Finance for tradies has always been a bit of an afterthought for the big banks. You earn good money, but it comes in lumps. You might run your business as a sole trader, your tax return might be a year behind, and half your income sits in progress claims that haven’t been paid yet. None of that means you’re a bad risk. It just means you need a lender that understands how trades businesses work, and a process that moves as fast as you do.
This page covers the two main ways tradies borrow, what the money usually goes on, and how to get a quick answer when you need urgent finance for tradies.
What do tradies actually need finance for?
After years of talking to tradies, the list is fairly predictable:
- Materials for a big job, or a bulk buy before a price rise
- A new ute, trailer or van when the old one dies at the worst moment
- Tools, plant and equipment to take on bigger contracts
- Wages and subbies when a builder or client pays late
- An ATO or BAS debt that’s grown bigger than planned
- The Christmas shutdown when work stops but bills don’t
- Retention money stuck with a builder for months
Secured or unsecured: which loan suits your trade business?
There are two roads, and the right one depends mainly on whether you own property.
Property secured loans for tradies
If you or a guarantor own property with equity, whether that’s your home, an investment property, a commercial unit or land, a property secured loan gives you the most room to move.
- Loans from $20,000 to $5 million
- No financials or cash flow records needed
- Bad credit considered
- Funded in as little as 24 hours in some cases, typically a few days
- Terms typically 1 to 12 months
Most tradies who go this way use a fast second mortgage, which sits behind your existing home loan and leaves it untouched.
Unsecured cash flow loans for tradies
If you don’t own property, or you’d rather not use it, an unsecured loan may work when your business has traded for six months or more with an ABN.
- Sized to your business turnover
- Assessed on recent business bank statements
- Some approved and funded within hours
- No property needed
Our page on cash flow loans for tradies explains it in more detail, and the section below on what lenders look at shows how the two are assessed differently.
Key facts
- Loan size: $20,000 to $5 million (property secured minimum $20,000)
- Security: home, investment property, commercial property or land with equity, or unsecured for businesses trading 6+ months
- Speed: some unsecured loans within hours; property loans in as little as 24 hours in some cases
- Term: typically 1 to 12 months for property secured loans
- Paperwork: no financials for property loans; bank statements for unsecured
- Credit: bad credit considered on property secured loans
- Who it suits: sole traders, partnerships and companies across every trade
- Purpose: business and investment purposes
How finance for tradies differs by trade
Every trade has its own cash flow pattern, which is why we have pages for each one in our trades section. A few examples of how needs differ:
- Carpenters and framers often need money for timber and wages early in a job, well before the frame stage claim is paid.
- Plumbers tend to carry costs across rough in and fit off, with long gaps between.
- Electricians often need to fund switchboards, cable and solar components up front.
- Concreters and earthmovers carry heavy plant costs and fuel, and can be hit hard by wet weather weeks.
- Roofers and cladders buy big material orders that must be paid before installation.
The loan structure is similar across trades. What changes is how much you need, when, and how you’ll repay it.
Real world examples
These are examples only, to show how tradies commonly use finance. They aren’t real clients.
Example: the ute that died in March. A tiler on the Sunshine Coast has their ute written off in a crash. Insurance will take weeks. With two years of trading and steady bank statements, they get an unsecured loan within a day to buy a replacement and keep working. Our equipment finance for tradies page covers this in more detail.
Example: the builder who stopped paying. An electrical contractor is owed around $140,000 across three jobs by a builder who’s slowing down payments. Wages and supplier accounts can’t wait. The contractor uses a second mortgage over their investment property to cover six weeks of costs, and repays it as the builder catches up.
Example: the tax bill that snowballed. A plumbing business with five staff has fallen behind on BAS for a few quarters. The debt is now large enough to worry about. A property secured loan clears it in one hit, and the owner works with their accountant to stay on top of BAS from there. Our ATO debt loans for tradies page explains the options.
What does the lender look at?
For property secured loans, it’s mostly three things:
- The property. What it’s worth, what’s owed on it and who owns it.
- The purpose. What the money is for and that it’s for the business.
- The exit. How the loan gets repaid: incoming payments, a sale, a refinance.
For unsecured loans, the focus shifts to the business:
- Time trading. Six months or more with an ABN.
- Turnover. What’s been coming through the business bank account.
- Consistency. Regular income rather than one big payment.
How much can a tradie borrow?
It depends on which road you take.
With a property secured loan, the limit is set mainly by the equity in the property. Example (hypothetical): a landscaper’s home is worth about $900,000 with around $400,000 owing on the bank loan. That’s roughly $500,000 of equity, and a second mortgage can use part of it while leaving a sensible buffer. Loans start at $20,000 and go up to $5 million.
With an unsecured loan, the limit is set by your turnover. A business banking steady income every month can borrow more than one with a single big payment and quiet months either side. Your lending specialist can give you a realistic figure after a short conversation.
Planning finance around the tradie year
Trade businesses have seasons, and a bit of planning takes the sting out of them:
- Christmas and January. Work stops for a few weeks but rent, wages owed and BAS don’t. Line up finance in November, not the second week of January.
- End of financial year. Clients rush to finish jobs, which is great for turnover but heavy on materials and labour.
- Wet weather. Concreters, roofers and earthmovers can lose weeks at a time. A buffer loan keeps crews paid.
- Big contract starts. The first month of a large job is usually the most expensive, before the first claim is paid.
What will it cost?
Every loan is priced on your circumstances. We don’t publish rate cards or “from” figures, because they almost never match what a real tradie ends up being offered. We find the sharpest rate available for your situation and make sure you understand the full cost before you sign anything.
Mistakes tradies make with finance
- Leaving the ATO until last. Tax debts tend to grow and attract attention. Dealing with them early usually costs less stress.
- Waiting until the money’s gone. You get better options when you enquire before you’re out of cash, not after.
- Borrowing without an exit. Know which payment or sale repays the loan.
- Assuming you won’t qualify. Plenty of tradies with bad credit or messy books still get funded, especially when there’s property behind the loan.
Getting urgent finance for tradies
When it’s urgent, speed comes down to preparation. Have your ABN, property details (if using property) or recent bank statements (if not), and a clear idea of what the money is for and how you’ll repay it. Unsecured loans can move within hours when statements are ready; property loans usually take a few days because of the valuation.
Then check your options. The form takes about 60 seconds, won’t affect your credit score and costs nothing. A lending specialist will call you back to talk it through, and we’ll tell you quickly if we can help.
