Finance question
Can I finance a campervan or car hire fleet?
Yes. A hire fleet is usually financed on a chattel mortgage secured on the vehicles, and several vehicles can sit in one facility. Established operators are often funded on the full invoice with no deposit, while a newer ABN may be asked for a deposit or property backing, subject to lender assessment.
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The short answer
The vehicles are the security, so the lender is judging the resale and the bookings
Rental cars, vans and motorhomes are among the easier hire assets to finance, because a vehicle has a second-hand market and a resale value a lender can check. Our guide to how lenders treat each asset class calls vehicles, utes and vans the most liquid and easily financed category (asset type guide), though a fitted-out motorhome is more specialised than a standard van, so make, age and body type matter. For a business hire fleet the usual structure is a chattel mortgage: you own the vehicles from day one, the lender registers security over them, and the term is usually two to seven years (chattel mortgage guide).
A balloon is the lever that suits a fleet you rotate. The chattel mortgage guide's worked example is $85,000 with a 30% balloon, which leaves $25,500 due at the end, and it warns that if the vehicle is worth less than the balloon by then, the gap is yours. Set the balloon against what each unit should resell for after your seasons, not against what you hope it will fetch. If you are buying an existing hire business rather than building a fleet, listings run from $45,000 to $3.9 million, and equipment finance against the units themselves is usually the bulk of the deal (equipment hire business guide).
Lenders then look at you and the income. Two or more years on the ABN, with GST registration, gives the widest panel; under two years is workable with a deposit, property backing or evidence of work lined up (ABN car finance guide). Bring an itemised list of the vehicles with make, model, year, kilometres and market value, and your booking history by season, with utilisation by vehicle rather than a fleet average, which hides the units that have not moved in months. Equipment finance runs up to $500,000 with 24 to 48 hour approvals, and low-doc and no-doc options. Ventas is a broker across 40+ lenders, not a single bank, and there is no upfront fee to you; the lender pays us on settlement.
Do you qualify?
What a lender looks at on a hire fleet.
The vehicles
Make, age, body type and the used market for each unit in the fleet.
Your ABN history
Two years plus GST registration widens the panel; newer ABNs may need a deposit.
Hire income
Booking records, agent or platform income, and how the year splits by season.
Insurance and storage
Cover that allows commercial hire use, and a secure place to hold the fleet.
Why a hire fleet funds well
Vehicles are the security
Each unit has a market value the lender can check.
Balloons suit rotation
A balloon sized to expected resale value suits a fleet you replace every few seasons.
Grow in steps
Add units to the same facility as bookings build.
A worked example
An operator with a three-year ABN buys five motorhomes at $100,000 each, $500,000 in all. On a chattel mortgage the lender can fund the full invoice, with a 30% balloon of $150,000 left to settle at the end, about $30,000 a unit, so each motorhome needs to resell for at least that. A newer ABN might be asked for a deposit or home equity instead. Illustrative only.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a deposit to finance a hire fleet?
Not usually for an established business. Full-invoice finance is standard, and a deposit is a cashflow choice. Newer ABNs may be asked for a deposit or property backing.
Can I finance used campervans or ex-hire vehicles?
Often yes. New and used vehicles both qualify, including private sales and auctions, though older units can mean shorter terms, a deposit or an age cap at the end of the term. Make, age and kilometres decide which lenders will take them.
Can repayments follow my busy season?
Some lenders will structure repayments around seasonal income, and a balloon can lower the regular payment. Tell us your high and low months at application so the structure fits the year.
Is a hire fleet financed as a business loan or a car loan?
As commercial credit, usually a chattel mortgage or hire purchase over the vehicles, because they are used for business. Consumer credit protections do not apply.
Can I buy an existing hire business and its fleet together?
Yes. The fleet is funded as equipment finance against the units, usually the bulk of the deal, and the goodwill and customer list are funded as business acquisition, which wants a deposit or property behind it.