such as a company or trust, and lease the rooms to the trading entity at commercial market rent. A lender then reads the inter-entity rent as the serviceability line, and the split keeps operating risk apart from the property. Directors' guarantees are common and sit in the lender's risk settings. With a background in financial planning, Nick and the Ardent Capital Group team can help develop a strategy for a workable structure, then work with your accountant for the final confirmation.

Where a podiatry clinic is bought through an SMSF, the premises usually qualify as business real property, so the fund can hold the freehold and lease it back to the practice at market rent. Ardent arranges the finance, typically a limited recourse borrowing arrangement held through a bare trust; your accountant and SMSF adviser confirm the tax, super and ownership detail before anything is locked in. Points to weigh include borrowing complexity, liquidity for contributions and pensions, and tighter rules on improvements.

What lenders look at

Business financials: Two to three years of financials, BAS, debt schedules and commentary on any one-off events.
Serviceability: Historical and forward-looking capacity to meet repayments, including consideration of practitioner mix and chair utilisation.
The property: Location quality, parking, accessibility, scope for clinical rooms, and comparable evidence for valuation.
Deposit and equity: Cash, term deposits or the ability to leverage your equity in residential or existing commercial property.
Lease and occupancy: For owner-occupiers, evidence of the trading business occupancy plan. For mixed-use or partial tenancy, lease terms and covenant strength.

A specialist broker who understands allied health and podiatry can position the file with the lenders that suit it, which reduces friction and saves time.

One way this can play out

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

Situation: Two-practitioner podiatry clinic in a suburban medical precinct, current rent $78,000 per year plus outgoings, five years left on the lease with market reviews.
Objective: Buy a 140 sqm strata suite in the same complex to avoid patient disruption, and complete a staged fit-out to add a third chair and a gait lab.
Options mapped:
- Purchase in a family trust with the clinic leasing back at market rent.
- Purchase in an SMSF with a limited recourse facility, weighing the contribution and liquidity settings.
- Co-ownership with another allied health provider on a tenants-in-common basis, with strata subdivision considered later.
Funding profile: Indicative purchase price $1,050,000, fit-out $220,000, total need $1,270,000. LVR discussed around 80 per cent, with the deposit from cash and the ability to leverage your equity in the directors' home for part of the balance.
How we would approach it: We would map the ranges, structures and repayments, for example principal and interest over 25 years with interest only for 24 months while the third room ramps up, and rent set to market between the entities. The figures above are illustrative, not confirmed outcomes, and the decision stays with the client.

Other lending we can help with

Asset finance for podiatry equipment: Fund podiatry chairs, sterilisation plant, pressure plates, 3D scanners and orthotic milling units while preserving cash. This sits well alongside podiatry equipment finance matched to the useful life of each item.
Fit-out and refurbishment finance: Spread the cost of treatment rooms, a compliant nail-surgery and sterilisation area, and accessible bathrooms across a sensible term.
Working capital: Smooth cash flow through NDIS and aged-care invoicing timing, a new practitioner onboarding or a marketing push to build referral volume. We arrange working capital for a podiatry clinic so day-to-day outgoings stay covered.
Business overdraft: A revolving facility that supports consumables and payroll in higher-growth months.
Refinancing and debt consolidation: Reset rates and terms, and tidy multiple equipment contracts into a clearer structure aligned with practice cash flow.
Construction and renovation: Finance for extensions, combining suites or reconfiguring rooms to add a gait lab and retail orthotics area.
Business or premises acquisition finance: Buy in or buy out a partner, or acquire a second site to expand your catchment.

Owning your premises can free equity over time, and a refinance can consolidate facilities to create a cleaner, more efficient debt profile.

Talk to a podiatry clinic finance specialist

Ardent Capital Group arranges and structures commercial mortgages for podiatry clinics, aligning the facility to how you intend to hold the property and occupy it. We understand fit-out realities, patient flow, referral drivers and how lenders credit-score allied health.

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

This is the kind of purchase where the structure and the strategy matter as much as the rate. We give business owners clear advice on both, so the finance supports the wealth you are building and the years ahead, not just this settlement. If you are weighing up a podiatry clinic purchase, we would be glad to talk it through.

Questions we're often asked

What deposit do I need to buy rooms for my podiatry clinic? Standard commercial treatment gears the premises to around 80 per cent, so plan for about a 20 per cent deposit. Where a lender runs a healthcare program that recognises podiatrists, the deposit can be lower still, funded from cash, retained earnings or equity in another property.

Can I finance the fit-out as part of the purchase? Yes, lenders may include fit-out in the overall facility, or we can run a parallel fit-out or asset finance line so the mortgage sits clean and the equipment terms match useful life.

Is an SMSF allowed to buy my clinic premises and lease it to my practice? Commercial premises generally qualify as business real property, and your SMSF can lease to your trading entity at market rent. Points to weigh include borrowing complexity and liquidity management inside super, which your accountant and SMSF adviser confirm.

Do lenders credit-score podiatry clinics favourably? Allied health owner-occupiers are usually viewed as resilient due to recurring patient needs and referral pathways. Lenders still test serviceability from your actual numbers and practitioner capacity.

Can the clinic property be held in a trust or company? Yes, many podiatry clinics use a trust or company that leases to the trading entity at market rent, which separates risks and simplifies cash flows. The suitable vehicle depends on ownership, tax profile and long-term plans, which we work through with your accountant.

Will a specialised fit-out help the valuation? Valuers focus on land and building value and comparable sales. Some fixed medical improvements support value, while removable equipment is assessed separately through asset finance.

Can I use home equity to reduce my cash deposit? Yes, many owners leverage their equity in a home or another property as part of the deposit plan, subject to lender policy and overall gearing.

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.