Getting a Small Business Loan Without Collateral, 4 Steps to consider
Getting a Small Business Loan Without Collateral, 4 Steps to consider
The quest for a small-business loan either to fund your next stage of growth or to keep your business on solid ground during an unexpected crisis — one thing to consider is whether you’ll be expected to bring collateral to the table.
Collateral acts as security for the lender in the event that you default on the loan and can’t repay it for any reason. If your business is short on assets that could be pledged as security, finding a no-collateral business loan may be your top priority.
Fortunately, it’s possible to find business loans that don’t require collateral as a condition for approval. Before applying for one of these loans, it’s important to do your research so you know what to expect.
1. Know Your Options for No-Collateral Business Loans
The first step in getting a business loan requiring no collateral is to know which options are available. No-collateral loans are offered by a variety of lenders, but loan terms and approval requirements can be very different.
Online and Alternative Small Business Loans
Online and alternative lenders can offer a variety of loans without collateral requirements to help you meet your business’ working-capital needs. The types of financing you may be able to get without having to provide collateral upfront include:
- Term Loan
- Invoice Financing (also known as “accounts receivable financing”)
- Inventory Financing
- Merchant Cash Advance
- Equipment Financing
- Purchase Order Financing
- Line of Credit
With these types of small-business financing, there may be some type of security required, but it isn’t cash or another physical asset you have to offer. For example, with invoice financing, you’re leveraging your outstanding invoices to borrow money.
With a merchant cash advance, you’re borrowing against the value of your future credit card receipts. And in the case of equipment financing, the equipment you’re buying or leasing serves as collateral for the loan.
Peer-to-peer lending is another option for small-business financing that doesn’t require collateral. Peer-to-peer lending platforms connect investors with small-business owners who need loans. Investors pool money together to fund the loan, and owners pay it back the same as any other loan, with interest. These loans are unsecured, meaning there’s no collateral needed.
At havelet Finance Limited, we offer our clients with all kinds of loans without collateral. Most times, what we require from our respective clients are promissory note/personal Guarantee for repayment of the loan
2. Review Your Business Financials to Determine Whether You Qualify
Some types of no-collateral small-business financing may be more difficult to qualify for than others. With an SBA 7(a) loan, for instance, you must have at least two years of operating history under your belt, meet the SBA’s definition of an eligible small business, and have the minimum credit score and revenues SBA lenders look for. The SBA also requires that you exhaust all other borrowing options first before applying for a 7(a) loan.4
With online and alternative lenders, on the other hand, the requirements may be more fluid. For example, a lower credit score may not be an obstacle to getting a merchant cash advance or invoice financing. And it may be easier to get startup loans from online or alternative lenders that only require six months of operating history.
The second step in getting a business loan with no collateral requirements is evaluating your business and its overall financial position. That means doing things like:
- Checking your personal and business credit scores
- Updating your balance sheet
- Creating key financial documents, such as a profit and loss statement and a cash flow statement
- Reviewing your business expenses and overall cash flow
The purpose is twofold: to determine your creditworthiness for a loan and to assess your ability to pay it back. Failing to repay a loan can damage your credit score, making it more difficult to obtain any type of financing in the future.
3. Be Prepared for a Personal Guarantee
While you may be able to get a small business loan without having to offer collateral, that doesn’t mean the lender won’t ask for other conditions. Specifically, you may be asked to sign a personal guarantee or agree to a Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) lien.
A personal guarantee is what it sounds like: an agreement that you’ll personally repay the debt taken on by your business. Personal guarantees are often a requirement for no-collateral loans and small-business credit cards. As the lender has no collateral it can attach if you don’t pay, the guarantee gives it leeway to sue you personally to collect an unpaid debt.
4. Consider the Terms Carefully Before Signing
If you’ve applied for a small-business loan without collateral and have been approved, the final step is understanding the loan terms and conditions. When reviewing the loan agreement, pay attention to the interest rate, annual percentage rate (APR), the payment schedule, and the loan term.
You need to know how long it will take you to pay the loan off and what your total cost of borrowing adds up to when the interest and fees are factored in.
Speaking of fees, check to see which fees you’re being charged. For instance, that might include a loan origination fee or prepayment penalty. If your cash flow allows you to pay off the loan early, you don’t want to pay a penalty to do it.
Finally, consider whether a personal guarantee becomes part of the borrowing agreement. While you may have the best of intentions to repay the loan, it’s important to understand how these requirements might affect your business if you’re unable to hold up your end of the bargain for any reason.
Above all, Havelet Finance Limited got you covered. We are willing and able you fund you with all kinds of loans devoid of collateral. The indemnity/security we required to fund loans are borrowers promissory note/personal guarantee for loan repayment. to get started, kindly make your contacts below;
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