Traditional bank loans and SBA financing are still effectively unavailable for cannabis acquisitions, since cannabis remains federally scheduled. The market's answer is seller financing: the seller acts as the lender for part of the purchase price. It's one of the most common structures we see, and done right it works well for both sides.
The basic structure
The buyer makes a down payment — commonly 30–60% of the price — and signs a promissory note for the balance, paid monthly over one to five years, usually with interest. The note is typically secured by the business itself, so if the buyer defaults, the seller has a path to take the business back.
On a $1,000,000 delivery business, a representative deal might look like: $400,000 down, and a $600,000 note at 8–10% paid over 36 months. Every deal is negotiated, and we've seen sellers carry far more generous terms when they believe in the buyer.
Why sellers offer it
Seller financing widens the buyer pool dramatically, which usually means a better total price. It can also make sense tax-wise, spreading the gain across years, and monthly note income is attractive to sellers exiting day-to-day operations. In a market where all-cash buyers are scarce, a seller who refuses to carry paper often waits much longer to sell.
Why buyers like it
Beyond stretching capital, seller financing keeps the seller invested in your success — they only get fully paid if the business keeps performing through the transition. That alignment shows up in practice: sellers who carry notes tend to give real handover support, introductions and honest answers during diligence.
Protecting both sides
Good seller-carry deals share a few features: payments and license-transfer milestones are coordinated through escrow; the note is secured and personally guaranteed where appropriate; the transition period and seller support obligations are written down; and default terms are explicit. Cannabis adds a wrinkle — the license transfer timeline means deals close in stages, so the paperwork has to match how city and state approvals actually flow. This is exactly the kind of structuring a broker earns their fee on.
Terms available right now
Many of our current listings explicitly offer terms — it's one of the flags we track on every listing, alongside price, rent and square footage. If cash is your constraint, tell us; we'll point you to the sellers who are open to carrying, and to lenders and investor groups for the balance. Get in touch and we'll talk through what's realistic at your down-payment level.