Pharmacists Buying a Pharmacy: Urgent Short Term Loans to Settle on Time

Settle the pharmacy purchase on time, and refinance once your PBS approval is in place

Experts in strategic, short-term finance

Rated 5 out of 5Jason V

Hands down, the best private lenders in the biz
Gino, Alec and Finn are exceptional at what they do. Top tier communication and transparent service.

Rated 5 out of 5Rhowell Dela Rosa

Every settlement has been smooth
Gino and the team at Secured Lending are our go-to when a deal needs to move fast or fall outside bank criteria.

Rated 5 out of 5Rory Mcgrath

Always my top choice for nearly all private lending scenarios
I run and operate a private lending brokerage and have worked with Mark and the team for years.

Rated 5 out of 5Luke Egan

Speed to market on lending advances second to none
The owner is also one of best commentators on LinkedIn calling out poor lending and recovery practices.

Rated 5 out of 5amal maharaj

True professionals in the non bank lending space
Straight forward application and assessment process with clear communication till loan settlement.

Rated 5 out of 5Sam Algeri

Excellent service, quick approvals and seamless settlements
The team at Secured Lending, particularly Gino and Finn, are fantastic to work with.

Rated 5 out of 5sebastian wright

Speed, reliability, transparency
Exceptional team. Exceptional Service. Loved working with the team at Secured Lending.

Rated 5 out of 5Jordan Thomas

Gino & Finn are the best in the business
Quick and painless to deal with, keep up the great work SL team!

Rated 5 out of 5Wayne McCarthy

Always willing to think outside the box to get deals done
We've had a great experience working with Secured Lending.

Rated 5 out of 5JP G

Quick, responsive and reasonable
With all the shady characters in the private lending market, its refreshing to find good people to deal with.

Rated 5 out of 5Joel Togo

Always thorough on assessment and will give you a prompt answer
With clients that are in time sensitive situations, this is crucial.

Rated 5 out of 5David Pruscino

Always professional and supportive
It's a pleasure dealing with the Secured team.

Rated 5 out of 5Monica Monsigneur

A professional and common sense lender who delivers

Rated 5 out of 5Thomas de Fegely

Great options in the private space
Have been dealing with Finn from Secured Lending, he has been very responsive.

Rated 5 out of 5Andrew Soo

A very reliable funding partner
Highly recommended.

Rated 5 out of 5Phil Boyle

Very efficient, responsive
Finn was a great help to assist in a very timely manner.

Finance within

24 hours

Loans from

$250k to $10M

Rates from

9.7% p.a.

Terms

1 to 24 months

A pharmacy sale needs steps a business sale usually does not: the ownership rules, PBS approval for the new owner, and often the bank's pharmacy team. When settlement is due before your bank is ready, terms can come back within hours and settlement within 24 hours of signing.

We lend to pharmacists, and to companies whose directors and shareholders are registered pharmacists where the state allows it, buying pharmacies and the premises they trade from. State laws restrict who may own a pharmacy, so we cannot fund a purchase by anyone who is not permitted to own one.

Pharmacy ownership rules

•In NSW, you must be a registered pharmacist to hold a financial interest in a pharmacy, with limited exceptions, and a pharmacist cannot have an interest in more than 5 pharmacies in NSW
•In Victoria, only registered pharmacists, or companies whose directors and shareholders are all registered pharmacists, may own a pharmacy business, with limited exceptions
•In Victoria, the law makes void any term in a loan or security agreement that gives someone other than the licensee control of the pharmacy business or a share of its profits

Our loan documents contain no term giving us control of the pharmacy or a share of its profits. We lend at an agreed rate, and your lawyer can confirm how the rules in your state apply to your purchase.

PBS approval and settlement timing

A pharmacist taking over an existing approved pharmacy must apply for approval to supply PBS medicines. The Department of Health says it may take up to 30 business days to process a change of ownership, and asks for the application at least 30 days before settlement. A relocation goes to the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority, which assesses it against the Pharmacy Location Rules.

When pharmacists call us

•The sale contract has a settlement date the bank's pharmacy team cannot meet
•You are buying out a partner pharmacist
•The landlord is selling the building your pharmacy trades from
•A relocation needs new premises, and a fit-out paid as a lump sum at settlement
•Your existing pharmacy has an ATO debt to clear before you buy another

Settling a pharmacy purchase

Contract in hand. Send the sale contract, the settlement date and details of the property you can offer. We come back with terms within hours.
Valuation. We value the property that secures the loan, whether that is the pharmacy premises or another property you own.
Settlement planning. Your solicitor lines up settlement with the PBS approval, and you sign the letter of offer.
Settlement. The loan can settle within 24 hours of signing, on the date your solicitor sets.

Paperwork for a pharmacy purchase

•The sale contract
•Evidence of your registration as a pharmacist
•Your PBS approval application, or its status
•The lease or contract for the premises
•The property you can offer

Which loans suit a pharmacy purchase

•First mortgage: over the pharmacy premises or another property you own
•Second mortgage: behind your existing bank loan
•Bridging loans: for relocation premises, where you own the current premises and will sell them
•Caveat loans: for a short period before a bank settles

Rates, terms and security for pharmacists

Loan feature	Detail
Loan size	$250,000 to $10,000,000
Interest rate	From 9.7% p.a. (first mortgage), from 11.95% p.a. (second mortgage)
Term	1 to 24 months, interest only
Maximum LVR	70% of the property value, or of the lower of value and price on a purchase
Security	A first or second mortgage over real property. Never the pharmacy, its PBS approval or its goodwill
Settlement	From 24 hours

Refinancing after approval

Pharmacists usually repay us with bank finance once the purchase has settled and the PBS approval has been issued to them. Others sell another property. We set the term to cover the PBS approval and the bank's assessment.

“Pharmacy purchases depend on approvals that sit outside the sale contract, and the bank often waits for them. We lend to pharmacists with no say in how the pharmacy is run, so the buyer can settle and move to bank finance once the approvals are through. Send us the contract and the PBS timetable, and we will tell you the same day what we can do.”

Gino Tabila

Associate Director

Frequently Asked Questions

No. State laws restrict pharmacy ownership to registered pharmacists and, where the state allows it, companies whose directors and shareholders are registered pharmacists, with limited exceptions. We only fund purchases by people and companies who are permitted to own the pharmacy.

No. We lend at an agreed rate and have no role in running the pharmacy. In Victoria, a loan term that gave someone other than the licensee control or a share of profits would be void, and our loans contain no such terms.

The Department of Health says it may take up to 30 business days to process a change of ownership, and asks for the application at least 30 days before settlement. Lodge early, and we can have the loan documents signed before the approval is issued.

Yes. A relocation is assessed by the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority against the Pharmacy Location Rules, which adds a step to your timeline. We can fund the new premises, and the fit-out as a lump sum at settlement, and a bridging loan can cover the period before the old premises sell.

The pharmacy premises, if you are buying them, or another property you own, such as your home or an investment property. The pharmacy business, its PBS approval and its goodwill are never the security.

Yes. The buyout amount can be funded for the completion date you have agreed. Your lawyer should confirm the ownership rules in your state, particularly if the change affects the number of pharmacies you hold an interest in.

Funding can be ready on the same day, depending on your scenario. The PBS application should be lodged at least 30 days before settlement, so our terms can be agreed well before then.

Yes. A pharmacy carries a lot of stock, and cash can run short after a purchase or a refit. We lend for working capital to pharmacies and other retail businesses.