Small Business Credit and Small Business Lending

Most people who start and operate a small business expect to work hard for long hours in order to get their business idea off the ground. What they don't expect is to have to shine their shoes and their personal financial resume in order to get small business credit from their local bank or financial institution. Yet that is the experience of many small business owners who for a variety of reasons need to have loans, lines of credit, or other small business credit in order to keep their business afloat.

The ability to obtain small business credit from a lending institution is directly related to the financial reliability of the small business owner or operator. One of the first things a bank will ask for is proof that the person requesting the small business credit has a good financial standing in the community.

If one has previous bankruptcies, bad debts, or bad loans in their personal financial past, then the bank is usually very reluctant to provide small business credit or financing. Even if they do agree to provide some funding they almost always charge a premium rate of interest and may even demand guarantors or co-signers to the debt arrangement. That's why it is important to check your credit rating before you head off to the bank for your small business line of credit. There are loan programs available that don't use your personal credit such as cash advance on merchant accounts and accounts receivable factoring.

There may be errors or omissions on your credit report that you can change or amend before the bank turns down your small business credit application. There may a possibility of contacting former creditors to see if an arrangement can be reached before you even ask your lending institution to look at your commercial credit needs. Even if you can't change the content of your credit file you can be at least prepared to provide an explanation to the bank as to why they occurred in the past and to give them assurances they will not happen in the future.

A small business credit application may allow you to apply for start up funding to get your business rolling. It may be a small business line of credit that you can use for short term emergencies or tight cash flow months. It may be a business loan that you can use to buy new equipment for your enterprise or to purchase property on which to build your corporate headquarters. Your bank or commercial lender can help you make the right choice of small business credit vehicle to meet your needs for today and tomorrow.

It is hard to break into the world of small business credit, mostly because the risk of small business failure is greatest during the first couple of years of operation. But once you establish yourself in business with a small business line of credit you can rest at little easier and devote your efforts to making your small business a great success.

Christmas Loans: Have It Your Way On Christmas

Christmas is getting closer and people start getting prepared. But Christmas is expensive; studies show that during Christmas season people's spending increases by more than 120% and more and more people are resorting to Christmas loans to finance the holiday's purchases. But what is so special about this type of loans? And most importantly: What are the promotional terms that are being offered on these loans?

Christmas Loans Characteristics

These loans have specific characteristics that make them unique in the financial industry. They provide financing at reduced interest rates. The interest rates can be so low that you would be surprised, but we will get back to this subject later on. These loans also provide easy payments that turn reimbursement into a simple task as the installments are always affordable without much sacrifices.

Furthermore, the requirements for approval are less harsh. There are loans that do not even require a credit pull. No credit verification loans are offered during Christmas and have become very popular because they can be approved within less than a day. But this also means that bad credit applicants, no credit applicants and even those with a past bankruptcy can also get approved without hassles or delays.

No Interest Rate Christmas Loans?

Looking for low interest rate loans? How about no-interest loans? Yes, during Christmas seasons there are lenders offering loans absolutely for free. You are surely thinking that nothing comes for free so I will explain how they profit from these loans. What lenders usually do is offer higher amount loans at no charge with rather restrictive repayment programs. Thus, when a portion of the borrowers cannot afford the repayment, they agree with them to refinance the loan and settle a new repayment but they obviously charge interests on the new refinanced loan because by then, the Christmas holiday is over.

It is the refinancing they profit from knowing that there will be a good percentage of borrowers that will need to resort to refinancing. However, if you plan ahead and do your budgeting right, you can really take advantage of these loans and be one of those that will not need refinancing. But beware of those lenders that offer free or no interest loan but charge a processing fee. If it is only a small fee, it is ok. However, if the fee is so high that it can easily account for all the interests that they supposedly are not charging you, you should refrain from applying.

Seizing The Opportunity

If you need financing during Christmas and the amount you need is not that high, you should resort to Christmas loans because they provide the best terms during these special times. As soon as the holiday ends, regular interests are charged and obtaining the funds will be significantly more expensive. If you need high loan amounts, then you will probably be better off with a home equity loan or a cash out refinance home loan but if your need for funds is limited to a couple of hundreds up to two thousands or a little more, Christmas loans will provide you with an inexpensive or even free source of funds. It is an excellent opportunity that you should not let pass by.