Buying a Pub or Bar

Freehouse, tenancy or lease

A freehouse freehold is a property purchase with a business attached. A brewery tenancy or pubco lease is an ingoing premium for the right to trade under someone else's terms — with tie obligations on what you buy and from whom. The finance, the risk and the negotiation differ completely.

Read the trade honestly

Barrelage figures from the brewery, till data across all four seasons, and the split between wet sales, food and events. A pub propped up by summer trade or one quiz night a week needs pricing accordingly.

• —Wet-led versus food-led margin structures
• —Premises licence conditions and hours
• —Tie obligations and their real cost per pint

The building matters

Pubs are old buildings with roofs, cellars and cellars' worth of surprises. Commission a full survey, check the drainage and the electrics, and price in what the next five years of maintenance will actually cost.

Financing a pub

Freehouses suit commercial mortgages over long terms with deposits ranging from 5% to 30%. Tenancy and lease assignments fund the ingoing premium, fixtures and stock with shorter facilities — and often a staged refurbishment budget to reposition the offer after completion.

The pub acquisition market spans a wide range — from community locals asking £150,000 for a leasehold tenancy to freehold free houses asking £500,000 or more. Whether the deal is freehold, leasehold tenancy, or managed house significantly affects how the funding is structured and which lenders are best placed to help.

If you are ready to look at funding for a specific purchase, read more about Pubs & Bars acquisition finance and loans, including how lenders assess these deals and the areas we cover.