Clara's best Unsecured Business Loans.
What is an unsecured business loan?
They are commonly used to cover operational costs, expansion, equipment upgrades, purchasing of inventory, consolidating business debt, or to help bridge gaps in cash flow.
In exchange for funding, lenders will require repayment of the principal with interest in addition to potential fees.
What are the pros and cons of an unsecured business loan?
- They not dependent upon the value of collateral, so there is no risk to existing business assets in the event of a loan default.
- It may be easier to apply for and get approved to borrow smaller amounts of money.
- The online unsecured loan process involves less paperwork and can take less time to apply.
- Funds can be available with a day or two
- The underwriting process may be easier without documenting collateral assets in an appraisal process.
- Paying back your debts on-time can help to build business credit.
The cons of an unsecured business loan are:
- You as a director or manager of the company must make a personal guarantee, so if the debt is defaulted on, your car, house, stocks or other things could be taken.
- Interest rates are usually higher than a business line of credit or a secured business-loan.
- The amount you can borrow tend to be lower.
- You will need an excellent credit score.
- They can be very difficult to get.
Is a unsecured business loan right for your company?
According to data from the Survey of Business Owners in 2012 only 5% of businesses used bank debt to expand, 5% used personal credit cards, 22% used personal savings and 57% didn't expand at all.
Banks are still your best bet for a loan according to data from the Small Business Lending Index. However there are a number of new companies called FinTechs (Financial Technology) that are offering unsecured loans to businesses also. Our list above is the best way to compare all the options.
What should you look out for when chosing an unsecured business loan?
Understanding the lending world can be confusing and time-consuming, so it pays to check a couple of things and make sure the lender you're working with isn't a bad actor.
You can use the our tool above to figure out more information on these companies but you should look out for:
- Does this loan require any kind of personal guarantee?
- What is the (APR) or annual percentage rate?
- Read the fine print! It is important to read and understand the entire document.
- Look for the terms "UCC" (Uniform Commercial Code) - which gives the lender the right to any number of personal goods above all others or "Blanket Lien which gives the lender rights to all of the debtor's assets " in the fine print and understand the implications.
Some of the key terms are:
Loan amounts:
Typically what is offered is from $1,000 up to $250,000, but may exceed $1,000,000.
Unsecured vs. Secured Business Loans – How do they work?
Secured debt requires collateral as the borrower’s pledge of specific assets to a lender to secure repayment in the event of a default on the loan. Secured loans are more common for businesses with a higher perceived risk, but due to the collateral requirements they have lower interest rates. Types of small business collateral can include real estate, cash, equipment, property, or other valuable business assets that act as secondary payment if a borrower cannot pay back the loan.
What type of businesses should apply for an unsecured loan?
How to get an unsecured business loan?
- Lenders will look for an established business credit history (usually at least 12 months of fiscal data).
- A personal credit score that is rated good to excellent (670 to 850) will have higher chances for receiving loans and competitive interest rates.
- Most lenders will require at least 12 months in business, but for younger business they may consider impressive credit, sales, or strong cash flow.
- Generally, the larger your revenue and sales figures are the larger loan your business will qualify for. In some cases the amount will be a percentage of total sales. The majority of lenders will be looking for annual revenue over $100,000.
Can I get an unsecured business loan for startup?
The kind of business will be very relevant, if it's a riskier tech play borrowing money will be much harder, if it's a restaurant and you need capital to set it up this is more likely.
If your startup is pre revenue and operates in the high tech sector we recommend you check out business angels instead of borrowing money. They're more willing to invest in your company than a lender is to lend with no revenue history.
We get asked a lot about Startup business loans bad credit no collateral.
The answer is a likely no here, unless the company has revenue (even without collateral) but without revenue, bad credit and no collateral the risk to lend your company money is too high, and any lender who is willing is likely more a loan-shark than a reputable lender.
What are snapcap loans?
Snapcap Reviews
We've read a lot of snapcap reviews and most of them are positive, the key thing they highlight is great customer service and fast payouts. The negative reviews aren't happy with the interest rates generally.
What are BFS loans?
Types of business finance
Secured Loan
Is a type of business finance that requires a kind of security for the lender, many of the other kinds of loan on this list will require this kind of security typically too. Usually you give a personal guarantee, guarantee over the assets being purchased or security over business assets likes buildings, stock, or other valuable business assets.
Unsecured Loan
Is a type of business-finance that doesn't require you to put up assets against the loan, usually the lender will vet your credit score, the businesses credit score and your businesses revenue. Typically this debt is more expensive in terms of interest charged than a secured loan.
Line of Credit
Is a type of business finance that operates a lot like a credit card (or even can be a business credit card), you can draw down for specific costs and only pay interest on those. They are typically higher cost loans and good for short term cash flow but wouldn't be good for larger expenses.
Working Capital Loan
Is a type of business finance that can be used for day to day working expenses, like payroll or inventory costs. They take a bit longer to get but are typically cheaper than other loans.
Business Term Loan
Is a type of business finance that you get in a lump sum and pay back in regular installments for a fixed term (usually between 1-5 years.)
Small Business Administration (SBA) Loan
Is a type of business-finance that are government backed and securitized against personal or business assets they have three different programs:
- The 7(a) Loan Program is the SBA's main loan program they offer between $350,000 to $5 million.
- The Microloan Program is ideal for smaller business with less collateral, they offer $10,000 to $50,000.
3. The CDC/504 Loan Program is a small loan fixed rate long term financing program, it's main purpose is to modernize or expand operations including buying new equipment or real estate. These loans have a 5-25 year term and usually go up to $5 million.
Is actually not a debt but a sale of an unpaid invoice. They're ideal for businesses that have short term cash flow issues and are willing to sell unpaid invoices at a reduced price to get cash quickly.
Invoice Financing
Is a type of business finance that lets you borrow against unpaid invoices and then pay back once the invoice is paid.
Merchant Cash Advance
Is a type of business finance is less debt and more an advance on sales revenue you haven't got in your account yet. Another type of funding that is useful for short term capital needs.
If you need more information on short term business loans our friends at the Financially Independent Millennial.
What is Fast Track business loan?
If you're looking for Fast business loans check out our list here.
The least expensive form of short-term financing is?
However this isn't available for everyone we recommend checking out business line of credit or business credit cards which one activated (which can be within 24h) can be used whenever credit is needed.
Balboa Capital reviews
Balboa Capital reviews are mixed for sure, some of their customers love them as they were unable to get access to traditional lenders like BoA or Wells Fargo while others complained about the terms of their loans or 'unfair practices' we can't confirm these but we recommend you read the entire contract if you don't understand it leave us a comment or ask your loan rep at Balboa.
Who are Global Funding experts?
No Money Down Business Loan
Here's a list of no money down business loans:
SBA Microloan
SBA CAPLines Program
SBA Export Loans
SBA Disaster Loans
Check our full list of lenders and their application and fees here.
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Post Oak loans are great for businesses that are relatively young. You can get approval within 24 hours and funding within 1-2 days.
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Wells Fargo offers an unsecured loan that can be approved instantly. It's ideal for: large one-time expenses, business expansion, facility remodels and emergency repairs. The loan requires $1.50 in cash flow for every $1 borrowed.
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Kabbage offers unsecured loans in the form of lines of credit for small businesses needing quick funding and financing and is available to companies with bad credit or low credit scores.
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Merchant Advisors' business lines of credit offer flexibility for small businesses to reach short-term goals by improving cash flow and access to working capital. With one year in business, $150,000 in annual revenue, and a 600+ credit score businesses can be approved within 24 hours.
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Headway's line of credit offers up to 100k in loans and are typically available within 1 day.
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National Business Capital offers a line of credit, much like a credit card where a business can draw down only what they need and only pay interest on that sum.
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