A shop remodel is the waiting room, the bay floor, and the HVAC that keeps techs in the building. Lifts are a different loan. A dealer invoice with a serial number takes a UCC. Epoxy, lighting, and a restroom the inspector flagged do not.
Auto repair shop renovation financing is an unsecured term loan from $50,000–$500,000 for that mixed work. Terms are 3, 5, or 7 years, often funded in 3–10 business days, with no lien on the building. Pricing is quoted per file in an approximate 6%–18% band.
Buying the shop or the real estate still starts on SBA auto repair shop loans. Lifts stay on equipment financing at 6%–14%.
Jaken Finance Group originates property loans and can help match SBA on a shop purchase. Waiting-room and bay-floor work is a separate unsecured application.
Pre-qualify for an unsecured term loan →
See if you qualify for intro 0% funding →
What the money is for in a shop remodel
- Waiting room, restrooms, and office so the front of house matches the labor rate you print
- Bay floors, lighting, and HVAC that keep technicians and cars in the building
- Electrical for EV / ADAS when the panel is the bottleneck, not the lift
- A TI shortfall on a leased bay the landlord will not finish
- Code and fire items that can shut you down faster than a slow month
If the invoice is two four-post lifts, start on equipment. If the invoice is epoxy plus a new panel plus the waiting room, stay here.
Model extra repair orders against the note
Default load: a $132,000 epoxy, HVAC, LED, and waiting-room bid, 5 extra repair orders a week, a $350 average RO, 42% gross profit after parts and tech, $5,100 current weekly gross profit, and 2 weeks of dark bays. A 5-year note at an illustrative 12.5% is about $2,971 a month. A prettier waiting room with the same car count will not print the payment. Budget fleet work for the floor-pour weeks.
Auto shop remodel vs the payment
Test whether extra repair orders from waiting-room, bay-floor, HVAC, and lighting work cover the installment after parts and tech cost. Lifts stay off this note. Estimates only. Pricing is quoted per file.
Monthly payment
—
Fully amortizing
Extra monthly gross profit
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After the remodel is open
Coverage
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Lift ÷ payment
Net monthly after payment
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Does not include construction weeks
Construction hole
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Lost weekly net + payments while dark
Months to fill the hole
—
If net monthly stays this high
Thin revenue or a new location? See intro 0% funding
Tool-only payment: unsecured term loan calculator. Slow stack: SBA auto repair shop loans.
Unsecured vs equipment vs SBA vs intro 0%
| Need | Better first call |
|---|---|
| Waiting room, floors, HVAC, lighting, office | This page |
| New shop, thin or no revenue | Intro 0% business financing |
| Lifts, alignment, ADAS, with a vendor invoice | Equipment financing, 6%–14% |
| Buy the shop or the real estate, 45–90 days | SBA auto repair shop loans |
| You already own the building and need a mortgage | Commercial financing or SBA 504 |
Do not mash unsecured 6%–18% with equipment 6%–14% or hard money 8.99%–13.5%.
Worked example: epoxy, HVAC, waiting room
A six-bay independent has a $132,000 bid: bay epoxy, LED, HVAC, and a waiting-room refresh. The lifts are two years old.
A $132,000 5-year note at an illustrative 12.5% is about $2,971 a month. If effective labor rate and car count already support the note during a two-week floor outage, the loan is a timing tool. If the shop is already short on billed hours, a prettier waiting room will not print the payment.
Worked example: do not hide the lifts in the GC bid
A $78,000 lift package with serial numbers is equipment. Folding it into a “renovation” invoice to keep one payment is how you skip the cheaper UCC path. Split it.
What underwriting still wants
- Two years of personal tax returns and a P&L that matches deposits
- FICO 8 — no published minimum
- Lease or deed — this note does not mortgage the building
- GC bid with lifts pulled out
- Waste-handling documentation if environmental is in the scope — purchases still go through the SBA auto environmental path
How to apply
- Split lifts (equipment) from floors / HVAC / waiting room (this page).
- Run the remodel amount in the calculator on 5 years, then stress 3 and 7.
- Submit the unsecured financing form. Thin revenue: intro 0%.
- Buying the shop? Start from SBA auto repair shop loans or request commercial financing.
Pre-qualify for shop renovation capital · SBA auto repair · (833) 264-7776
Sources
General auto repair is a top-10 SBA industry by dollars, which is why purchase files start on SBA auto repair shop loans. Program menu: SBA loan programs. Unsecured speed for epoxy and HVAC is still not a forever rate — FTC staff perspective. CFPB Ability-to-Repay is consumer mortgage context.
Calculator figures are estimates for a shop finish-out, not a quote. Jaken Finance Group originates investment-property loans and can help match SBA auto-shop financing. Unsecured term-loan and intro 0% pre-qualification stay on separate applications.