Who this covers: employed pharmacists, pharmacists buying a first share or a whole pharmacy, and pharmacy owners expanding or refitting.
What lenders do differently
The home loan
Pharmacists are on most lenders' medical professional lists, with LMI waived to 90 per cent and at some to 95 with registration and an income floor. Owners are assessed on the pharmacy's financials and their own returns together; drawings and distributions are read against the entity's profit.
Buying in or buying a pharmacy
Specialist pharmacy lenders lend against goodwill and the business's earnings, often to 70 to 80 per cent of the purchase price for a first-time owner with experience, more with security. The lender reads the script numbers, PBS and front-of-shop mix, the lease, the location rules and the vendor's financials. A partial buy-in is financed the same way against the share.
Fit-out, equipment and stock
Fit-out loans over five to seven years where the lease supports it; dispensing robots and equipment on equipment finance; stock on a trade account or inventory facility.
PBS and cash flow
PBS claims are paid on a cycle and wholesaler accounts fall due monthly; an overdraft sized to the gap, or a facility against the PBS receivable, keeps the two apart. Lenders in the sector size it on the script volume.
Worth knowing before applying
The lease term and the location approval are the two things that most often limit the finance; a pharmacy's value moves with its script numbers, so the latest months matter; and the commercial property page covers buying the premises.
The tools that fit
- Deposit and LMI calculator
- Commercial property finance
- Business and asset finance
- Working capital and overdraft calculator
- Equipment finance calculator
- What lenders ask for: checklists
Not sure whether the business needs an overdraft, or how big: the working capital calculator works it out from sales, payment terms and stock, with presets for a typical business like yours.
Policies on all of the above differ lender to lender and change without notice; the value of the conversation is knowing which lender's policy reads your payslip best on the day. Understanding how your income is read before you apply is what makes the application calm.