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Construction Business Loans
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Construction small businesses

Construction businesses are well-known to be a major employer in the Australian economy, and that fact can sometimes lead to a perception that it’s dominated by massive, global business. But the truth is quite different; the construction industry in Australia is primarily comprised of small businesses of twenty employees or less.

“Construction” itself covers such a broad range of projects; builders often develop their own specialties within the industry. Depending on the nature of your business you may want to create a team which covers a broad range of skills, or you may wish to focus in on one key specialty, depending on the demand within your area of operations. 

Additionally, innovation and change in the construction industry are vital, too. As new technology increasingly becomes part of the worksite – both for efficiency and safety purposes – it’s clear that both new and existing businesses will need to embrace new standards and best practices, in order to ensure a high standard of work. It’s an ideal time for businesses to mark themselves out as ahead of the curve on this front – particularly as construction projects start to gain traction again in a post-pandemic world.

Whether you’re looking to break out on your own, expand and/or consolidate your business, or you’re looking to reinvent yourself from the ground up, OnDeck can help you get your finances in order for the next step.

Construction Small Businesses in Australia – the Statistics

There are currently more than 399,000 construction businesses in Australia [i]

 

Construction is the third-largest small business employer in Australia, and also engages the highest number of apprentices and trainees [iv]

 

As of 2019, more than 1.15 million people were employed in construction in Australia [ii]

 

 

Construction generates $360 billion in revenue, equivalent to about 9% of Australia’s GDP [v]

Construction has a projected growth rate of 2.4% per annum over the next 5 years [iii]

 

Digital solutions within the construction industry – such as drones, wearables, laser imaging and construction software – have the potential to add up to $25 billion to yearly revenue within the sector [vi]

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With loans from $10,000 - $250,000 over 6-24 month terms, we work with you to understand what best suits your needs

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What life stage is your construction business in?

OnDeck has specialised business guides and tips for every stage of your business.

Have a look below to see if your industry is listed.

Starting Out

Learning the ropes and honing your business owner skills

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Establishing yourself

Making a name for yourself and cementing yourself as a successful business owner

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Re-Invention and Evolution

Evolving as a business to newer and better heights

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Construction Loan Frequently Asked Questions

Starting with a focus on sales, you’ll widen your reach, get your name known and bring in more profitable business that you can then use as a launchpad for more significant projects.

Becoming well known in your industry through advertising, online marketing and consistent networking can help you bring in more deals.

You can advertise online and offline, network with other businesses or get on the preferred supplier lists for large construction companies.

By overseeing your finances, focusing on sales and doing an excellent job of each project you win, you’ll build up a successful contracting business quickly.

There are lots of ways to do it, but online advertising and radio can be a great way to reach lots of people for a relatively low cost.

Through sound financial management to reduce costs and keep the business ‘lean’, while also generating as many profitable projects as possible will mean stable profitability in a short period.

That’s a simple question. Clients want to know if you’ll do a quality job, to their specifications and deliver the completed works on time. If you can do those three things, you’ll be on the way to being a good contractor.

This varies from company to company, but you need to take into account all of the costs (materials, equipment hire, contractors’ fees, bank costs, interest, labour totals, employee costs) and set them against the total value of the project.

You could start your business for as little as $20,000, but most construction companies have $100,000 or more in funding to cover materials, wages, running costs, marketing (and the time taken to get paid).

Construction company owners may earn between $50k and $100k per year or more, but their companies often make far more than that.

Register a business and company name with ASIC. Get an accountant, talk with an insurance broker, and set up a business account with your bank. Check with your state construction industry body to find out what licences you need. Create a social media and online presence so that people can find you and then start marketing your business. This assumes you have the right qualifications, funding and tools & equipment to get started.

Construction companies usually get paid a deposit to commence a building project and progress payments upon meeting certain milestones.

Improving your construction company can be done by carefully managing your costs, careful scheduling to avoid downtime and by focusing a lot of energy on sales so that there are many projects being quoted at any one time.

Most construction company owners are either trade or university qualified (and often this is a requirement for insurance, licences, etc.). An excellent place to start is by talking with an accountant, as they can help you get your names registered, a company set up and ensure you manage your finances well.

It all comes down to sales. The more you can promote your business, the more opportunities you’ll find in order to grow.

It’s difficult, but not impossible. The first thing you’ll need to do is hire or partner with someone who has the qualifications so that you have legitimacy and can meet the regulatory requirements to run a construction company. They’ll also be able to help with the expertise to make it a success.

It technically is possible, but it’s not recommended, as you’ll be facing financial hurdles at every point and could risk insolvency if anything goes wrong.

Construction companies get clients through all sorts of methods, including TV, radio and online advertising, magazines, social media, trade associations and word of mouth.

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Sources:

[i] https://www.ibisworld.com/au/industry/construction/306/ 

[ii] https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/FlagPost/2019/April/Employment-by-industry-2019 

[iii] https://nationalindustryinsights.aisc.net.au/industries/construction

[iv] https://www.asbfeo.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/ASBFEO-small-business-counts2019.pdf 

[v] https://nationalindustryinsights.aisc.net.au/industries/construction

[vi] https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/sua-gateway-files/Digital-Foundations-media-release-version-1.2.pdf