Renovating or redeveloping? Here’s how to expand your veterinary practice
By Sarah Thornton
Content writer
Last update: 4 December 20191 minute read
In an earlier article we showed you the easiest ways to purchase a veterinary practice. Now that it’s yours, you might find you need to make some refurbishments – or maybe you want to expand and redevelop. When you’re planning on renovating a veterinary practice, there’s a few different factors you’ll need to consider before applying for finance.
- Budget – knowing how much you can afford makes it easier to choose a repayment plan that suits your needs.
- Timing – when you start your project and how long you expect it to take can have an influence on the type of funding you’re eligible for.
- Building regulation or planning permissions – in most cases, you need to have the necessary planning permissions before your loan can be disbursed.
- Additional equipment – with bigger spaces you’ll need more equipment. Consider a type of Asset Finance to fund these purchases.
- Architects or designers – it’s not just the cost of building equipment and bulldozers. You’re also likely to need an architect, designer, or other adviser to make sure everything goes according to plan.
- Hidden costs – there are almost always hidden costs when taking on a renovation project. Working with a trusted adviser such as your accountant can help you navigate these costs without throwing off your funding plans.
When you’ve considered all these factors, you’ll most likely be interested in a development loan. Development loans are intended strictly for renovation or refurbishment products, and there are loan products specifically designed for the veterinary sector.
- The loan provider will advance a certain percentage of the Gross Development Value of a property – a rough calculation of how much the property will be worth once development has finished.
- The only essential requirements for obtaining a development loan are a knowledge of the development process, the necessary planning permissions, and an exit strategy for when the work is finished – selling or refinancing, for example.
- Unlike other forms of property finance like Commercial Mortgages, development loans are short-term, typically lasting up to twelve months.