Farm and agribusiness loans from a private lender

Farm cash flow follows the season, not the calendar. Seed, fertiliser, fuel and chemicals are paid for at sowing. Store cattle are bought months before they are sold fat. Contract harvesting, freight and storage come before the grain cheque. Then a dry spring, a frost or a market drop moves the whole timetable.

Banks with agribusiness teams know this, but their approvals take time and their appetite changes with the season. A private lender looks at property and a clear exit, which suits short, defined needs: a harvest gap, a block that comes up next door, a restock after rain.

How do farmers actually use private property-secured loans?

Situation	Usual security	Usual structure	Typical exit
Pre-harvest or pre-sale cash gap	Town house, investment property or the farm (case by case)	Caveat or second mortgage	Grain, wool or livestock sale proceeds
Buying the neighbouring block	The new block plus existing property	Private first mortgage	Bank or agribusiness refinance
Restocking after a dry period	Any owned property with equity	Second mortgage with capitalised interest	Livestock sales over the next season
Machinery or irrigation upgrade	Town or commercial property	Second mortgage	Equipment finance or bank refinance
ATO debt after a poor year	Any owned property	Second mortgage	Next season’s income or refinance
Bridging while a farm parcel sells	The parcel being sold plus other property	First or second mortgage	Settlement of the parcel sale

Farm businesses are often held through a family trust, a partnership or a company, with land titles split across generations. That is workable, but every owner of the property offered has to sign, so it pays to sort out who owns what early. Our page on company or trust owned property covers the signatures involved.

The point of a private loan here is timing. It should end when the crop, the stock or the parcel turns into cash, or when a longer-term lender takes over.

Will a private lender lend against rural land?

Rural property is considered case by case. Vacant land and farmland are harder to assess and sell than a suburban house or a city warehouse, so the questions are more detailed:

• Location and access. Distance to a regional centre, road access in all weather.
• Improvements. Homestead, sheds, yards, fencing, water infrastructure.
• Size and use. A 40-hectare block near a growing town is different from a large holding in a remote district.
• Saleability. How readily the land would sell if the exit failed.

Many farm families find the quickest route is to offer a different property: a house in town, a rental unit in the regional centre, a commercial building or an industrial shed. Two properties together often do what neither can alone; see using multiple properties as security. For bare land, our vacant land loans page sets out what matters.

There is no formal valuation required. The lender assesses the property itself, which avoids the long wait that arranging an outside report on a remote holding can involve. Expect questions, photos and supporting details instead.

Does farm debt mediation affect a private loan?

It can, and it is worth understanding before you borrow. The federal agriculture department notes that NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia have legislated farm debt mediation schemes, and Western Australia runs a voluntary scheme. In NSW, the Rural Assistance Authority explains that a creditor must invite the farmer in writing to mediate before taking enforcement action on a farm mortgage, and the farmer has 20 business days to respond.

For borrowers, mediation is a safeguard. For lenders, it adds time to any recovery over farm security. That’s one reason private lenders weigh farm property carefully, and why other property can produce a faster yes. Your solicitor can explain how the scheme in your state would apply.

Should you borrow or break a farm management deposit?

Farm management deposits let primary producers set aside pre-tax income for lean years. The ATO’s 2026 primary producer guidance sets out the rules, including:

• deposits total no more than $800,000 at any one time;
• amounts repaid within 12 months of deposit lose concessional treatment, unless the repayment follows qualifying natural disaster assistance or severe drought conditions;
• repayments of deducted deposits are generally assessable in the year they are repaid.

If you need cash within 12 months of making a deposit and no exception applies, a short secured loan can sometimes be cheaper than giving up the tax concession. Your accountant should run both scenarios before you choose.

Can a private loan bridge a concessional farm loan?

The Regional Investment Corporation’s Farm Investment Loan flyer (March 2026) describes loans of up to $2 million over 10 years that can be used to refinance existing commercial debt, pay operating expenses and invest in infrastructure, machinery or land. A short private loan can carry an urgent need while that longer application is assessed.

Treat the concessional loan as one exit, not the only one. If it is declined or delayed, you will need a second way out, such as a sale of stock or a parcel. Our guide to exit strategy for a short-term mortgage explains how lenders test that.

Illustrative example: a mixed farming family in the NSW Riverina has a strong crop in the ground but has spent heavily on inputs when a neighbouring 300-hectare block comes up for sale with a six-week settlement. Their agribusiness bank will lend most of the price against the new block, but the family must contribute about $450k towards the balance and duty, and harvest income is still three months away. They own a rental house in the nearest regional city worth about $700k with no debt on it. A $450k private first mortgage over the rental house, with interest capitalised for 6 months, provides the contribution and the block settles on time. After harvest, grain proceeds and a modest increase in the bank facility repay the private loan, and the rental house is unencumbered again.

Seasonal gaps and land purchases are exactly what you can ask a specialist about in a 60-second enquiry.

What documents does a farm loan need?

Most of this sits with your rural accountant:

• ID for every borrower, director, trustee and guarantor;
• ABN or ACN, partnership agreement or trust deed;
• title details for each property offered, and statements for any existing loans on them;
• recent BAS and the latest financial statements if the exit relies on farm income;
• crop estimates, livestock numbers, forward contracts or sale agreements that support the exit;
• the contract of sale if you are buying or selling land.

See the documents for a private mortgage checklist for the full set.

What does it cost, and what are the risks?

Pricing is set on each deal’s security, LVR, term and exit, and we aim for the sharpest price your situation allows. A second mortgage or caveat costs more than a first mortgage, because the lender ranks behind another. A small assessment fee applies, varies per loan and is shown on the Letter of Offer. Interest can be prepaid or capitalised, which suits seasonal income; see how that works.

The risks are mostly about weather and markets:

• A poor season. Build slack into the term and don’t rely on a record crop.
• Price swings. If livestock or grain prices fall, the exit shrinks. Have a fallback.
• Over-reach on land. Make sure the long-term refinance is realistic before buying.

Other industries manage similar seasonal swings; see hospitality and the industries hub.

At a glance

• For: grain, livestock, dairy, horticulture, viticulture and rural service businesses
• Security: town, commercial or investment property; rural land case by case
• Structures: first mortgage, second mortgage or caveat
• Lender: fundU, a direct private lender

Ready to find out if you qualify?

Enquiring involves no credit check, and your details are not passed to a string of lenders. A real specialist reviews what you send and calls you.

Tell us which property you would offer, what is owing on it, how much you need and why, and keep it accurate. Correct details about the land and its existing debt are what get you a dependable answer first time. Make your enquiry.