Increasing consolidation in the equipment rental industry is driving a greater need for financing solutions as rental houses grow their fleets and lender networks.
The U.S. construction and general tool rental industry is projected to grow by 3.6% in 2026 to a record $83.5 billion, according to a May 19 report by the American Rental Association.
Amid heightened M&A activity, rental companies are seeking customized financing programs that support their expanded and diversified fleets, Josh Nickell, chief executive of Atlanta-based Northside Tool Rental, said May 19 during a panel discussion at Equipment Finance Connect 2026 in Houston.
Northside acquired two Atlanta-area rental companies last week, and therefore must also manage new loans and finance partnerships, Nickell said.
Lenders zero in
Lenders view consolidation as an opportunity to grow their portfolios and forge relationships with larger industry players, Ritzon Fernandez, senior vice president of sales at Equify Financial, said during the panel discussion.
“If we’re doing our jobs right, the consolidation actually helps us,” he said.
At the same time, consolidation pressures lenders to provide the appropriate financing structures, Fernandez said.
“If the structure doesn’t work, we’ll get kicked out because [the buyer] has more options and more people calling,” he said.
There’s also an opportunity for lenders to beef up back-office tasks such as accounting, Fernandez said, noting that some rental houses fail because “they’ve outrun their back office.”
Lenders also are seeing more rental house acquisitions of equipment dealers that generate $40 million to $50 million in revenue per year, Heidi Brooks, U.S. sales manager for commercial finance at DLL, said during the discussion.
Consolidation has “presented a ton of opportunity for us as a lender to really grow our asset base,” she said. “I think we’re going to continue to see it and we have to be ready within the market to accommodate all of it.”
Notable acquisitions last year include:
- Herc Rentals’ $5.3 billion acquisition of H&E Equipment Solutions;
- Opifex-Synergy‘s acquisition of Equipment Finders; and
- United Rentals’ acquisition of Direct Equipment.
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