It comes down to four things, and once we work through them the choice is usually clear: what you'll do with the property (occupy it, lease it, build it or sell it), how much you need to borrow, how fast you need it, and how you're buying (in your own name, a company, a trust or your super).

Business owners buying their own premises almost always do best on an owner-occupier loan. Investors weigh a standard investment loan against development finance if there's a value-add angle, and if super's involved, an SMSF structure can change the maths. The comparison and head-to-head sections higher up this page walk through each fork, and I'm happy to talk it through if you'd rather just ask.

Yes, and we do it regularly. Layering facilities is often how a deal that looks impossible on one product becomes straightforward across two. The common combinations I structure are:

• Bridging finance for a fast settlement, then refinancing onto a standard loan once the timing pressure is off
• Construction finance that converts to a term loan when the build completes
• Mezzanine finance topping up a first mortgage where a strong project is short of equity

The key is making sure the facilities work together cleanly, without cross-default terms that could trip you up later. That's the part we manage for you.

For most standard purchases and refinances, four to six weeks from application to settlement is typical, and a clean file with everything ready can run faster. The timeline shifts with the loan type: an SMSF purchase takes a little longer because of the trust structure, development finance runs longer again given the feasibility work, and where speed is critical, bridging finance can settle in days. The single biggest lever on speed is having your financials and property details ready from day one, which is the part we help you get right.

Yes, and most commercial purchases are made through an entity rather than a personal name, for asset protection, tax and estate-planning reasons. A company structure gives you limited liability and a clean separation of business and personal assets, a trust offers flexible income distribution, and an SMSF lets you hold the property inside super under the limited-recourse borrowing rules.

The one thing to get right is timing: set the structure up before you make an offer, because changing the purchaser's name after contracts are signed can trigger stamp duty. We work alongside your accountant and lawyer so the structure and the lending line up from the start. It's as much a tax and legal question as a finance one, so it's worth reading the government's guidance on choosing a business structure and getting advice specific to your situation.

Generally no. Commercial property is zoned for business use and usually doesn't carry the residential approvals or safety requirements needed to live in it lawfully. The common exception is a mixed-use property zoned for both, think shop-top housing or a live-work unit, where you can occupy the residential part. If you need both premises and a residence, it's usually cleaner to buy a mixed-use property or finance the two separately, which we can structure together.

Usually, yes. Lenders see an owner running their own premises as lower risk than an investor relying on a tenant, so owner-occupier loans tend to come with sharper pricing, a higher LVR and longer terms than an investment loan on the same building. If you'll trade from the property, it's worth making sure your application is structured to qualify as owner-occupied, it can make a real difference to the rate, and it's one of the first things I check.

You can go straight to your bank, but you'll only ever see that bank's view of your deal, one rate, one credit policy, one answer. The whole reason a deal that one lender knocks back gets approved sharply somewhere else is that commercial lenders price and assess the same situation very differently.

As a business loan broker, my job is to know which lender on our panel of 60+ suits your specific situation, then put your application to them in the way they want to see it. There's no cost to you for that in most cases, the lender pays the broker, so you get the wider market and the legwork without the price tag.