Small Business Loan Success With Guerrilla Financing Options

The necessity of resorting to guerrilla loan tactics has been accelerated by the decreased performance of commercial lenders in providing effective and realistic small business finance programs.

To help commercial borrowers achieve small business loan success in an increasingly hostile commercial banking environment, AEX has published a report that is designed to serve as a short survival guide for business owners when they are seeking business financing. These suggestions should be considered by most commercial borrowers in the early stages of their commercial financing search due to the growing failure of banks and other lenders to provide a normal level of business funding — so while the actions described in this AEX report might be seen as a last resort to be undertaken only when all else fails, we view them as a prudent starting point.

In the current dysfunctional commercial lending climate, business borrowers should not hesitate to do whatever it takes for their business to survive. A link to the AEX "Survival Guide" is provided in the right-hand column of The Working Capital Journal.

New Small Business Loan Sources

Some of the most effective new small business loan sources are operating regionally rather than nationally. Realistic commercial loan solutions will depend on a combination of underwriting criteria such as (1) type of financing; (2) business activities; (3) size of loan; (4) business location; (5) length of operating history; (6) cash flow; and (7) debt repayment history. Business owners need to be aware that there are a number of active commercial lenders which are currently making small business loans to businesses. While there are viable solutions and some new commercial financing sources, even the most effective small business financing sources will not be able to help all businesses. However, because many small business owners are being routinely told by current lenders that they cannot provide needed small business loan and working capital help, commercial borrowers should anticipate that new commercial loan sources might be needed.

Refinancing Small Business Loans and Working Capital

Difficulties for refinancing small business loans are occurring frequently with short term working capital financing and long term commercial real estate loans. In some cases commercial borrowers are attempting to secure additional cash, and in other situations they are being forced to refinance an existing commercial loan by the current lender. With either possibility, most small businesses are trying to deal with reduced sales and cash flow, and this makes refinancing business debt both more important and more difficult. Whatever the specific financing situation for a small business, commercial borrowers should be better prepared if they approach the process with a realization that there might not be the usual solutions for refinancing business loans. It is likely that businesses will need to evaluate new commercial lending sources and new business financing programs before the end of their efforts to refinance business debt.