by Brandon Boushy
Are you struggling to find new business startup loans? Don’t worry; you’re not alone. Fifty-nine percent of business owners do not have their funding needs met, but we’ll show you how to improve your odds of getting startup business loans.
Startup companies can still get loans. Lee Smith, the owner of Urbanity, was six months out of college when he wrote a 75-page business loan and got a $250K loan. Today he’s making over $1.5 million selling clothes. That’s a great return on investment, and it shows how much the right plan and funding can help you succeed.
We’ve partnered with National Business Capital (NBC), the number one online site for getting small business loans approved. They’ve helped secure over $2 billion in business loans for over 25,000 small businesses like yours. That’s an average of $80,000 for business startups.
A startup business loan isn’t a specific type, but a catch-all for business loans you can get to start a business. Startup business loans are one of the hardest types of business loans to get. Since the company has not built a track record, the decision is made based on how well the lender can tell the business owner thought through the business plan. Lee Smith, the owner of Urbanity told us: Check out our interview with Lee below: It’s hard to get a startup business loan because startup businesses often fail in the first five years. In those cases, a business startup loan might not be paid back, which causes lenders to be more cautious when lending to a startup business. Don’t worry! There are ways to improve your odds! A startup business loan will normally rely on the personal credit history because the business does not have the same financial records and credit length to evaluate whether the risk is worth taking. Because banks back the business owner, a business startup loan often requires a personal guarantee. You’ll want to make sure you have the following before you apply for business startup loans: Keep reading for more about each one. You’ll want at least a 650 minimum personal credit score when applying for a business startup loan, but higher is better. A higher personal credit score improves your odds of approval and normally reduces the interest rate. You’ll need at least two years of personal and business tax returns for most lenders. National Business Credit does not normally require tax returns. You might need three months to three years of bank account statements depending on the lender. National Business Credit is typically three months. These help lenders establish how much money people owe your small business and can be used to help secure financing. This document is another proof of revenue. It also helps lenders calculate a commonly overlooked cost of doing business. Unpaid invoices fall into two categories: Be prepared with a business plan that shows lenders that you have considered how you will make your business thrive. Remember to have copies of your business license, LLC or incorporation documents, EIN, and other documents that prove you are a legal business entity. Corporations are commonly viewed as more credit worthy because they have more reporting responsibilities that make it easier for companies like Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) to analyze your credit. Check out our blog about how to get a business loan to learn more about D&B and other business credit-building tips. The best small business startup loans are the ones you can actually get! Fortunately, National Business Credit has some loans that are really simple to get: Let’s look at each. An equipment loan requires a 650 FICO score OR $120K in annual sales. The equipment secures the loan, so if you don’t pay the business loan, you won’t be able to operate. Find out more about NBC’s equipment loans. If you have assets to bank your startup business loan, you can qualify for a business loan with three months of bank statements and a soft pull of your credit. People with higher credit scores and higher asset values are more likely to qualify for asset-backed startup loans. If you have stellar personal credit, you can qualify for a line of credit or a personal loan and use it for your startup business financing. Alternatively, you can refinance your mortgage and pull out equity for your startup business. Franchises tend to have an easier time getting a startup business loan. If you’re considering a startup loan as a franchisee, check the SBA franchise registry to make sure the business is on the list of companies that get easier and faster approvals. There are other business financing options that small business owners may come across, but the majority of business loans are not open to startup companies unless they have: The Small Business Administration is a government agency that helps small business owners succeed. They offer four main services: Let’s look at the business loan options available from the SBA. A new business can apply for an SBA loan or business line of credit. There are three categories of SBA loans: Let’s look at each. 7(a) Loans are the SBA’s most common loan program if you are buying real estate because they back loans of up to $5 million that can be used for: Businesses have to meet the following qualifications to get small business loan: If you are buying an existing business or franchise, you may need to ask the existing business owner for the following: Check out the SBA for more 7(a) information. This SBA loan is for businesses to upgrade property through a Small Business Development Center as long as they have less than: A 504 loan is meant to create both business and job growth through the construction or upgrading of: You cannot use a 504 loan to increase working capital or inventory, restructure debt, or speculate on real estate. Learn more about 504 loans. These are the smallest type of startup loan you can get from the Small Business Administration. They are up to $50,000 and can be used for anything except buying real estate or restructuring debt. A microloan lasts for no more than six years and will normally have interest rates of 8% to 13%. Find a microloan lender. Applying for startup business loans is simple. Just follow these seven steps: As mentioned before, you’ll want a 650+ personal credit score or an 80 business credit score from D&B. If you don’t already have the necessary business and personal credit score, consider these options: You can also use NAV to find ways to build your business credit score. You’ll need to sort through and choose the type of startup loan you want to apply for if you go through a financial institution, but lenders like National Business Capital (NBC) will discuss the best startup loan options for you. NBC will help you get better startup financing because they work with 75 business lenders. That means you get the best business startup loans for your scenario. You can choose from: Find out why more people go to online lenders for startup financing than traditional financial institutions. In this step, you’ll look for a financial institution that will help with your startup financing. You can get a startup loan from: Let’s look at each of these. If you have a bank account with a local lender like a credit union, they are more likely to approve you than larger banks or online lenders. Unfortunately, fewer small business owners apply for bank loans from smaller banks according to the FED Small Business Survey. According to the Federal Reserve Small Business Survey, most business owners go to a traditional lender like Wells Fargo, Chase, or Bank of America when they apply for business loans, but they do not offer great odds of approval. You’re better off going to almost anyone else. The table below shows what percentage of business owners apply at each location and what the odds of approval are. Finance companies and small banks are the most under-utilized. These lenders focus on activities like equipment financing. They tend to be alternatives to a traditional business loan, but they have the best approval odds because the monthly payments are secured by something other than your word and credit history. If you need credit, business lines from vendors can be a phenomenal way to start a business. The loan amount may not be as big, but there are benefits to running a lean startup. These may be online or in-store. Synchrony (formerly GE Finance) is a major player in this market, but you can also find plenty of other lenders on National Business Credit. Online lending tends to be more friendly to small business startup loans for bad credit. The loan amount might be lower than other business loans and the interest rate higher, but when you want funding for a business start up it makes sense to consider them. One of the nice things about National Business Credit is they bring together private lenders for business startup loans. This helps you get better credit offers and reduces the number of hits on your credit. Make sure you have all the documents you need to apply for a startup loan. If you don’t, they can hold up the processing time, which for many lenders can be three to nine months. Make sure to ask about the business loan application process before you get started. That way you are fully prepared with everything you need to apply for startup capital. We discussed what you’ll need in earlier sections of the blog. If you haven’t already, you’ll want to update your business plan with the most up-to-date information. Better information helps you be more likely to receive a line of credit or business loan. Pay special attention to the financials and the explanations, especially on how you’ll use the business line of credit. Once you have everything ready, it’s time to apply for your small business loans. Startup companies will often be denied credit from traditional financing options unless they have a good personal credit score, business credit, and offer a personal guarantee. Online lenders tend to be more generous as long as you have a 650 credit score and are using the loan amount for something that can secure the business. Before you accept startup loans for new business ventures, you’ll want to consider: Let’s look at how each of these impact business success. Before you accept startup business loans with no revenue, you’ll need a plan to pay them back. The payments will be a combination of interest payment and principal. Depending on the loan, you might have: Make sure you can afford the payments otherwise you may default on the loan or lose your business. This is especially important if you have a period of time between when you accept the startup loan and when you receive revenue. If you keep part of the loan aside to pay the loan payments, you can protect against this risk. Your interest rates are effectively a business expense. Every time you pay interest, you have less money to reinvest in your business. We created a table of common startup loans to show you how much you’ll be spending on interest for different types of loans using the SBA data and calculator.net. High rates are one of the main reasons that successful small business owners discourage taking out small startup business loans with bad credit. Next, we’ll discuss why business lines of credit are some of the best small business loans you can get. Always choose a business line of credit over a term loan if you are offered it. Lines of credit are some of the best loans for startup business operations. Term loans pay you a lump sum upfront and you pay interest on the full amount. A line of credit is similar to how a business credit card works; it charges you interest on the amount of credit you use. Let’s look at how that can impact your payment using the 25-year loan from the example above. Pretend you only need $25K in the first month. Instead of paying $2,187.72, you’d pay 9.52% interest on $25,000 making it where your payment is only $218.77. You just saved $1,968.95. As you pay the line of credit off, your available credit goes back up. This doesn’t happen with a traditional loan. A startup loan will impact your working capital and cash flow. Let’s look at a few definitions: Working Capital = Current Assets (convert to cash in less than a year) minus Current Liabilities (must be paid within a year) Cash Flow = Money In minus Money Out Here’s how a loan impacts your capital and cash flow: The duration of the loan will impact the payments and interest rates. Assuming the loan amount stays the same, you’ll see the following impacts on other aspects of the loans for startup business operations. Once you get approved for a startup loan, it’s time to put your business in hyperdrive. Use the loan for the purposes you stated in the startup loan application. If you received an SBA loan, make sure you aren’t using it for items that are specifically excluded from your terms. Lee told us: Next, let’s look at some alternatives to loans for startup businesses. Creativity offers a ton of ways to start a business without applying for a startup loan. Consider some of these alternatives to a startup business loan: We’ll look at each of these below to help you with more ideas to get business funding. You can use business credit cards instead of a startup business loan. It’s easier to qualify for these forms of credit, but they most likely won’t cover more expensive costs like buying equipment or property. In addition, business credit cards tend to have higher interest rates than startup business loans. That means lower profits. Startup grants are by far the best way to get money for your small business if you can get them. The Small Business Administration has grants for: Check out other SBA grants. Friends and family can help you become a small business owner. They can either give you money or offer you a startup business loan. You’ll need to find a provider that offers loan servicing for individuals, but it can be done. I financed my home through a friends and family loan that was managed by WestStar to get a lower interest rate than was available on the open market. You may want to ask if they service business loans that way too. Business owners can also get startup funds through crowdfunding. When you use this method to start a new business, you may be committing to deliver a product in exchange for help covering business expenses. Learn how Pooch Selfie approached crowdfunding below: Selling equity requires incorporation, but business owners can raise far more money through selling equity. This method of fundraising involves selling stock, which means the business has multiple small business owners and each is entitled to part ownership. You’ll want to hire a business lawyer to help you draft the incorporation documents if you plan on taking this approach. It’s not always easy to get loans for startup business operations, but if you can acquire one, it can help you accelerate your business growth. Just make sure you have a solid plan for how you’ll use it or you may find yourself in a worse spot than when you started. What kind of business loans have you used? Equipment FinancingWhat Is a Startup Business Loan?
Why Is It Hard to Get a Startup Business Loan?
How Do Business Startup Loans Work?
Personal Credit Score
Tax Returns
Bank Statements
Accounts Receivable
Credit Card Sales
Unpaid Invoices
Business Plan
Legal Documents
What Are the Best Startup Small Business Loans?
Equipment Financing
Asset-Based Lending
Personal Loans
Franchise Loans
Small Business Administration Loans
SBA Loans Startup Business
7(a) Business Loan
504 Business Loan
Microloans
How to Get Loans for Startup Business
Step 1. Build your credit score
Step 2. Choose a loan type
Step 3. Choose a lender
Local Bank or Credit Union
Major Banks
Finance Companies
Online Lenders
Step 4. Prepare your documents
Step 5. Update your business plan
Step 6. Apply for a startup business loan
What to consider before accepting startup loans for business
Payment Terms
Interest Rates
Interest for Different Loans Type of Loan Total Interest Total Repaid Monthly Payment Interest per Year 6 Year $50K Microloan 8% $13,119.67 $63,119.67 $876.66 $2,186.61 6 Year $50K Microloan 10% $16,693.02 $66,693.02 $926.29 $2,782.17 6 Year $50K Microloan 13% $22,266.78 $72,266.78 $1,003.71 $3,711.13 25 Year $250K Fixed Rate 9.52% $406,315.50 $656,315.50 $2,187.72 $16,252.62 10 Year $250K Fixed Rate 10.52% $155,141.03 $405,141.03 $3,376.18 $15,514.10 Term Loans vs Business Lines of Credit
Impact on Working Capital and Cash Flow
Duration of Startup Loan
Step 7. Build for growth
Alternatives to New Business Startup Loans
Business Credit Cards
Small Business Grants
Friends and Family
Crowdfunding
Equity
Build Your Business
Asset-Based Lending
SBA Microloans
Personal Loans
Credit Cards
Other: Specify
