Behind on rent and worried about the lease?

Your location is often your business. A cafe on the right corner, a clinic near the right shops, a workshop with the right access. Losing it over a few months of rent arrears can cost far more than the arrears themselves: fit-out written off, customers lost, staff unsettled. When rent falls behind, the aim is to protect the lease first and fix the cash flow second.

Read before you react

Pull out your lease and check the clauses on rent, default, notice periods and interest on late payments. If the landlord has served a formal notice, note the date and what it asks for. Lease rules and retail leasing laws differ between states, so if a notice has been served, get legal advice or contact your state’s small business commissioner, many of which offer information and low-cost mediation.

Talk to the landlord, with a plan

Landlords generally prefer a paying tenant to an empty shop. A call that says exactly how much you will pay and when is far better received than silence. If you have funding underway, say so. Ask whether a short payment arrangement is possible for any balance. Get any agreement in writing.

If the deadline is already on top of you, start the 60-second enquiry now and read the rest while a real person looks at it.

Fast ways to clear the arrears

Arrears and situation	Usual fast fit
A month or two, business trading well	Unsecured funding on bank statements
Larger arrears plus other debts	Property-secured or consolidation
Recurring tightness around rent day	A line of credit to smooth timing

With statements ready, approval within the hour is common and funds can be paid directly to the landlord or agent, often within 24 hours.

Is the rent the real problem?

Sometimes arrears are a timing issue: a slow month, a late customer, a seasonal dip. Funding solves those cleanly. Other times the rent is simply too high for the business’s turnover. Borrowing to pay unaffordable rent just delays the decision. If that is your situation, consider whether a rent review, a sublease, a smaller space or an assignment of the lease makes more sense, and get advice before you sign anything.

A worked example (illustrative)

A hair salon falls two months behind on rent after the owner’s long illness, about $19,000 in total. The agent issues a notice to remedy. The owner calls the agent, promises full payment within a week, enquires that day and is approved within the hour on her statements, which show trading back to normal. The agent is paid three days later, well inside the notice period.

A habit that helps

Set up a separate account and move a fixed amount into it every week for rent and outgoings. When rent day arrives, the money is waiting. It is a simple step that removes one of the most common monthly squeezes in small business, and it makes the next rent review far less stressful.

What lenders will ask for

Most delays come from documents that are not ready when they are asked for. Line these up before you enquire:

• The lease and any notice served
• Arrears statement from the landlord or agent
• Landlord or agent payment details
• Business bank statements
• Photo ID and ABN

What holds things up

The usual suspects when things drag:

• Ignoring notices until the deadline
• Disputing the amount without evidence
• Other overdue bills not disclosed
• Leaving it until the landlord has re-entered

One request before you enquire

We ask a short list of questions because each one changes which option fits and how fast it can move. Please answer them as they really are, not as you hope they will be next quarter. If you have a default, an ATO debt or a new ABN, say so up front. It will not stop us looking, and it means there are no surprises halfway through that slow everything down.

Before you go

• Read the lease and any notice carefully
• Speak to the landlord early with a specific date
• State small business commissioners can help with lease disputes
• Fast funding can clear arrears before the lease is at risk

How the 24-hour clock works here

Fast does not mean careless. Every loan still gets a proper look at how the business trades, who owns it and how the money will be repaid. The difference is that we do the looking quickly and in parallel. Bank statements can be read in minutes once they are shared, property loans do not wait on a valuation, and documents are signed electronically. Approval within the hour is common, and funding within 24 hours is possible when every party signs promptly.

Let’s get it moving

If this sounds like your situation, the next step takes about a minute. There is no credit check to enquire, your details are not sprayed to multiple lenders, and a real person picks it up. The more accurate your answers, the quicker the match. Enquire now.