Often overlooked, equipment sale leasebacks offer significant benefits such as instantly infusing growth capital without taking on new debt. Misperceptions persist about what equipment qualifies for Equipment Sale Leaseback Financing arrangements – for example, specialized equipment and machinery or titled rolling stock won’t work.
The process starts with your equipment being professionally appraised for fair market value. You then enter into a lease agreement and make lease payments.
Buying Equipment
If you have specialized equipment, machinery, vehicles or other assets on your balance sheet owned free and clear that are sitting idle, consider an equipment sale leaseback. The financing structure allows you to unlock trapped working capital and fund priority projects without taking on new debt.
Typically, an independent finance company will purchase your equipment from you and then lease it back to you for an agreed-upon term. You retain physical possession and normal use of the equipment while you make monthly lease payments, which can be 100% tax deductible as operating expenses.
Contrary to common assumptions, even startups with a less than perfect credit history can qualify for an equipment sale leaseback. Well-structured agreements can optimize tax deductions and align with operational needs and growth goals.
Selling Equipment
Equipment Sale Leaseback Financing is a financing technique that allows you to monetize equipment owned by your company, transferring temporary ownership of the assets to a financing partner (the “lessor”), and then leasing the equipment back for continued use. This can be a great solution to infuse working capital into a company while preserving line of credit and other debt capacity.
Contrary to popular assumptions, a variety of equipment assets can qualify for sale leasebacks. Additionally, the negotiated lease terms can align to your strategic investment goals and operating plans. And despite criticism that sale leasebacks seem expensive, tax and accounting incentives minimize true total capital costs over longer investment horizons.
Financing the Sale
Sale leasebacks are an excellent source of working capital and provide companies with flexibility to meet both short-term financing needs as well as long-term growth objectives. However, it is important for businesses to carefully consider the terms of the lease agreement and operational impacts before committing to such an arrangement.
With equipment sale leaseback financing, you sell your existing equipment to a finance company, which then agrees to lease it back to you for an agreed-upon period of time (Lease Term). You continue to use the equipment as normal while making lease payments.
This arrangement is an alternative to financing through a bank, which can be difficult for many small to mid-market business owners due to credit challenges and regulatory changes. In addition, sale leasebacks offer built-in tax advantages including non-dilutive funding that does not show up as debt and preserves existing line of credit facilities with your bank.
Collateral
Many businesses are surprised to learn that they can quickly pocket cash from equipment they own – vehicles, heavy machinery and other titled assets – with an equipment sale leaseback. This is a faster and more flexible way to receive funding than seeking an outright buyer or applying for loans that often require months to process.
Specialized lease financing firms understand the value of the equipment you’re selling and can offer a flexible range of options on how to use the proceeds. This includes the ability to negotiate lease durations that align equipment usefulness with capital investment horizons. In addition, lease payments are tax deductible to the seller just like interest expense. This allows you to raise money for a variety of priorities including expansion, inventory buffers or refinancing debt.
Taxes
A sale leaseback (SLB) is a financing option that lets businesses unlock the value in their existing equipment without affecting their cash flow. It provides immediate access to capital, improves the balance sheet and offers tax advantages, including accelerated depreciation.
A SLB can also be structured to avoid triggering interest expense and preserve existing credit facilities with the financing partner. It also makes it easier to qualify for Section 179 and bonus depreciation. Lease payments are classified as operating costs and, depending on the structure of the agreement, may be fully deductible.
Unlike a term loan, a sale leaseback does not require financial covenants that may restrict the use of the asset. This gives you more flexibility to meet your operations’ needs and growth plans.