Qualifying for Business Loans without Collateral
Lenders look at a handful of key eligibility factors. Below are the main criteria used to determine qualification for collateral-free financing.
Bank Statements:
Aim to have your last 3 months bank statements ready for review. All in all, there are minimal paperwork requirements to receive working capital. We won’t ask for a laundry list of financial statements.
Average Monthly Revenue:
Approved businesses typically have a minimum of $10,000 in monthly revenue. The amount of revenue your company generates will impact the loan sizes you’re offered.
Credit Profile:
How much your credit score matters will depend on financing type. Most term loans and business credit lines require credit scores of 550 and above. MCAs, invoice factoring, and equipment loans have lower credit requirements.
Length of Time in Business:
Businesses who have been operating longer are considered less likely to fail. When you’ve been in business longer, lenders consider you a safer bet. Having a proven history of success will help you qualify for the most competitive loans.
Debt Load:
Companies with high amounts of debt and low amounts of revenue are more likely to struggle to repay funds. Lenders use debt-to-income (DTI) ratios to determine how much you can reasonably afford to borrow.
Profitability:
Lenders like to see your business has a track record of profitability. For the best approval odds, you’ll want to be able to show that your company has produced consistent sales.
Top Uses for Collateral Free Loans
We understand that business owners have wide-ranging needs. Whatever your situation, we work fast to find you the best working capital solution.
Growth Initiatives:
When your business is going through a growth spurt, the expenses can pile on. If your company is expanding, you might need financing to open another practice or develop new products. Scaling growth may require you to invest more capital up-front to meet increasing demand and capture new markets.
Pandemic Assistance:
The pandemic has impacted small businesses nationwide profoundly. Some companies are struggling to stay open, while many others are dealing with new COVID-related business expenses, like medical and cleaning supplies. If your financial situation has been impacted by Coronavirus, we’re here to help.
Cash Flow Gaps:
Cash flow gaps happen frequently in business. If you’re experiencing a temporary hiccup in your business cycle, short-term financing can provide a cash buffer to help you get by. Working capital solutions help you cover both unexpected expenses and recurring costs.
Marketing & Advertising Spend:
Building excitement about your company and products is crucial for growth. Strategic marketing and advertising spend can have massive ROI in terms of customer acquisition and sales. Whether you’re upping the budget to outsource or need working capital for in-house marketing initiatives, we’ve got you covered.
Upgrading Equipment:
Business owners take out equipment loans for a number of reasons. In some cases, special equipment is used to accomplish difficult tasks with greater efficiency. In other cases, the job simply cannot be done without machinery. Financing makes equipment purchasing affordable, so you have access to the resources you need when you need them.
Buying Materials:
Inventory purchases can be expensive, especially if you’re buying in bulk. Funding can be allocated towards buying orders so that you have the supplies you need to conduct business and make sales.
Taxes:
A short term loan can help expedite repayment. Rather than enroll in a payment plan with the IRS, you might choose to take out a business loan to eliminate your tax burden immediately. That way, you’re not still getting squared away with this year's taxes when next year's are due.
Payroll:
Staffing is one of the largest expenses a business owner has. You can use business loans to hire more employees,or to keep your current team members on payroll. Staffing loans are commonly used to avoid furloughs and layoffs.
What Are Business Loans without Collateral?
Business loans without collateral are a form of unsecured financing. When you finance with an unsecured loan, there’s no need to pledge your personal property. Qualifying for a business loan without collateral does not involve a “security”. Instead, Lenders look at other eligibility factors to determine if you qualify for financing. If you stop paying your loan, your lender has no rights to your assets.
Collateral-free loans work very differently than their counterparts, secured loans. Unlike business loans without collateral, when you take out a secured loan, you’re required to provide a guarantee. This gives lenders the contractual right to repossess any physical property you put up as collateral - like your home or vehicle - if you become unable to make payments on your loan.
For business owners, collateral-free loans offer an extra layer of protection. When you take out an unsecured business loan, you’re reducing your risk exposure. You get an infusion of working capital, without jeopardizing ownership of your personal assets.
How Do Business Loans without Collateral Work?
Business loans without collateral work similar to most other business financing products. As we discussed above, the key distinguishing factor is that they do not require borrowers to put up collateral in order to receive funds.
Since the loans are not backed by anything, the lender takes on more risk than they do with secured loans. If you stop repaying owed funds, the lender has fewer options to recover the money. As a result, certain types of collateral-free loans require applicants to have higher credit scores. Having stricter qualification criteria, like credit requirements, gives lenders extra assurance that borrowers are likely to pay back their loan responsibly.
That being said, there are a variety of collateral-free loan options available, many of which have lower credit score requirements. Collateral-free loans with low credit requirements, also known as bad credit loans, offer the same asset protection as all other unsecured financing types.
A business cash advance, or invoice factoring, for example, are funding options that are a good fit for all types of credit. They typically have high approval rates.
What Are the Advantages of Financing without a Personal Guarantee?
One of the largest benefits to collateral-free funding is that your assets stay protected. Unsecured loans provide business owners with the same working capital that secured loans do, but with significantly less risk.
This advantage is often appreciated in the event of an unexpected financial hardship. If something happens and you suddenly become unable to repay funds, you’re in a much less vulnerable position. You don’t need to worry about a collection agency seizing and selling off your personal belongings to recover losses.
