Business Financing Options

By Author: Stephen Bush
Total Articles: 4762
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This report describes several commercial loan options that are practical replacements for traditional bank financing. Because there continue to be negative reports about the ongoing challenges in obtaining business loans from banks, an increasingly prudent approach for small businesses is to explore whether there are effective commercial finance options before they are actually needed to replace financing from banks. It is realistic for business owners to hope for successful results from these efforts since there are several practical choices when an effective replacement is needed by borrowers for small business financing services no longer available from many banks.

The strategy likely to be of most help for small business borrowers will be a variation of contingency planning for their commercial finance needs. In its simplest form, this involves formulating a detailed plan for what action to take when specified events occur. For example, it will be prudent for commercial borrowers to anticipate that their current business lender might reduce or eliminate an existing unsecured line of credit (working capital financing ...
... not secured by commercial property) because this trend is in fact already gaining momentum with commercial banks in all regions.

None of the three working capital management options noted below are totally free of potential problems and complications. At the same time, it should be noted that the sudden lack of reliable bank financing for small business owners is itself a major complication and problem requiring a timely solution. Before finalizing any new arrangement for business financing, the advantages and disadvantages need to be thoroughly reviewed as with any other new business finance service.

A business cash advance approach generally referred to as credit card receivables factoring is one useful alternative for businesses which regularly accept credit cards from their customers. It is a way for businesses to receive cash now and gradually repay the amount provided by allocating a portion of future credit card processing toward repayment.

Working capital loans from non-bank sources that do not require commercial real estate or other assets as collateral are among the most useful options to replace business bank financing. To replace a line of credit which is being reduced or eliminated by a traditional bank, this type of business financing serves as a viable option. Alternatively a business borrower might need additional commercial funding to buy inventory or supplies. A reliable source of working capital is a key ingredient for continued success for even the most successful business. As noted both here and in media reports, traditional banks are no longer doing an adequate job of filling this critical role and need to be replaced by effective commercial lending sources.

Accounts receivable financing is another practical business finance choice to replace bank financing. This form of receivables factoring can be helpful to bridge a cash flow gap between sales and payment from customers. While this is by no means a new form of business financing, the major use has typically been by large corporations. Commercial borrowers are rapidly learning to adopt this effective financial strategy due to banks exiting their previous active role of providing small business loans.

The failure of most banks to satisfactorily provide routine daily commercial loan options is one of the chief ongoing criticisms reported by many small business owners. Even if there has been a long and prosperous working relationship with a bank, very few small businesses have the financial means to overlook the current business loan shortfall exhibited by most banks. Although the reality of less bank financing is acknowledged by many commercial borrowers, one common response is that nothing can be done to replace their traditional source of commercial financing. The three examples above are illustrations of practical small business finance strategies readily available to most small businesses needing to explore immediate ways for replacing bank business loans.

There are two financing situations that businesses should especially be prepared for banks saying "no". One of these involves commercial real estate financing and the other working capital financing (including commercial lines of credit). Recent nationwide business lending reports clearly show a drastic reduction in commercial loans for commercial mortgage loans and working capital financing, although a small number of banks are still proving to be reliable sources for some commercial financing options.
About Author:
Steve Bush is a reliable source of business loan services and has provided effective advice to business borrowers for 20 years. He delivers small business finance options and business cash advances throughout the U.S. Steve is the Founder and CEO of AEX Commercial Financing Group - http://aexcfg.com